Can Art do Technology and Social Change?

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Is it possible to develop artistic projects that not only change the way we see and use technology but also affect real social change at the same time? Ruth Catlow introduces the Zero Dollar Laptop project and proposes that this might just be possible.

By Ruth Catlow.

The Zero Dollar Laptop Workshop programme has been developed and delivered through partnership between Furtherfield and Access Space and aims to change attitudes to technology. It does this by recycling hardware, deploying Free and Open Source Software (FOSS), sharing skills and working together to create rich media content.

This project has provided a useful basis for thinking about how art might be able to create change through learning and education that relates to technology.

This question becomes especially relevant in the context of current, global economic and ecological collapse.

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