Information
France Cadet >
»Do robotic cats dream of electric fish?«, 2007 - 2007
Co-Workers & Funding:
france cadethttp://cyberdoll.free.fr/cyberdoll/index_a.html
Technology
Installation Requirements / Space
Robotic installationThe DVD is an autorun & autorepeat DVD showing the video of the robotic fish Nemo swimming in a fish tank on a black background.
The video is displayed on a large 16:9 plasma screen recreating the size and proportions of a real fish tank.
We can also ear the sound of an aquarium air pump.
Descriptions & Essays
Nemo, the robotic fish, is swimming imperturbably in the screen, which is his fish tank as well.
The robotic cat is sitting in front of the screen and he is watching it as he was looking at a real fish swimming in a real tank. Time to time he gets up, meows and tries to catch the fish, unluckily.
Unless it is merely a misinterpretation, the cat might not been fooled. He might be aware it is only a video and he is just having fun watching a DVD of the famous Nemo… or maybe is it Disney Channel… a brand new channel for robotic pets.
Blending into society, robots are now becoming more and more life-like. And they are claiming to be acting as moral agents. Thus this robotic cat might have the ability and desire to experiment social activities and pleasures such as the ones TV profusely offers.
Even though nowadays it is a luxury to own a sophisticated robotic pet, a robot imitation, and not a real pet, maybe soon it will be the opposite such as Philip K.Dick vision.
Literature
Cadet, France. »10 places on "rue Paradis".« In Art au paradis - exhibition catalogue, edited by . Marseille, FR: 2009.
Cadet, France. »Dog[lab]01.« Antennea 9 (Spring 2009): 23-31.
Cade, France. »machine affection.« NEURAL 32 (Spring 2009).
Cadet, France. »Digital Arts, Tendencies, Artists, Places and Festivals.« MCD et M21 Editions (2008).
Cadet, France. »SweetPad.« In Homo Ludens Ludens / Playware/ Gameworld, edited by . Gijon, ES: LABoral, Centro de Arte, 2008.
Cadet, France. »Art Embodies A-Life: The VIDA Competition.« Leonardo 41, no. 1 (2008).
Exhibitions & Events