Robot Exhibition at San Jose Museum of Art
Attention cultural historians, museum curators, and robot enthusiasts. On Saturday, the San Jose Museum of Art opened an incredible exhibition on robots that continues through October 19th. This compliments some previous observations I’ve expressed about the robot icon in American culture. Here’s the blurb from their website:
Robots: Evolution of a Cultural Icon examines the development of robot iconography in fine art over the past 50 years. In 1920, the term robot was coined from a Czech word robota, which means tedious labor. Since then, the image and the idea of a robot have evolved remarkably from an awkward, mechanical creature to a sophisticated android with artificial intelligence and the potential for human-like consciousness. As robotic technology catches up with the wild imagination of science fiction novels, movies, and animation, dreams and fears anticipated in these stories may also become reality. Artists included in the exhibition have responded to the technological innovation with optimism, pessimism, and humor, presenting work that ultimately explores our ambivalent attitudes towards robots.
And an introduction from JoAnne Northrup, Senior Curator:
I'm a digital humanist and graduate of American Studies, currently working as a web developer and