Amazon’s Cabinet of Curiosities (Algorithmic Enquiry No. 1) is an artwork created during a workshop in which Emilio Vavarella and a group of entrepreneurs addressed the relationship between human and artificial intelligence.
The artificial intelligence is Alexa, the virtual assistant developed by Amazon, which, starting with the question “Can you recommend a product to make a work of art?”, chose a series of objects through its suggestion system, until the budget was exhausted.
The human intelligence, on the other hand, is represented by an artist and a group of entrepreneurs, who have used their visionary thinking to give new meaning to the set of products selected by Alexa.
The result is a multi-handed installation hosted by ArtVerona 2019, in which an unpredictable sequence of objects chosen by Amazon’s algorithms acquires a meaning unknown to the machine world and the result of human creativity.
Amazon’s Cabinet of Curiosities investigates the delicate relationship between the skills of human and those of machines. The exhibition stimulates reflection on individual and relational competencies, the soft skills needed by human beings to make connections between seemingly disconnected elements and to project ourselves toward what does not yet exist.
The artist
The work of Emilio Vavarella combines interdisciplinary research and media experimentation, and his works examine the relationship between subjectivity, non-human creativity and technological power. He has exhibited at major media art festivals and in international museums and foundations, including: MAXXI – National Museum of 21st Century Arts; MAMbo – Museum of Modern Art in Bologna; iMAL Center for Digital Cultures and Technology; Museum of Contemporary Art Vojvodina; Villa Manin and Museo Nacional Bellas Artes in Santiago. He is currently a researcher at Harvard University.
Read more
Read “We will not leave artificial intelligence to computer scientists”, Exibart’s article on the relationship between contemporary art and AI.
Credits
AMAZON’S CABINET OF CURIOSITIES is a project curated by Sineglossa and realized with the contribution of Fondazione Cariverona.
The work was made possible by contributions from:
Alberto Brazzale, Brazzale SpA
Chiara Carletto, Calzedonia SpA
Gianna Comuzzi, Lavagnoli Marmi
Filippo Dall’Amico, LaPrimaPlastics
Michelangelo Fasoli, Durendal Ventures Group
Matteo Gelmetti, Arspixel
Giovanni Guerri, Guglielmo
Silvia Nicodemo, Veronesi Holding
Enrico Pandian, Supermercato24, Checkout, Technologies, FrescoFrigo
Thomas Pandian, Verona North Basin Council
Marta Veronesi, Aia SpA
Laura Veronesi, Veronesi Holding SpA
