SIGGRAPH 2024: Beyond Words: Transcending Language

• SIGGRAPH 2024: 51st Annual Conference on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques

• Şölen Kiratli -
  • University of California, San Diego
• Mohumagadi Moruti -
  • Danube University Krems

At the heart of human culture, language stands as a profound system of communication, facilitating the exchange of information, the art of storytelling, the expression of thoughts, and the preservation of our collective knowledge. The harnessing of human language on an unprecedented scale is epitomized by Large Language Models (LLMs), a technological advancement that not only signifies a significant leap in AI capabilities but also a deeper integration of machines into our linguistic, visual, and cultural milieu.

As we witness this intersection of human language and cutting-edge technology, it becomes imperative to reexamine the dynamic interplay between language, art, and technology. Our objective is to explore how this process of reconsideration can influence both artistic creation and broader societal dialogues with a central focus on the expansive realm of language, transcending verbal boundaries to encompass visual, symbolic, and diverse forms of expression.

While LLMs hold great promise, we are compelled to address the biases and inequalities they may amplify, as well as the virtues they may enhance. In our pursuit of constructing new worlds, truths, and narratives through language and its translation into various media, we must confront essential questions. Whose worlds and whose power are overlooked in the process of creating new possibilities? How can we rebuild connections between language, art, and technology to foster inclusivity, equity, openness, justice, unity, and sustainability? What uncharted opportunities?whether expressive or socio-political?await us within these connections?

From the ancient practice of smoke signals to the intricacies of computer code, the SIGGRAPH 2024 Art Gallery takes a comprehensive approach to the concept of language that extends beyond verbal communication alone. We define language as any structured and symbolic system used to convey meaning, encompassing words, signs, symbols, images, and other non-verbal cues. With this perspective in mind, we invite artists whose work spans the realms of art, design, technology, and research to contribute to this crucial exploration with their creative practices.

Best in Show

Congratulations to ?Rage Against the Archive? (Anshul Roy), the SIGGRAPH 2024 Art Gallery Best in Show selection!

About Rage Against the Archive

?Rage Against the Archive? is an experimental browser-based video that critically probes how the New York Public Library?s website catalogs and displays dehumanizing ethnographic photos from the 19th-century colonial-era publication ?The People of India,? questioning capitalism?s infusion with the archival process, and documents the ?hacking? methodology used to insert different texts using HTML in a symbolic act of Electronic Civil Disobedience.

Watch a SIGGRAPH Now webinar recording?featuring Best in Show award winner Anshul Roy.

• Renzo Filinich -
  • University of the Witwatersrand
• Ebru Kurbak -
  • University of Applied Arts, Vienna
• Jiabao Li -
  • Harvard University
• Avital Meshi -
  • US Davis
• Erandy Vergara-Vargas
• Hannen Wolfe -
  • Colby College