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Robot NaoMi with Laima Grazdanovica and Jurgis Peters at the “Connected/Nest” residence, in RIXC Gallery. Photo: Kristine Madjare

The “Connected/Nest” residence organized by the Goethe Institute in Riga in collaboration with RIXC is going to be opened online on Zoom on Thursday, May 27 at 18:00. This time, the guest of the residence at the RIXC Gallery is not an artist but a robot who will gain new skills during his stay. Does the word 'naturally' have limits in the age of post-artificial intelligence? Can artificial intelligence take care of living beings? Together with the robot NaoMi, we invite you to take a look into the future and follow the live stream to find out – will there be life in the nest? Both artists that are taking care of the robot in residence created this idea while reflecting on the ambiguous relationships of humans between artificial intelligence and robotization. On the one hand, there is fear from the future, where robotization will take away human occupations. On the other hand, we can envision a futuristic society, in which, as a result of the robot workforce, man is finally free.

Meet NaoMi and learn more about what he is going to do during his stay in Riga!
Join the residence opening on Zoom, on May 27, at 18:00:

https://zoom.us/j/93339777409?pwd=Si9Tdm9GVnNNMW9XdzhCQVN2R1NEQT09

The robot NaoMi is going to stay in Riga from May to June – he will be taught how to hatch birds' eggs in a controlled environment and become a co-creator of new life. The “parents” of the robot in residence are the artists Laima Grazdanovica and Jurgis Peters who will teach the necessary skills to the robot. At the residence’s virtual opening, the project is going to be introduced by the director of the Goethe Institute in Riga Arendt Röskens, the producers of the residence and RIXC representatives Rasa Smite and Raitis Smits, as well as the robot’s “teachers” Laima Grazdanovica and Jurgis Peters.

Visit the robot individually by prior appointment on-site at RIXC Gallery, Lencu iela 2, from May 28 to June 19, from Wednesday to Saturday, 12.00-18.00! Apply by writing to rixc@rixc.org or by calling and writing (SMS, Whatsapp) to T. 25358541 (Liva Silina). You can also check out the live stream of the robot’s daily progress online here: http://naomi.rixc.org/

NAO robots GAIA and NaoMi are travelling through Europe to learn various new skills, thereby, also strengthening and improving the communication and the cooperation network between European programmers and artists. Since the summer of 2020, robots have been touring European cities on behalf of the Goethe Institute; this year, between May and June, the robots are visiting Riga, which is the place for the final residence of the project.

In times of the pandemic, when the traveling opportunities for Europeans are limited, the journey of robots is taking place without a hitch. The programmers and artists are joining forces in each new stop – in Bratislava, Groningen and all other cities – to teach new skills through new programs. The robots went separate directions at the beginning of their journey, thus, at the end of the project, they will return to the starting point with different skills. While GAIA was learning to box and play football in Western Europe, NaoMi was being programmed to create artworks with typewriter in Eastern Europe.

The cooperation partner of the Goethe Institute in Riga in this project is RIXC Center for New Media Culture. The collaboration of artist Laima Grazdanovica and programmer Jurgis Peters will ensure that the robot NaoMi also acquires new skills in Riga. The focus of this residence is if the artificial intelligence is / will be capable of taking care of humans and other living beings. NaoMi in Riga will be taught how to hatch birds’s eggs in a controlled environment and become a co-creator of new life.

Robot NaoMi with Laima Grazdanovica and Jurgis Peters at the “Connected/Nest” residence, in RIXC Gallery. Photo: Kristine Madjare

Nowadays, when environment protection and the promotion of sustainable living are essential strategies for human survival, it seems natural to have a vision of the future in which robots are the ones who deal with the human-created consequences. Imagine a future in which the NAO helps to continue life and let’s ask a question: does the word 'naturally' have limits?

Laima Grazdanovica combines theory and practice in her artworks. She is studying at the Art Academy of Latvia and has graduated from the Latvian Academy of Culture with a degree in audiovisual and performing arts theory. She has participated in international photography and performance masterclasses and also works as a short film curator at the Riga International Short Film Festival 2ANNAS.

Jurgis Peters has studied digital media technologies and cybersecurity at the University of Birmingham and is currently studying for a 2nd-year master's degree in the Department of Visual Communication at the Art Academy of Latvia. He works as a programmer and works as a cybersecurity expert at the Information Technology Security Incident Prevention Institution CERT.LV.

Before going home, the skills that NaoMi learned in his journey, will be presented remotely or (if possible) at the closing event on-site in the Goethe Institute in Riga. Follow the updates in the calendar of the Goethe Institute. If possible (regarding the Covid-19 restrictions), the final result of the project, which took place for more than a year, will be presented at the closing festival of the "Generation A = Algorithms" project at the Dresden Hygiene Museum in November 2021, in the presence of all project participants and RoboticLab of the Technical University of Wildau.

You can find updates and information on the project on the web pages and Facebook accounts of Goethe Institut in Riga and RIXC; follow the robot’s journey in the robot’s Instagram account @naomi_in_riga and RIXC Instagram account @rixcriga and stay informed about the robot’s progress on the official webpage of the project.


Robot NaoMi with Laima Grazdanovica and Jurgis Peters at the “Connected/Nest” residence, in RIXC Gallery. Photo: Kristine Madjare

The opening of the “Connected/Nest” residence on May 27, at 18:00, on Zoom:
https://zoom.us/j/93339777409?pwd=Si9Tdm9GVnNNMW9XdzhCQVN2R1NEQT09

Visit the robot individually by prior appointment on-site at RIXC Gallery, Lencu iela 2, from May 28 to June 19, from Wednesday to Saturday, 12.00-18.00! Apply by writing to rixc@rixc.org or by calling and writing (SMS, Whatsapp) to T. 25358541 (Liva Silina).

Further information and updates:
RIXC Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/rixcriga
Goethe Institut in Riga Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/goetheinstitut.riga

Follow robot’s progress on Instagram:
Robot’s Instagram account @naomi_in_riga
RIXC Instagram account @rixcriga

Contacts: rixc@rixc.org, 26546776 (Rasa Šmite)

 

The “Connected/Nest” residence is organized by the Goethe Institute in Riga in cooperation with the RIXC Center for New Media Culture.

Supported by  Goethe Institute in Riga, State Culture Capital Foundation of Latvia.

CONTACTS

rixc@rixc.org

+371 67228478 (office)

+371 26546776 (Rasa Smite)