Synopses & Reviews
Contemporary visual culture has been dominated by futuristic utopian and dystopian ideas that reflect a longing for a seamless interface between the virtual and real, as well as a desire for a release from the constraints of space and time. Constructed around both speculative predictions and creative scientific arguments, these ideas contribute to a pervasive visual rhetoric that influences our sense of things to come. and#160;
Delving into the importance of these perspectives and the art that both results from and shapes them, this volume is a spirited exploration of the interface between art and theory in the twenty-first century. The essays reflect collaborative work between the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, the Amsterdam School for Cultural Analysis at the University of Amsterdam, De Appel arts centre, W139and#150;Space for Contemporary Art, and the art magazine Metropolis M. Discussing provocative themes like and#147;Future Historyand#8221; and and#147;Future Freedom,and#8221; Facing Forward is an energetic look at how our visions of the future affect how we depict the world around us now.
Synopsis
"Revisioning 007" is a lively collection of new essays on the reinvention of James Bond in the 2006 film Casino Royale, starring Daniel Craig in his first appearance as Agent 007. Treating Casino Royale as a case study in popular film culture and as a significant turning point in the 007 series, the book offers innovative readings of the film and its inte-rrelations with the Bond franchise, the culture industry and recent developments in cinema, society and world politics. Essay topics range from the analysis of 007's masochism, voyeurism and hyper-mobility, to the examination of the film's testicular torture scene, the links between international politics and high-stakes gambling and the changing role of the secret agent in a post-9/11 world order.
Synopsis
Contemporary visual culture is inundated with a kaleidoscope of futuristic utopias and dystopias in which the longing for a seamless interface between the virtual and the real, as well as the desire for release from the constrictions of time and space, are recurrent themes. Based on speculative predictions and creative scientific arguments, a pervasive visual rhetoric of acceleration and progression, as well as damnation and destruction, shapes our sense of the future.
Contributors to this volume include participants in the Facing Forward Project of 2011-12, which started as a collaboration between the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, the Amsterdam School for Cultural Analysis at the University of Amsterdam, De Appel arts centre, W139 and#150; Space for Contemporary Art, and the art magazine Metropolis M.
About the Author
Christoph Lindner is professor of media studies at the University of Amsterdam.