We invite you to a lecture by Václav Janoščík titled Odysseus in the Unreal Engine, which is part of the lecture series New Media Art Today.

Last year, the most talked-about film was likely One Battle After Another by P.T. Anderson, a film capturing the transition from the militant activities of the 20th century to an introspective exploration of one’s own emotions and identities in the present day. This year, at least before Christmas “Dunesday,” the film that sparked the most discussion was Odyssey.

Christopher Nolan transposed this heroic epic—in which, for the first time in our history, a human hero outwits the gods— into the form of a tragedy with a subtle happy ending. Odysseus transforms from a cheerful trickster into a statuesque sufferer who, throughout his journey, does not accumulate the scalps of his enemies but internalizes suffering and a sense of guilt. Two interesting examples of how emotions and politics (and their narrative infrastructure) permeate contemporary culture and media.

In my contribution for Vašulka Kitchen, I will attempt to subvert traditional academic structures: to begin with a discussion and only gradually work my way toward a more systematic thesis; to take the audience’s perspectives as the basis for a discussion of theoretical and artistic sources, rather than the other way around. During the talk, however, I would like to screen the video What is Your Favorite Primitive by Li Yi-Fan, the artist who has generated the most interest at the ongoing Venice Biennale of Visual Arts. The melancholy of his screen and the violence of the Unreal Engine may serve as an even more important impetus for reflecting on the accelerating relationship between politics and emotions.

In conclusion, I would therefore like to reflect together with the audience on how we can think about and feel the end of the liberal era (1989–2016) through new media.

Václav Janoščík is a theorist, curator, and educator currently based in Ústí nad Labem (FUD UJEP) and Prague (UMPRUM). He explores interdisciplinary intersections between philosophy, art, and media theory. He is the author and editor of publications devoted to aspects of contemporary thought and pop philosophy, new materialism, speculative realism, accelerationism, and futures studies.

The lecture series New Media Art Today explores the current discourse and forms of audiovisual, digital, and online art, which were previously referred to as “new media art.” This lecture series, featuring invited guests, will explore possible transformations of the concept of “new media” and its critical reflections at Vašulka Kitchen Brno, while also addressing topics that are currently resonating in this field and across disciplines.