幽玄

8 technology a.k.a. ecosophy 8 a.k.a. 8

brings together science, digital technology, south asian philosophies and japanese aesthetics and other things -  in an attempt to create sublime works of art that shed light on our contemporary ecology and being.

this series of works for galleries, theatres, landscapes and architectural sites take place in europe, japan, new zealand, the u.s.a., and the global medium of the internet. drawing on the inter-active, immersive and multi-sensory qualities of the japanese tea ceremony (known in japan as sado), 8 create exquisite, sensuous experiences for today’s global society.

this all begins with the conception of ‘zero’. zero was conceived by mathematicians in ancient south asia. zero’s conception could be seen as the historical and conceptual starting point of our contemporary digital age, which in mathematical terms requires zero for its binary system.

i_magine and the red cube series, like other 8 projects, use contemporary processes and technologies of the every day, to explore the concepts of zero, of void, and of emptiness. the buddhist concept of emptiness, which in sanskrit is the same word as zero, is based on the idea that all phenomena exist only in relationship to each other. the japanese word for the human being, conceives the human being always in relationship to her/his environment: ningen,. the japanese word for society, the world,  conceives a ‘world-in-relationship’: seken. such ideas lead us to what might be called a ‘deep ecology’, where human being is not at the centre of the world, but a part only of enormous web of life with which s/he is constantly inter-acting and engaging with all other phenomena.

8 is examining ‘being’ within a particular framework, dynamic, and flow - intellectual, conceptual, artistic - that notionally begins with the original manifestation of tantric ‘technological’ and ecological practice in south asia.

this technological practice is paralleled by philospher martin heidegger’s thinking on techne.

furthermore 8 engages with contemporary scientific ideas of non-anthropocentric being and  ‘deep ecology’ where the human is not considered the center of things); as wel as relationships between science and philosophy such as those of james austin, gregory bateson, fritjof capra, antonio damasio, werner heisenberg, james lovelock, lynn margulis, humberto maturana and francisco varela, arne naess, and candace pert. It culminates in investigating the possibilities of developing such a notion of being in relation to architectural processes and internet technology.

8 explores such ‘big’ ideas through the intimate and sensual medium of a contemporary tea ceremony.

one of the influences on tea ceremony could be described as  an aesthetic of ‘artless poverty’ or wabi sabi. another is  the notion that  the sacred is found in the every day.

engaging with this idea, in many contexts, 8 deliberately use found objects and technologies: making films, stills, and other work images with ‘lo-res’ cameraphones,  the corporate technologies of powerpoint, keynote, and the personal processes of iweb, imovie, etc. imperfection is pre-requisite. there are some resonances and parallels here with: arte povera; the way french ‘new wave’ cinema directors used 16mm in the 1950s; and the way later godard and marker used 8mm and then video.

here, like the tea ceremony, each art work is designed specially for the specific location, the season, as well as the mood and sensibility of its audience or guests. the tea ceremony is an art work that dwells in the realm of the senses: touch, smell, sight, hearing and taste all combine to facilitate the possibility of its participants glimpsing the sublime, touching the void.

8 members, associates, collaborators

what is 8?

f.a.q.

what is

ecosophy

what is

deep ecology

what is

a tea ceremony

what is

a zen garden

what do we mean by

technology

幽玄