Automate: An Exhibition by NCN

About

This year’s theme explores the effects of automation: on the means of artistic production; on the ways in which we manage our time and labour; on how we interact with the material and digital worlds. A diverse range of work will raise questions about the nature of automation, its impact on our lives and its potential as a force for change.

The automatic can be found in subconscious or instinctive processes, affecting our understanding of the world and each other. It can be found replacing human labour in the workplace, perhaps providing a platform for emancipation, or perhaps a source of alienation. Automation even affects our traditional conception of the artist as craftsperson, and can be seen both as a democratising and a dehumanising force. In a fully-automated world, what would the role of the young creative be?

Students will present an eclectic mix of work in response to this theme, employing digital and manual techniques and processes to realise their responses.  Building on the success of last year’s show at Nottingham Contemporary, their aim this year is to share the talents and visions of the local community’s young creatives with an even wider audience.  

Visitors are also invited to a screening of the students’ work, which will take place in our Project Space on Saturday 18th June, 17:00 - 20:00.

The exhibition will be held in the Main Gallery and the Project Space. The Opening Night will take place on Friday 17th June, between 18:00 and 22:00. As always, there will be a donations bar with ales from local brewery, Springhead.