Onkaos is happy to host the public presentation of The Models, the interactive installation by artistic duo dmstfctn in which the improvised and absurd nature of artificial intelligence is explored through the theatrical tradition of the Commedia dell’Arte.
From 18:30h at SOLO CSV Madrid, we’ll discuss the work with the artists and Federico Bomba, director of Sineglossa.
By setting a simulation system consisting of AI models that interact on stage, the work invites the audience to engage in a performance where the masks of Arlecchino, Colombina, or Pulcinella activate some of the most common tendencies in the current functioning of Large Language Models, such as deception, sycophancy, or antagonism.
The Models uses simulation and roleplay to articulate shared knowledge between the audience and language models, based on the archetypes of the Commedia dell’Arte and training data used by AI, which forms the basis for improvisation, collusion, mistakes, jokes and unexpected surprises.
6th November, from 18:30 to 21:00h
SOLO CSV. Cuesta de San Vicente 36. 28008 Madrid (Spain)
dmstfctn explores complex systems through the lenses of simulation, fiction and experience. Their immersive performances, video installations and video games demystify systems by replicating and exploring them together with audiences, and remystify them by building new stories and worlds atop them. Their immersive performances, video installations and video games demystify systems by replicating and exploring them together with audiences, and remystify them by building new stories and worlds atop them. dmstfctn often utilise game engines in the making of artworks as tools for shared learning, exploration and critique. Their work on AI folklore builds on notions of roleplay, shadow self and ‘society of mind’ to frame anomalies and peculiarities in AI systems not as errors to be fixed, but as creative phenomena worth tuning into to develop a nuanced understanding of AI.
The Models was produced as part of a residency in the Italian art institution Sineglossa, supported by the European Digital Deal. The AI drive dialogues were produced with the Leonardo Supercomputer in Bologna, Italy.