Playing at Being Human.

Between AI, animal and plant life: an artistic and philosophical experiment

Sylvie Boisseau & Frank Westermeyer, and David Zerbib

This publication takes the form of a multimedia e-book produced as part of the research project Plessner transposed: a “decentered” actor between philosophical anthropology and video, which was financed by the research fund of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland, or HES-SO.
This research project originated with the combination of two main elements: an artistic method that made use of an experimental agent, ƒ, who draws attention to—and activates—situations, and a rereading of the works of philosopher Helmuth Plessner (1892-1985), who had proposed a definition of human beings based on their biological and spatial qualities. Between video and philosophy, images of thought are revealed, illuminated by the question: amidst our contemporary crisis of anthropocentrism, how can we redefine humanity’s relationship to technology and to life itself?

Link to the publication:

In English:  Playing at Being Human

In French: Jouer à être humain