Jenny Pickett. Do it with others : methodology for an “aesthetics of care” in artistic production

Do it with others (DIWO) is a mode for self-organizing, collective and collaborative actions in media-art. DIWO practices emerged in the mid-noughties, as web 2.0 became more accessible and the technology more affordable for artists. DIWO projects are entangled in the real world conditions of the socio-techno shifts that have taken place over the past two decades. By paying attention to both the human and non-human ontological relations, DIWO can provide a pedagogical approach that breaks down hierarchies between individuals (teacher/learner, artist/non-artist), as well as a framework that “cares” for the context and hierarchies we may find in an environment. This research will look at current “theories of care” in curation and media art, arising from the recent Covid-19 pandemic, and the aesthetic, social and political implications or synergies regarding DIWO methodologies for artistic production.

Jenny Pickett’s practice crosses sculpture, sound, drawing, video, interactivity and performance. She often explores her subject through the influences of sound upon the gaze and vice versa, altering both sonic and visual counterparts, asking the viewer to rethink their encounter with the oeuvre. Pickett’s preoccupation lies at the point at which technology (new or ancient) becomes the landscape or the body by accumulating their prior states, our prior norms. Pickett is currently teaching art and Techniques for representation at The Nantes School of Architecture (ensa). She is also a PhD candidate at Cyprus University of Technology’s Media Art and Design Lab.