Unfinished Camp Convenes Artists and Technologists at Opening Week of Venice Biennale to Explore a Better Digital Future

This multidisciplinary group will gather for six days of joint explorations and interactive workshops on the future of art and ethical technology, with a focus on Web3

VENICE, Italy, April 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- An international group of artists, technologists, game designers, changemakers, museum leaders, and curators will gather April 18-23 at Venice Meeting Point during the week of the 59^th Venice Biennale, hosted by Unfinished Camp. Responding to one of the three thematic areas of Biennale – "the relationship between individuals and technologies" – they will engage in discussions about how to build a better and more equitable digital future, and how artists and art institutions can participate.

Spearheaded by civic entrepreneur Frank McCourt and conceived by curator and artistic director of the Serpentine Galleries Hans Ulrich Obrist and author and cultural strategy advisor András Szántó, Unfinished Camp was launched in 2021 as a global platform that links the ethical technology and visual arts communities closer together. Spanning six continents, Unfinished Camp collaborates with a growing network of artists and nine innovative art institutions for emerging artists to explore the intersection of art and technology, while collectively imagining a thriving and equitable civil society for the digital age.

"It's increasingly clear that, to tackle big societal challenges, we need creators, thinkers, doers and problem-solvers from different backgrounds and disciplines working together," said McCourt, who also founded the ethical technology initiative Project Liberty. "I'm thrilled these globally-recognized artists and technologists are joining forces, all with the sole purpose of helping to build a digital future that better serves the common good."

During this week-long workshop, this next-generation group of artists, creatives, and technologists will work together to discuss, imagine, and design new ways of collaborating across a distributed international art network, with an emphasis on Web3 and its pitfalls and potential.

"Adding the voices of artists to important conversations about creating more ethical technology has never been more urgent," said Obrist. "With the support of Frank McCourt and the entire Unfinished team, this unique opportunity at Venice Biennale allows these voices to be heard, lifted, and supported."

Unfinished Camp's network includes organizations at the forefront of visual art, digital innovation, and technology across the globe. Their partners include House of Electronic Arts in Switzerland; The Shed in New York; LUMA Arles in Southern France; Pivô in São Paulo; the Serpentine Galleries in London; UCCA Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing; The Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (Zeitz MoCAA) in Cape Town; The Australian Center for the Moving Image (ACMI) in Melbourne; and The High Line in New York.

"At a time of unprecedented change, and when so much is at stake in the world, we need the voice of artists more than ever – not just to create art, but to help us imagine and create a better future," says Paula Recart, President of Impact at Unfinished. "This Unfinished Camp experience is designed to bring world-class artists to the center of the debate around the creation of a more equitable digital future."

There will be several events at Unfinished Camp that will be available to the public. Anyone who will want to enter Venice Meeting Point will need to register online beforehand.

About Unfinished
Unfinished was founded by Frank McCourt in 2020 out of rising concern over our deteriorating social fabric. Unfinished works to strengthen civic life in the digital age, focusing on three challenges: redirecting technology, especially social media, to fuel collaboration over division; renewing and strengthening civic institutions to accelerate inclusive problem-solving, and growing a fairer economy. Learn more about Unfinished here and its annual flagship event Unfinished Live here.

About Project Liberty
Project Liberty aims to create a new civic architecture for the digital world that returns the ownership and control of personal data to individuals, embeds ethical values into technology, and expands economic opportunities for web users and developers alike. The initiative seeks to accelerate the world's transition to an open, inclusive data economy that puts citizens in control — a future in which all people can benefit from their participation and contributions. The success of this work depends on many people and organizations actively working together to shape a better future.

Project Liberty is working to engage diverse voices and equip them with the critical infrastructure needed to catalyze change. The tech team behind Project Liberty has developed a groundbreaking open-source protocol called the Decentralized Social Networking Protocol (DSNP) to serve as a new infrastructure for the next generation of the web. Project Liberty is also bringing together networks of organizations that seek change, including the formation of McCourt Institute, to help ensure that digital governance is embedded and prioritized in the development of new technology.

SOURCE Unfinished