Manuela Naveau, Hess Jeon
Interview
In this interview, co-curators Manuela Naveau and Hess Jeon explore the intersection of artificial intelligence, human creativity, and ethics for the University of Art Linz’s campus exhibition at Ars Electronica Festival. They argue that while AI tremendously alters creative workflows, human creativity remains distinct—rooted in artistic intent, critical inquiry, and deep thought rather than prompt generation. Though automated systems can make creators passive or create misleadingly polished initial drafts, realizing genuine artistic goals still demands deep effort and personal language.
Beyond aesthetics, the curators criticize the concentration of AI development within a few global tech giants, warning that corporate lobbying and geopolitical conflicts threaten hard-won societal values like equity and diversity. Under the guiding question of "At what cost?" (Auf Kosten von wem oder was?), the exhibition highlights student works that expose these hidden tolls—from the heavy environmental impact of data infrastructure to algorithmic indifference toward global crises. Ultimately, they contend that technology is a tool rather than a source of ultimate answers, urging artists and society to actively question automated systems and engage with present and local human realities.
Hess Jeon is an object-oriented artist and designer from South Korea. With a focus on modern machines and their influence on current cultures and communities, he likes to dabble with speculative designs supported by artistic research and playful reasoning. Having studied Industrial Design(BDes) at NCAD Dublin and Interface Culture(MA) at Kunstuniversität Linz, he is currently undergoing PhD studies in Linz, Austria.
Manuela Naveau PhD is a university professor, an independent curator and an art-based researcher. For almost 18 years she worked as head of Ars Electronica Export, curator and developed the Ars Electronica Export department, which she led operationally since its inception. Since 2020, Manuela Naveau has been a university professor for Critical Data at the Interface Cultures Department / Institute of Media at the University of Arts Linz, which she is heading since February 2023 and initiated the Critical Data Research Group since then. Her monograph Crowd and Art – Kunst und Partizipation im Internet was published by transcript Verlag (Germany) in 2015. Since then, her research and writing have focused on participation, interaction, and collaborative, practices in Media Art, Digital Art, and Critical Data, resulting in numerous academic publications, essays, and curatorial texts.