Last weekend Nelly was the opening keynote speaker at the 2021 New Now Conference!
As a discursive part of NEW NOW, the international and interdisciplinary conference took place on September 18-19. Under the title “Another End is Possible”, we explored questions around the interplay of humans, nature and technology.
“While the world is becoming increasingly complex and the advance of technology is rapid, our environment is becoming more and more imbalanced. The end of the world seems to be approaching. Or has the end—the “doomsday”—already come? Assuming we are already standing on the ruins of our society, how can we achieve a cooperative new start? How can we rethink our way of living so that humans, biosphere and technology can coexist in the “New Now”?
We don’t want to see the ruins of our world as the end, but as a beginning. Together with international speakers, artists and participants, we will discuss new models for society and dare to create a future worth living.”
At the New Now Festival 2021, Nelly Ben Hayoun-Stépanian took the audience on a provocative journey through the sociological and critical impact of new technologies. In this energetic talk, fearless educator, passionate provocateur, Wired Innovation Fellow, boxer and SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute Designer of Experiences Ben Hayoun-Stépanian Ph.D will create a space for thoughts, debate and provocation around the urgent need for organized communities, nightlife and plurality in society.
They saw behind the scenes of complex large-scale productions such as The International Space Orchestra, Disaster Playground, I am (not) a Monster and the University of the Underground. She also exclusively shared the latest development of her project called ‘Red Moon’, a diasporic investigation of human settlement on the moon. Red Moon is currently in development and it has just been awarded a Sundance Institute grant…
About New Now:
NEW NOW is like a living sculpture in a continual process of development: Artists take over the Mixing Plant at Zollverein and create new works on site. The festival’s programme accompanies their artistic process and invites the public to actively contribute. Together, artists and participants shape the NEW NOW sculpture, with new elements emerging throughout the festival. A concluding exhibition presents the realised works and reflects the creative process. From coke to contemporary art: NEW NOW takes place at the Mixing Plant of the Zollverein Coking Plant – UNESCO World Heritage and an icon of industrial culture. Today, Zollverein mines ideas instead of coal and NEW NOW transforms the site into a production venue for Digital Arts. Concrete bunkers and huge coal containers provide spectacular spatial situations and an extraordinary festival atmosphere amid genuine industrial architecture.