(IN)VISIBILIA

Aesthetics and Politics of (In)Visibility – Imagination, Representation, Impact

The research focus "(IN)VISIBILA – Aesthetics and Politics of (In)Visibility – Imagination, Representation, Impact" encompasses a variety of projects dealing with different aspects of (In)Visibilty in art, culture, media and science from history to present.
The majority of the project is settled within the period between the second half of 19th century to nowadays; however, i.e. source texts have more but once lead the research into earlier periods as well.

One important focus is the research on the impact (and changing roles) of occult and esoteric traditions in culture and cultural history (see the second cluster of projects listed below).

Another focus is on research devoted to aestetics and politics of (in)visibility in a wider spectrum, examining aspects of perception and cognition, production designs, techniques and technologies, strategies etc. pp. in theory and practice (i.e. imagination and invention; camouflage and mimikry; shielding; invisible archives; typecasting(s) and typologies of the invisible;  (un)dead media and digital decay).

More detailed information on projects, lectures and publications is being implemented step by step; thank you for your patience!

Ongoing as well as completed projects (lectures, publications) are/were devoted to the following issues and problems:

1. Aesthetics and Politics of (In)Visibility

Several projects have separate "construction sites" / entries on this site, pls. see a.o.:

(Un)Sichtbare Stadt / (In)Visible City

(Un)Sichtbare Archive / (In)Visible Archives

(Un)Sichtbar: Typisierungen des Entzugs / (In)Visible: Typecasting Withdrawal

In:Formation
(Data Visualization and the Formation of Knowledge)

KIOSK: Displays and Architectures of Communication

Images and/as User Interfaces – Bilder und/als Benutzeroberflächen

Metaphorology of Media

2. Occult and esoteric Traditions in the History of Culture, Media, Science and in Contemporary Culture(s)

Aestetics and Politics of Occulatation

On the impact of occult tradition in the arts, 19th to 21st centuries
(Main focus: visual arts; fine art 20th/21st century as well as popular film, video – inflluences, appropriation, critique)

The artist as "magician" and "alchemist" – production and perception
(Main focus: 20th/21st centuries; the image of the artist, artists' myths)

Surrealism and Occultism
(Sources and transformations; occultation as aesthetic and political strategy)

Mediumism and Spiritism
(History of culture, media and science; references in contemprary arts)

Borderlands of Science
(Occult and esoteric traditions and references in the history of science and technology; Para-Sciences)

The Séance as format
(Art History, History of Culture, Contemporary Art and Popculture)

Esotericism of "new" media
(Electronic media, net cultures, art)

Pop Esotericisms

Occult traditions in Game Cultures
(Card games, Computer games, Alternate Reality Games)

Iconology of Occulta (Alchemy, Magic, Rosicrucianism, Free-Masonry)

Science and Stage Magic

project: [IN]VISIBILIA

related projects on www.under-construction.cc: Digital Dust Diaries, (IN)VISIBLE ARCHIVES, (IN)VISIBLE CITY

related project on www.visuelle-kultur.info: KIOSK Art Communication

tags: alchemy, artists' myths, authorship, esoteric traditions, esotericism, history of science, image & imagination, image of the artist, imagination, (in)visibility, magic, mimesis, mimicry, occult traditions, occultation, optics, perception, representation, science, secret societies, senses, sound, visual culture, visual literacy, visuality