April 4, 2018, I gave a presentation titled La science-fiction photographique (Photographic Science Fiction) at the symposium Science-fiction, prothétisation, cyborgisation, organized by the association Stella Incognita (Université de La Rochelle) and hosted at Université Lyon I under the direction of Jérôme Goffette. This interdisciplinary event explored representations of the augmented body and technologies in science fiction, drawing on perspectives from philosophy, visual arts, and cultural studies.
Article’s thumbnail: Photo by HI! ESTUDIO on Unsplash
Presentation reference:
La science-fiction photographique, presentation for the symposium Science-fiction, prothétisation, cyborgisation by the association Stella Incognita (Université de La Rochelle), presented at Université Lyon I, organized by Jérôme Goffette.
Photography and science fiction: a hybridization of bodies and imaginaries
My presentation focused on how contemporary photography adopts the codes of science fiction to imagine modified, enhanced, or hybrid bodies. Many visual artists use photography as a space for aesthetic and conceptual experimentation, where the human body becomes an interface between the biological, the technological, and the fictional.
Issues addressed in this presentation
- How does photography create an imagery of science fiction?
- How are the figures of the cyborg and the posthuman integrated into contemporary photographic practices?
- What are the links between photography and speculative narratives about the future of the human body?
A critical look at the mutations of the body in image
This reflection allowed for an examination of the links between photography and anticipation, by analyzing works that engage with posthumanity, artificial intelligence, and prosthetization. Through references to contemporary artists and cybernetic aesthetics, the article explored how photographic imagery becomes a medium for projecting the anxieties and fantasies related to bodily and technological mutations.