miguel soares

Revisão da Matéria Dada, part II. Group Show.
Curated by José Mário Brandão.
Galeria Graça Brandão, Lisbon.
Feb, 02>24, 2018

exhibited work:
Ape (2003)

Revisão da Matéria Dada. Group Show.
Curated by José Mário Brandão.
Galeria Graça Brandão, Lisbon.
Nov, 25th, 2017 > Jan, 2018

exhibited work:
Place in Time (2005)

MIGUEL SOARES 2048
June 24 – July 30

Galeria Graça Brandão Lisboa
Rua dos Caetanos, 26
Lisbon

Inauguração | Opening
24.06.2016
das 19h00 às 23h00 | from 7pm to 11pm

(scroll down for english version)

Faz este ano quinhentos anos a primeira edição de “Utopia” de Thomas More, relato de um viajante português descrevendo uma ilha ficcionada onde pareciam ter sido resolvidos os principais problemas da sociedade de então.

No projecto agora apresentado na Galeria Graça Brandão, Miguel Soares simula momentos num hipotético futuro próximo, pegando em certas ideias retiradas da “tradição utópica” portuguesa (Camões, António Vieira, Pessoa), da teoria das Três Idades de Joaquim de Fiore, da utopia de More, ou ainda de elementos da escatologia de algumas das principais religiões, fundindo-as com ideias mais recentes como a da Singularidade Tecnológica (Stanislaw Ulam, Vernor Vinge, Ray Kurzweil), ou a da Hipótese da Simulação (Trilema de Bostrom) que terá raízes anteriores, na Alegoria da Caverna de Platão, por exemplo.

A progressiva automatização e substituição do trabalho humano pelo de máquinas poderá um dia libertar o ser humano, tornando todo o sistema económico, político e até a própria ideia de Estado desnecessários?

A Singularidade Tecnológica sugere que entre 2040 e 2045 o futuro desenvolvimento da Inteligência Artificial poderá dar origem ao início de um movimento exponencial em que máquinas constroem outras máquinas cada vez mais perfeitas, numa progressão que escapará à compreensão imediata do ser humano. Pouco depois, em 2048 será o centenário de “1984″ de George Orwell. Segundo esta proposta de Miguel Soares, apresentada através de uma animação vídeo e um conjunto de imagens, este movimento criaria uma espécie de “máquina do mundo” capaz de cuidar e alimentar cada ser humano e gerir os recursos do planeta.

Será o capitalismo e a competição apenas uma ferramenta, a única, para chegar a tal porto? Poderia esta sucessão de eventos dar origem a um salto evolutivo no ser humano, permitindo por exemplo, a cada pessoa encontrar a sua vocação natural?

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This year is the 500th anniversary of the first edition of Thomas More’s Utopia, the account of a portuguese traveller who describes a fictional island where the major problems of the society of the epoch seemed to have been resolved.

In his project at Galeria Graça Brandão, Miguel Soares simulates moments of a hypothetical nearby future, borrowing certain ideas from More’s Utopia and Joachim of Fiore’s Three Ages, as well as from the Portuguese “utopic tradition” (Luís de Camões, António Vieira, Fernando Pessoa); together with elements taken from the eschatology of some of the main religions, assembling them with the more recent ideas of Technological Singularity (Stanislaw Ulam, Vernor Vinge, Ray Kurzweil), and the Simulation Hypothesis (Bostrom’s trilemma), which has ancient roots in Plato’s Allegory of the Cave.

Will the progressive automation and replacement of human labour by machines be capable of setting the human being free, rendering obsolete the entire economical and political systems, and even the conception of State?

The Technological Singularity suggests that between 2040 and 2045 the future development of Artificial Intelligence may originate an exponential event in which machines build other, more perfect machines, in a progression that will evade human beings’ immediate understanding. Soon after, in 2048, it will be the centenary of George Orwell’s 1984. According to Miguel Soares’ proposal, articulated around an animation video and a set of images, this movement will create a sort of “machine of the world” capable of looking after and nourishing each human and managing the resources of the planet.

Is capitalism and competition only a tool, the only tool, to reach such goal? Could this succession of events generate an evolutionary leap in the human being, allowing for each person to find, for instance, their natural vocation?

MIGUEL SOARES 2048
June 24 – July 30

Galeria Graça Brandão Lisboa
Rua dos Caetanos, 26
Lisbon

Inauguração | Opening
24.06.2016
das 19h00 às 23h00 | from 7pm to 11pm

image list
first presented at 2048 solo show.

Abraço – 20 anos
Arte Solidária

May 30, June 15, 2012
Galeria Graça Brandão
Lisbon, Portugal

MIGUEL SOARES 2007
June 21 – July 31

Galeria Graça Brandão Lisboa
Rua dos Caetanos, 26
Lisbon

list of works:

PRINT

• Liine 2007 (8 images)
• retarC 2007 (4 images)
• Palindrome (3 images)
• Boeing, Shuttle, Boeing, Shuttle, Boeing, Shuttle (1 image)

VIDEO

• Jumping Nauman
• untitled (playing with Gould playing Bach)
• Liine 2007 video

OTHER

• leon night
• A to B in c

exhibition views

2007
80×20x10cm

misspelled neon light.

Constelações Afectivas II, Part 2
curated by Paulo Reis

June 29 > July 29, 2006
Galeria Graça Brandão
Lisbon

exhibited work:  Place in Time

Constelações Afectivas II, Part 1
curated by Paulo Reis

May 25 > June 24, 2006
Galeria Graça Brandão
Lisbon

exhibited work: 4 Prelinger music videos

November 12 > December 31, 2005
Galeria Graça Brandão
Oporto, Portugal

click on this Place in Time tag to watch the animation and see the prints.

invitation

Art Basel Miami
Galeria Graça Brandão

December 2 > 5, 2004
Miami, Florida, USA

MACO: Mexico Arte Contemporâneo
Galeria Graça Brandão

May 12 > 16, 2004
Centro de Negocios y Comercio de la Ciudad de Mexico
Mexico City, Mexico

Time Zones

May 10, June 14, 2003
Galeria Graça Brandão
Oporto, Portugal

exhibited works:
Time Zones (video/3D animation)
Time Zones prints: 9 images, 125×150cm each.

5′28”
2003
audio:  Time Zones,  by Negativland, from Escape from Noise, 1987

This animation was released on DVD: Negativland, Our Favorite Things, Ed. Other Cinema, San Francisco, 2007.

In 1994 I made a video for Negativland’s “Crosley Bendix discusses the copyright act” (The letter U and the Numeral Two, 1992).
This video was made without their notice. This was the first video work I ever presented.
By October 2002, Alexandre Estrela (artist and friend living in New York) meets Mark Hosler from Negativland during a presentation of some of their videos at the Anthology Film Archives in New York, and tells him about my old video.
Mark asks me to send the video.
A month later Negativland invites me to make a video from any audio work of my choice. I choose Time Zones.
Time Zones is about time and size, United States versus Soviet Union, the cold war, the use of media as a vehicle
for psychological warfare and the use of computers to control the “imperfections” of men.

transcription of Time Zones

The Autonomous Commie Republic, which is part of the Russian
Federation, is situated in the far northwest of Europe, and spreads up to
the Arctic part of the Ural Mountains. It’s crossed by 9 northern
parallels. Ten fair-sized European states could be placed on its
territory. Besides indigenous residents (that is, the Commie people), there
are also Russians, Ukranians, Nenetzes, Tchubashis, and Tartars.
And now, let’s go back into history a little bit. (CLICK)

A boy lying on skins behind our backs was turning the knobs of a
small transistor radio.
(”…..making efforts to use radios as vehicles of a
psychological warfare. And subversive….”)
And the tent was suddenly filled with an announcer’s voice speaking Commie.
(Jam….Jam…Jam…Jam..)
Then, with music from Moscow, followed by English and French speech.
(”The recording was made at the Moscow Theater of Musical Miniatures.”)
Now, back to modern times.

<BEEP>
YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE. AT THE RECOMMENDATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL
TIME BUREAU, COMMENCING AT TWENTY-THREE (23) HOURS, FIFTY-NINE (59)
MINUTES, SIXTY (60) SECONDS UTC, AN EXTRA SECOND WILL BE INSERTED INTO THE
NVS TIME SCALE. THIS ADJUSTMENT IS REQUIRED TO MAINTAIN INTERNATIONALLY
COORDINATED UNIVERSAL TIME AS BROADCAST FROM THESE STATIONS, IN CLOSE
AGREEMENT WITH UT1, OR ASTRONOMICAL TIME.

(”WA6ODB….with…a question….”)

“and, uh …”
“Do you know how many time zones there are in the Soviet Union?”
“and about power …”
“d’you kn–”
“we got so much power now …”
“Do you know how many time zones there are in the Soviet Union?”
“we got so much power now, that it’s ridiculous.”
“d’you kn– do you know how many time zones there are in the Soviet Union?”
“power, and all that, that’s power, we got so much power, that it’s
ridiculous.”
“We have–”
“power, power, power, power, power, power now, it’s ridiculous. We
got so much power now …”
“Do you know how many time zones there are in the Soviet Union?”
“It’s not even funny.”
“D’you–”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Do you know how many–”
“It’s not even funny.”
“D’you kn–”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Do you know how many–”
“That’s, that’s ridiculous.”
“Do you know how many time–”
“That’s ridiculous. It’s not even funny.”
“D’you–”
“It’s not even funny.”
“D–”
“It’s not even funny.”
“Do you know how many time zones there are in the Soviet Union?”
“It’s not even funny. How many time zones?”
“Yeah. We have, we have four in this country, right?” (Hello?)
“How many time zones?”
“Yeah.” (Hello? Yes.)
“1, 2, 3 …”
“Four in this country, right?” (Hello? Yes.)
“Uh, yessir.”
“Mm hm.” (I need language assistance)
“Uh, four … 1, 2, 3 … yessir.”
“Right.” (O.K., we’re
calling from a radio
station for Radio
Moscow)
“1, 2, 3 … yessir.”
“Mm hm.”
“Uh, four … time zones?” (And we want to speak
to Mr. C. Eliot
Friday.)
“Yeah. We have four in this country, right?”
“Uh, nosir.”
“We have, we have–”
“Uh, yessir.”
“Mm hm.”
“And, uh …”
“Do you know how many time zones they have?”
“Uh, yessir. Uh, four … uh, nosir. I never really studied that up.”
“Eleven.”
“Eleven. It’s not even funny.”
“Eleven.”
“Eleven. That’s, that’s ridiculous.”
“Eleven.”
“Eleven. Well, that’s what we can do. We can go anywhere, because
we live here, we–”
“Yeah, but–”
“–anywhere else.”
“But, not only, not only the right of free travel, I’m saying…eleven.”
“Eleven. 1, 2, 3 … yessir.” (Hello?)
“Mm hm. Eleven.”
“Eleven.”
“That’s how big they are.”
“Yeah. Yeah. Eleven.” (What happened to my call?)
“That’s how big they are.” (I keep on telling you…)
“Yeah. Yeah. I, I can believe that, I’m a firm believer in that.”
“Alright.”
“1, 2, 3 … uh, four … yessir. 1, 2 … yessir. Yessir.”
“Mm hm.” (I need…Radio Moscow, 215 2101)
“The Soviet Union’s the whole half side of the world.”
(And I need language
assistance.)
“Yeah.”
“And we’re just a little, one little tenth of the globe.”
“Yeah.”
“They, uh, when you talk about fightin’, we’re a country that, uh,
we’re a firm believer on pride, and it’s called help thy neighbor,
do not kill, do not, you know, steal, cheat, lie from everybody.
That’s why we have to have computers, because man, nobody is
perfect. You know.”
“Mm hm.”
“It’s not even funny.”
“D’you–”
“and about power, man, nobody is perfect. You know.”
“So what is your point?”
“Nobody is perfect. You know.”
“So what is your point, Glen?”
“There’s, there’s, there’s two things you don’t talk about, one’s
politics, the other one’s religion.
“D’you–”
“The reason you don’t talk about ‘em is because they combine in
each other. You know what I’m saying?”
“Do you know how many time zones there are in the Soviet Union?”
“You know what I’m saying?”
“Don’t you kid yourself. Thanks, Glen, for the uh… well, just
thanks for the, the good thoughts.”

THIS CONCLUDES OUR TRANSMISSION TO OCEANIA. HOWEVER, LISTENERS IN
EAST ASIA MAY CONTINUE LISTENING ON THE FOLLOWING SHORTWAVE FREQUENCIES:
6110, 7230, 9565, 9760, 15160, AND 15425 KILOHERTZ.

<CLICK><CLICK<CLICK>
Separate them <CLICK>
Damned if I know<CLICK>
Here it comes<CLICK>
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end
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