Call for Artists to Shape the Imminent Robot Sex Revolution

Galloway forest arts event speaker explores intimacy with cyborgs

A robotic sex revolution is looming and artists and writers could play an essential role in shaping its impact on society.

Vivienne Kuh, a Bristol-based creative producer with a strong interest in technology and the arts, will present an adults-only talk at this month’s Sanctuary art event which takes place in the heart of a forest in Dumfries and Galloway.

Cyborgs, Sexbots and Sexual Intimacy will include an appeal to artists and creative people to think big and help lead the way on our thinking about the future of sex.

Kuh believes that nothing will prevent the advent of a world where sexual activity with machines, or in cyberspace, is commonplace – with manufacturers around the world competing to make the first artificially intelligent sex robot.

Huge social, ethical, psychological and even criminal issues are at stake and, as with the impact of the internet, there are likely to be enormous consequences.

It’s up to those whose work is to imagine, predict and anticipate the future and those with a role in shaping the way society thinks, to help us shape our culture in a way that can ensure a positive sexual future.

Kuh says: “The age of robot sex is already on its way and at the moment it’s being driven by the market forces of pornography and sex dolls. It’s not something that can be stopped by people saying it shouldn’t happen. One of the biggest worries is that we will be too prudish to discuss what the future should be like, so it will be decided by businessmen in search of profit.

 “It’s not something that can be stopped by people saying it shouldn’t happen. One of the biggest worries is that we will be too prudish to discuss what the future should be like, so it will be decided by businessmen in search of profit.

“One thing we do know is that technology is used to create new things that are inspired by culture. Yesterday’s science fiction very often becomes the normality of today.

“Right now there is an opportunity for artists and writers to take a lead by thinking big about these issues and helping us consider a whole new world of sex and sexual relations could be like.”

The arts, argues Kuh, are good at shaping future developments and exploring the ways in which they can be helpful or harmful.

Her interest in the subject began when she saw the original Westworld movie and found herself slightly disturbed by the cold, empty eyes of cyborg sex workers created to be indistinguishable from real people.

Since then she has followed developments in the ways in which the worlds of sex and technology has increasingly overlapped. This is leading to lots of tricky questions:

• Where’s the borderline between sex toy and robot?

• Can cyborgs give consent?
• Are robot and cyber sex great ways to experiment and have fun without consequences?
• Would robot sex count as infidelity?
• Is it psychologically damaging to have pretend relationships with machines built to look like people?

• Will our current ideas of what is or isn’t sex soon be completely obsolete?

Sanctuary takes place from noon on Saturday, 23 September to noon the following day. It’s a free, event in beautiful countryside, miles from the nearest town and beyond the reach of most mobile phones. It exists for 24 hours and then disappears without trace.

The event is a chance to join a temporary international community and see a variety artworks, video and performance as well as attending talks and workshops.

Once again a highlight will be Dark Outside FM, a site-specific radio station playing previously unheard music contributed from all round the world. It’s a complete one-off as listeners can only tune in onsite and the sound files are destroyed when the event ends.

Sanctuary artworks also include:

• Dancing the Troposphere – an interactive performance involving a large helium filled data gathering helikite
• Enclosure – a 100ft blue neon circle
• Sea Hames – a costumed performance by Oceanallover

Jo Hodges, co-curator, said: “Sanctuary is a laboratory for art and new thinking. We hope that Viv Kuh’s talk will get people discussing an issue that is going to have an immense impact on our world in the not too distant future.”

For dark skies enthusiasts, there’s a stargazing walk with Dark Sky Ranger Elizabeth Tyndell. Rachel Rosen will invite people to “sky walk” the site, tracing the form of the constellation Cepheus to discover caches of treasures at each star point.

This year more than 25 artists will bring experimental work to Sanctuary. Among them are Katie Anderson, Mark Zygadlo, Martin O’Neill and Sian Yeshe who are all based in the region.

People can also drop into a 63 channel recording studio set up by David Bloor from London and contribute to a 24-hour marathon evolving sound piece as well as carry out self surveillance with an interactive hand cranked night vision CCT installation, deliver cycle powered light to plants on the site and contribute to an archive of the ‘confiding dark’ in exchange for a token.