Move Fast and Break Things: Control, Progress and the Black Box
· talk
Alex May joins James Bloom for a Computer Arts Society debate on artistic agency, control, and black-box creativity.
Alex May will join James Bloom at the Computer Arts Society for Move Fast and Break Things: Control, Progress and the Black Box on Wednesday 15 April 2026 at 6pm.
Hosted at BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT in Moorgate and also available on Zoom, the event is moderated by Bronac Ferran and framed as a live debate rather than a standard artist talk. The discussion asks what artistic agency looks like in a moment shaped by automated systems, opaque tools, and increasingly seamless creative interfaces.
The event page sets up a productive tension between two approaches. James Bloom pushes systems toward failure in order to expose their assumptions and weaknesses, while Alex May works by hand-coding his own algorithms to retain close control over memory, time, and visual form. The conversation asks whether artists should challenge the machine by dismantling it line by line or by driving it until it breaks.
Alex May’s contribution builds on his long-running practice across algorithmic photography, video sculpture, robotics, photogrammetry, projection mapping, generative systems, and biologically informed media. Together with Bloom’s antagonistic approach to networked and code-based art, the evening promises a sharp discussion about control, progress, and the politics of black-box creativity.
Booking details are available via the Computer Arts Society event page and the Eventbrite listing.
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