Introduction

The many worlds project is a meeting point for the various theoretical and artistic practices that I have been engaged in over the past 10+ years. Firstly, the creation of animated loops using discontinued software on dated machines. More on this practice in a separate post. This relates to the creation of worlds for the exploration of possible futures, using theory and method from the Manoa School, in particular Jim Dator. Creating or making visual representations of the alternative futures that can be generated through different combinations of driving force descriptors is a passion project, and 10% of this projects proceeds will go to funding the perpetuation of Native Hawaiian language and culture.

Manoa School Futures Archetypes

I will create another post with more detailed information about where these archetypes come from, how they function in the world of futures studies, and other artists who have also deployed them for various types of work. 

In a nut shell there are four archetypal futures: Continued Growth, Discipline, Collapse (New Beginnings), and Transformation.

These four archetypes can accurately describe most "images of the future" that exist.

In the Manoa School, futures can be described using 7 primary driving forces: Population, Energy, Economy, Environment, Culture, Technology, Governance

This is how it is supposed to work:

Uneven Distribution = Messy(?)

Within some communities there is a very famous quote about the future being present, but with a shoddy logistics system. William Gibson said it first, said it best, and maybe wishes he never said it at all at this point.

Regardless, I've heard it used in many contexts, in many fashions, and at varying degrees of appropriateness when considering what either directly preceded the quote, or what was to follow.

For me the key words were "evenly distributed." 

It's such a clear, concise, and neat way to (ironically?) address the present and the possibility space of the futures.

Further, it begs the question - well, what if it were evenly distributed? That would be rather dull, wouldn't it?

Rather I think the characteristic of uneven distribution exposes the patterns and perturbations of the medium. Before uniform distribution is achieved, we often have the conditions for a beautiful mess.

I think I have a grasp on the original intent of the quotation, and it was not a call for better distribution of technology, services, wealth, or justice (though i think some of these would be welcomed by different people in different places). Rather, I believe it was a statement about the strange attractor of 'the future' and its influence on ourselves and our societies, and a call to reconsider what futures we want to promote, and what qualities of a future life we want to see proliferate. 

The ManyWorlds project is a response to this reading of the quotation, in combination with the framework of the Manoa School futures archetypes.

Simple Tools...

The Manoa School framework is simple in its presentation, but masks a useful and critical cognitive approach for considering one or more images of the future. 

The Gibson quote is short sweet and to the point. 

While my brain is not a simple thing, "I" require simple handholds to hang on to when confronting the brilliant solar winds of possible tomorrows.

I am also like to use simple digital tools that allow me to quickly create. 

and I have very basic Excel skills.

...a Beautiful Mess

The original idea was to take the descriptive adjectives from each of the future archetype forces and recombine them into new permutations of possible future worlds markers. 

And in my original 'back of the envelope' calculations there would have been around 640 different worlds possible.

A lot of permutations to design for, sure, but a reachable goal within a couple years, and hey, the kids are still young.

But i wanted a way to record each of the permutations as they were being created. So I fired up Excel, scrounged and manipulated a macro formula or two, and voila...

...

Turns out there are 16384 different combinations here...so 44.5 years from now I might get them all done at one a day average (surely the kids will still love me).

Anyway, undeterred by the undesirability of this task, I 'm just going to keep making the little worlds and permutations for as long as I can.

For Future Generations

The ManyWorlds animation are currently being minted on Hic Et Nunc, an NFT marketplace being run on Tezos blockchain (proof of stake = a little more energy efficient and environmentally sustainable). 

This is partly driven by my desire to learn (by doing) how NFTs work, and partly by my curiosity to see what others will think of this project's concept and the art pieces themselves. 

Project revenues, however much they are, will be to benefit different 'future generations' causes that I have and will continue to identify. 

For the first one hundred ManyWorlds, 10% of sale and resale revenues will be going to fund Native Hawaiian Language and Culture programs. The other 90% is going into a fund for my kids...they are the one who have to deal with zombie dad in the morning :) 

This ratio will likely change quickly. 

The second 100 pieces will flip 90% to Native Hawaiian Language and Culture programs, and 10% to the kids fund. 

The third 100 will be 20/80, then 80/20, then 30/70 and 70/30 ... you get the idea. 

If you've made it this far you might be asking: Why Native Hawaiian Language and Culture programs ? and which ones?

Simply put, I owe a debt of aloha to the islands. It is a life debt, in many ways, but I will do what I can to repay it while I am removed from being there. 

The preservation and promotion of teaching Native Hawaiian Language and Culture in schools is my preferred mode of paying it forward. I will articulate this in more detail in a different blog post or webpage. 

For the moment, the Hawaiian Department of Education officially recognizes charter schools on all of the islands that teach all or part of the curriculum in Hawaiian Language, and include elements of learning Hawaiian ways of taking care of the land, navigating the sea, various forms of cultural artistic expression, and respect for self and others. I will target these schools first. Again details are forthcoming on how exactly this will work, and how I might be able to automate these transfers to ensure that a) everything works as advertised, and b) I won't have to spend too much time accounting later down the road. (I'll let you all know how it works out here and/or on Twitter).