UPDATE as of 16 April 2021:
Due to unforeseen circumstances, both Assembly (ponds among ponds) online and in-person events, originally scheduled on 17 April and 15 May, have been canceled. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
Agency is an international initiative founded by Kobe Matthys that has offices in Brussels. Since 1992, Agency constitutes a growing “list of boundary things” mostly derived from judicial cases and controversies involving intellectual property. Agency calls these boundary things forth via varying “assemblies” such as exhibitions, performances, and publications. For Assembly (ponds among ponds), Agency calls an assembly where a group of concerned from various backgrounds related to the case will be invited to respond to the controversy it raises. This assembly is not meant to re-enact the judgment, but rather to evoke the hesitation experienced in court.
Sat, 17 Apr, 16:00–18:00 CST (China Standard Time)
Online
English with Chinese interpretation
Agency calls forth from its list Thing 000773 (Pseudomonas). For thousands of years cow dung slurry has been used in India in rituals to clean houses. In 1971, microbiologist Ananda Chakrabarty grew bacteria (of the pseudomonas family) by genetic transfer, which he hoped would be used to clean oil spills, and in 1972, he filed for a patent application. The case eventually appeared before the highest court in the US, raising the question: are “living things” patentable subject matter? Please register by 16 April.
Sat, 15 May, 16:00–18:00 CST (China Standard Time)
Gallery (limited seating)
Chinese
Agency calls forth an assembly for a newly researched case, which has been developed specifically for ponds among ponds at the ICA at NYU Shanghai. Please register by 7 May to reserve a seat.
In conjunction with ponds among ponds: an exhibition of threshold behavior & nested life.
ponds among ponds and its related events are presented as the final season of The (Invisible) Garden, a two-year artistic research program that inquires into the garden as a method that shapes our understanding of Nature and our relationships to other species. From Fall 2019 through Spring 2021, the ICA at NYU Shanghai presents artists, thinkers, and practitioners, through exhibitions and events, to consider the garden and ask how might we denature Nature?
