We Be Cyborgs Workshop

The KIKK festival in Namur, Belgium, invited Niklas and me to give a workshop related to the theme Next Utopia. We thought that it would be cool to offer people a possibility to transform themselves into cyborgs. Instead of using electronics, we decided to focus on mechanical cyborg constructions. The workshop lasted three days and resulted in four impressive body extensions. The project was supported by Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles.

The workshop space was also ideal for the next level of human development: a Renaissance style, empty church full of divine imagery. As we had decided to leave computers and electronics out, the workshop materials consisted of random recycled items, post-apocalyptic plastic trash, some medical gear and plenty of useful things from the hardware store. We spread piles of these inspiring materials on the church floor, and the participants started to sketch their cyborg ideas.

Three days of intensive work resulted in four dazzling cyborgs. One of them focused on surviving in hostile environments, while another one called Bar-Borg facilitated social behaviours around drinking. The third one, audioborg, produced sounds while walking and the last one was an elaborate human-machine system for making graffiti. The cyborgs were presented at the KIKK festival after the workshop.

See also:

• Photo album of the We Be Cyborgs Workshop
• Documentation on Niklas' website