Materia Abierta

Materia Abierta is a summer school on theory, art, and technology based in Mexico City. Conceived as a space to reflect on the ethics of the present and future, the program aims to interrogate the political, economic, and ideological forces that condition contemporary cultural production and to favor other forms of action and knowledge.

Under the title The Rise of the Coyote, Materia Abierta’s 2022 program is curated by Sara Garzón, and it will take place in person in Mexico City from August 1 to August 28.

This year’s program is an invitation to take a trip back to Earth. Through the invocation of Huehuecóyotl, the Aztec deity known as the old coyote, we will search for forms of relationality, reciprocity, and mutuality within the natural, ancestral, and human worlds we inhabit. In order to get closer to these pluriversal paradigms, the program will question the historic tendency of Western technologies to exploit the earth and will explore diverse local practices and sociotechnic conditions where technology reveals itself as the capacity to “cultivate life.”

Languages

Activities are conducted in Spanish and English, with simultaneous translation only on some occasions. Knowledge of both languages is highly recommended for participation, although the act of collective translation and its challenges are favored as a natural part of the group’s social dynamics.

Participants

Materia Abierta invites applications from people based anywhere in the world and working within any discipline. An academic degree is not a prerequisite.

Cost

The cost of participation in the program is $1,800 USD. This fee does not include lodging, transportation, or other personal
expenses. Through institutional support, Materia Abierta will offer a limited number of full and partial scholarships for candidates from the Global South and for people who cannot cover the full cost.

The program is developed with the support from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) in coordination with Cultura UNAM, Museo Universitario Arte Contemporáneo (MUAC), Casa del Lago UNAM, and Cátedra Extraordinaria Max Aub, Transdisciplina en Arte y Tecnología.

Please find the entire open call and more information here.