We’ve all experienced the dark side of technology. The privacy minefields of Facebook, the bombastic bullying on Twitter and the front-facing camera, which has turned each of us into selfie-taking narcissists.
An upcoming exhibition at The Art Gallery in NYU Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) explores our complex and often conflicting relationship with electronics. For years questions have swirled around issues of confidentiality and exhibitionism. Invisible Threads: Technology and its Discontents will examine these challenges, as well as the consequences and tensions that emerge in our everyday lives. “From the industrial revolution to the dawn of space travel and the creation of the internet, technological revolutions have had profound impacts on the arts,” explains co-curator Bana Kattan.
15 international artists, including renowned Chinese activist Ali Weiwei and American researcher Addie Wagenknecht, will push boundaries and confront contemporary social themes, which they hope will foster curiosity and critical reflection in the UAE’s growing arts audience. “This universal theme is especially relevant in the UAE, a country that is home to extraordinary state-level technological innovations, as well as a remarkably tech-savvy, connected population,” says Kattan. “This exhibit showcases some of the most interesting artwork being made today around the topic of the individual’s experience with technology. I am honoured to be bringing this theme to the forefront of the UAE art scene”.
With such an impressive roster of artists, there’s no doubt that Invisible Threads: Technology and its Discontents will incite discussion about this global topic, framed through the region’s technological advancements. After all, while the downsides associated with technology make you wonder whether such advancements are worth it, we now live in an era when we're able to relive countless moments though digital footprints. Does the good really outweigh the bad? Head to NYU Abu Dhabi to find out.
Invisible Threads: Technology and its Discontents runs from 22 September to 31 December in The Art Gallery at NYU Abu Dhabi (NYUAD)
