Thank you Manpreet Hayer, Meant for the Mountains, Gary Hoover, J. Timothy Damiani, MD, Sarah Melville, and many others for tuning into my live video with Kyle McDonald! If you want to participate in the Lives, ask questions of the guests I bring on, etc., do us both a favor and subscribe now and make sure Reality Studies isn’t getting filtered in your inbox. That way you can join me for my next live video in the app:
Audio versions of this episode can be found here on Substack, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.
My guest today is Kyle McDonald.
Kyle McDonald is an artist working with code. He crafts interactive installations, sneaky interventions, playful websites, workshops, andtoolkits for other artists working with code. Exploring possibilities of new technologies: to understand how they affect society, to misuse them, and build alternative futures; aiming to share a laugh, spark curiosity, create confusion, and share spaces with magical vibes. Working with machine learning, computer vision, social and surveillance tech spanning commercial and arts spaces. Previously adjunct professor at NYU’s ITP, member of F.A.T. Lab, community manager for openFrameworks, and artist in residence at STUDIO for Creative Inquiry at CMU, and YCAM in Japan. Work commissioned and shown around the world, including: the V&A, NTT ICC, Ars Electronica, Sonar, Todays Art, and Eyebeam.
A couple weeks ago, Kyle’s Apocalypse Early Warning System started making the rounds, garnering coverage in Boing Boing, The Times, VICE, Washington Post, and elsewhere. It’s an extremely zeitgeisty project, predicated on the notion that if apocalypse is imminent, the ultra-wealthy will be the first to know—and scurry off to safety in their private jets. Accordingly, the site tracks aforementioned private jets.
This project epitomizes how media art can become a vector for creative intervention in toxic systems. It’s simple, accessible, and simultaneously rooted in an unambiguous politics. And, as you’ll learn in this episode, it’s far from the first such project Kyle has released. We discuss his wide-ranging practice, which ranges from making local loquat jam to countersurveilling law enforcement. Along the way we dig into his artistic philosophy, ethics, and much more. So please enjoy this rich conversation with Kyle McDonald.
Another episode you might like:
Support Reality Studies
NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.
In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).
1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.
ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).
MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)
Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.
CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also directed, shot, and edited the video version of the podcast, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.
Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with Adam Mckay on the role of storytelling & comedy in collapse:
