[-empyre-] To Come: Tactical Media, Research, and the University

[Renate Ferro]

Welcome to spring on -empyre-.  Although the snow seems to have 
ceased in Ithaca, New York, we did wake up to a slight dusting on our 
cars this morning, in sharp contrast to the beautiful flowering trees 
surrounding us.

We want to thank  Menotti for leading a very interesting discussion 
of prototyping.    We regret our silence over past few days as we've 
been reorganizing our plans for April's topic.

After we learned of disturbing events surrounding the investigation 
of Ricardo Dominguez's tactical media lab at the University of 
California, San Diego (http://bang.calit2.net/), we scuttled our 
previous plan early this week and sought last minute  guests for a 
three-week discussion on the topic, "Tactical Media, Research, and 
the University."  We hope that this focus on "tactical media" might 
highlight not only  the work of Ricardo and other international 
tactical mediaticians but also the paradoxical reliance of tactical 
media on University settings for artistic research and exhibition 
(indeed, research as an artistic practice in itself).

The impetus for this discussion is the ongoing investigation of one 
of -empyre-'s thoughtful and consistent guests, Ricardo Dominguez, 
who is an Assoc. Prof. of Art at the University of California, San 
Diego.  Ricardo and his laboratory collective  is currently under 
investigation by UCSD for the agit-prop virtual sit-in undertaken by 
Elecronic Disturbance Theater (EDT) on the day of national protest 
against cuts at the University of California, and EDT's highly 
publicized development of the Transborder Immigrant Tool.

We have received commitments from a very exciting group of 
international participants whom we plan to announce later today or 
tomorrow.

Thanks for your patience.  We hope that you will join in for a very 
active discussion over the next three weeks.

Best,

Renate and Tim
-- 
Renate Ferro and Tim Murray
Managing  Moderators, -empyre- a soft-skinned-space
Department of Art/ Rose Goldsen Archive of New Media Art
Cornell University