Copy That?

Surplus Data in an Age of Repetitive Duplication
2020

Curated by Hannah Redler-Hawes, Julie Freeman and Anna Scott

Visit the online projects, physical exhibition closed due to Covid-19 restrictions.

Copy That? ODI Data as Culture research and partnership season for 2019–2020. It encompasses online projects, an exhibition and separate but interconnected installations, performances and events at our HQ and elsewhere.

Copy That? asks: how ‘true’ is the ‘data you’ and how many versions exist online? From the myth of the perfect digital copy to the benefits and pitfalls of simulation, we question the purpose and trustworthiness of incessantly reproduced data. What gets lost or gained in translation? How important are corruption or interference to creating and revealing ‘true’ copies? Moreover, as the internet creaks under the volumes of data being copied and shared, servers heat up, fuelling growing concerns about our climate. What number and kind of copies should a healthy internet be able to sustain?

We are open to discuss collaborations with other potential partners. You can get in touch here.

Participating artists with completed projects:

Alistair Gentry with DoxBox trustbot

Ben Neal, Edie Jo Murray and Harmeet Chagger-Khan with Mood Pinball

Mr Gee with Bring Me My Fire Truck (The New Jerusalem?)

Participating artists with speculative projects:

Boredom Research, Anna Ridler, Antonio Roberts and Alan Warburton

Associated works

Best Effort Network by Olia Lialina

Daemons of the Shadow World by Giles Lane

Curatorial team

Hannah Redler-Hawes, Julie Freeman and Anna Scott

Design

Adrian Philpott, Philpott Design

Thanks

We are grateful to the funders and partners acknowledged alongside each work, who have made these pieces possible.

We are also grateful to the following artists, scientists and cultural practitioners for their previous and ongoing contributions to the theme:

Ruth Catlow and Charlotte Frost (Furtherfield), Jonah Brucker Cohen, Scott Delahunta (Coventry University), Free Ice Cream, Bruce Gilchrist, Wesley Goatley, Natalie Kane, Giles Lane, Sally Marlow, Stefanie Posavec, Diego Sempreboni, Special Branch, Claire Selby, Catrina Ure and Luca Viganò.

Project links

Birmingham Open Media (BOM)
Data Stories (University of Southampton / King’s College London)
Furtherfield Citizen Sci-Fi Programme 2019 – 2021
Now Play This festival

View the artworks