Taking three short texts as starting points, this session considers how utopias are constructed and by what means, how their boundaries are demarcated and who is excluded from them, and what kinds of communities they can facilitate.
Readings
Thomas More: Utopia
A short excerpt from Thomas More's 1516 Utopia describes the fictional island of Utopia as a partially enclosed circle: it is depicted as a partially enclosed circle whose main features are harbours and fortifications, presenting the island as a defended yet porous interface through which communication and trade takes place. The reading includes two versions of the printed frontispiece.
John P. Barlow - A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace
John P. Barlow’s 1996 A Declaration of the Independence of Cyberspace presents a manifesto for an internet built on free speech and self-governance: “we are creating a world that all may enter without privilege or prejudice”. Now 30 years since its publication, A Declaration is a contested utopian vision still worth exploring in the context of today’s Internet.
Fred Scharman - Space Settlements
Fred Scharman’s Space Settlements is an analysis of 1970’s speculative architectural proposals for large-scale space settlements, framed around the paintings of Rick Guidance and Don Davis. The selected chapter examines how new architectures create new human subjectivities within existing economic and social structures.
Reading Group information
Texts will be distributed in advance of the reading group. Participants will also be invited to bring an object or image which responds to the session’s themes. There will be opportunity to view the exhibition and discuss utopias in relation to the exhibition. The reading group is intended to be an informal, generous space for conversation and interaction. The texts are chosen as points in a constellation that can be expanded upon together.
The Magic Circle is a reading group on technology and belief systems run by artist and researcher Ellie Wyatt. Previous sessions have been hosted at Tenderbooks, Biblioteka, 67 York Street Gallery, and Plicnik Space Initiative.
