Thread by @longnow

Starting soon: Join us for a Long Now Talk with architect & designer Neri Oxman exploring her work in Material Ecology — the fusion of nature & technology. The talk will be followed by a conversation with Oxman and Long Now co-founder Danny Hillis.

The live stream will begin shortly.

Good evening everyone! Welcome to tonight's Long Now Talk featuring Neri Oxman on Nature x Humanity. The talk will be followed by a conversation with Oxman and Long Now co-founder and 10,000 Year Clock designer Danny Hillis.

Architect & designer Neri Oxman works in the emergent field of Material Ecology — the fusion of nature and technology in our built environments.

This program is presented in conjunction with Neri Oxman's new exhibition at SFMOMA. Encompassing 40 works, the exhibition illuminates her design practice, founded to advocate for environmental health and to "resonate with nature, not against it." sfmoma.org/exhibition/nat…

Oxman begins her talk by noting the massive impact of humanity on our environment over the course of the past 200 years, drawing attention to the sheer amount of "anthropomass" generated by humans.

Tonight, Neri Oxman is presenting five Short Works for the Long Now, expounding on her ideas of Material Ecology.

These works include her Aguahoja sculptures, which use nature-informed design and programmable processes of natural decay to create an installation that reflects natural flows of matter and energy.

The talk will be followed with a Q&A and conversation with Long Now co-founder and 10,000 Year Clock designer Danny Hillis. Let us know if you have any questions for Neri.

Neri finishes her talk with an explanation of her principles of design and the relationship between culture and nature.

In response to a question from Danny Hillis on the scope of her role -- architecture, design, or something more? Oxman notes that her role is not just as architect of the built environment, but as an architect of the interplay between humanity and nature.

"We need to really call upon ourselves and seek a complete and entire reorientation of the architectural practice" - Neri Oxman

Danny notes that both he and Neri have used the term "Age of Entanglement" to describe the current moment. To learn more about the Age of Entanglement, read his 02016 essay: longnow.org/ideas/02019/12…

Neri explains her nine commandments for a new design practice:

In response to a question on her influences, Neri Oxman recommends On Growth and Form by D'Arcy Wentworth.

In Oxman's Vespers series, death masks and living matter are fused together exploring the transition from death to life, or from life to death

When asked if her design practice will inspire a broader movement of ecological design, Neri responds that, in light of the current environmental conditons, "We don't have a choice."

Neri concludes the conversation by asking what today's version of the Whole Earth image that @StewartBrand campaigned for in the 01960s is.

Thanks for tuning in tonight. We hope you enjoyed this Long Now Talk.

You can watch all our Talks and subscribe to our channel at youtube.com/longnow

Our next Long Now Talk will be Wednesday, March 2 with Kim Stanley Robinson on "Climate Futures: Beyond 02022". You can find out more at longnow.org/talks/