Draft:MetaForming

MetaForming and The Post-[un]Human

MetaForming and the Post-[un]Human are key contemporary, artistic, and philosophical frameworks conceived by artist and Royal College of Art alumni Stuart Lee. They emerged as a critical response to conventional art practices and established ways of thinking. Both concepts place a strong emphasis on critical engagement, encouraging artists and thinkers to question dominant discourses and explore alternative approaches to art-making.

MetaForming

Metaforming is an interdisciplinary concept that combines elements of philosophy, art, and critical theory. It involves a deep exploration of the transformative power of artistic gestures, particularly those that challenge conventional boundaries and push the limits of human understanding. At its core, Metaforming emphasizes critical engagement with contemporary art practices and the theoretical underpinnings of critical theory. It encourages the questioning of dominant discourses, exploring alternative ways of thinking, and art production that goes beyond traditional contemporary norms.

The key, fundamental, core principles of MetaForming are:

• Critical Engagement: MetaForming encourages a critical reevaluation of established norms and practices in art and philosophy.
• Self-Referential Parts: It recognizes the importance of constituent self-referential parts and their relationships in shaping the whole.
• Essential Meaning: MetaForming invites exploration of the intention and deeper essential meaning behind artistic gestures.
• Abstracted Opposites: It fosters the joining of observed abstracted opposites to create tension and criticality in artistic expression.
• The Gap: Acknowledging the gap between perception and representation, MetaForming values this space of ambiguity as a source of creativity.
• Object-Oriented Ontology: This principle emphasizes the agency of objects and materials in creating meaning in art.
• Socially Engaged: MetaForming advocates for socially engaged, politically conscious, and materially attuned art making.
• Non-Cartesian Approach: It embraces emergent ways of being, moving beyond dualistic views of the world.

MetaForming seeks to reside not only in the arts but also in critical philosophy, where it challenges traditional modes of thought and opens new avenues for exploration in understanding the complexities of the contemporary world.

The Post-[un]Human

The Post-[un]Human is a philosophical and cultural framework that reimagines human existence beyond traditional notions of humanity. It challenges the Cartesian separation of mind and body and emphasises the interconnectedness of all living beings, human and non-human. The removal of the human can be understood as de-centring human exceptionalism, also known as Anthropocentrism.

The key, fundamental, core principles of The Post-[un]Human are:

• Object Relations: The Post-[un]Human highlights the interconnectedness of all things and encourages meaningful relationships with objects and materials.

• Non-Cartesian Thinking: Rejecting the mind-body duality, it promotes holistic self-world connections.
• Latency and Withdrawal: Acknowledging hidden aspects of the world, The Post-[un]Human engages with them productively.
• Negentropy: Advocates for actions promoting the flourishing of all beings, including non-human entities.
• Critical Digital Citizenry: It recognizes the impact of technology on human understanding and advocates for responsible technology use for social justice and equity.
• Emergent Ways of Being: The Post-[un]Human emphasizes the impact of actions and attitudes, fostering care and responsibility.
• Material Realities: It is deeply attuned to the material realities of the world, promoting sustainable ways of living.
• Post-Humanism: The Post-[un]Human sees the human as just one aspect of a larger ecological and social system, emphasizing the importance of engaging with the world in ways that promote the flourishing of all beings.

This framework challenges traditional human-centric perspectives and offers new ways of thinking about ethics, ecology, technology, and human identity in an interconnected world.