Lincoln School of Media Lecturer Dr. Rob Coley has organised the international one day colloquium, hosted by the 21st Century Research Group at the University of Lincoln. THIS SATURDAY distinguished speakers from around the world will gather on-campus in EMMTEC to explore prominent issues surrounding ‘drone culture’. Join academics, writers, performers and artists from across the globe to discuss the social and conceptual implications of unmanned aircraft.
Rob said: “We will explore issues of local importance as well as of global concern, and presentations at our colloquium may also address the use of the drone in farming, in journalism, and in marketing gimmicks by the likes of Amazon. The event will deal with the idea of ‘drone culture’ more broadly, touching on films, contemporary art, video games and, of course, the drone as a musical form. We are particularly excited to have two fantastic keynote speakers who will address these wide-ranging issues, including how remote visualisation changes our perception of space and geography, and how the drone could be a symptom of a changing relationship between humans and machines.”
As Above, So Below will feature a keynote talk from Derek Gregory, Peter Wall Distinguished Professor & also Professor of Geography at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver and acclaimed author of The Colonial Present, Geographical Imaginations and The Everywhere War. He will be joined by Dr. Benjamin Noys, Reader in English at the University of Chichester and author of The Culture of Death, The Persistence of the Negative and Malign Velocities.
Rob hopes you’ll join the debate: “This event will bring to Lincoln theorists, artists and performers from all over the world in order to explore the cultural phenomenon of the ‘drone’. It is important to debate contemporary issues while their outcomes and consequences are still unclear. In this way, publicly engaged academic research can contribute to ongoing social debates and perhaps affect their future development, and we very much hope the public will be keen to add their voices.”
As Above, So Below: A Colloquium on Drone Culture is open to all. The event will be at the University of Lincoln’s EMMTEC Building on the Brayford Pool Campus. There’ll also be a performance of Myth-Drone by the artists Plastique Fantastique, and an exhibition of work produced by University of Lincoln undergraduate students. Places at the event are priced from £25. If you would like to attend or require more details, please email: abovebelow@lincoln.ac.uk
Thanks to Lizzy at the University of Lincoln’s Press & Media for sharing the story.