Time(s) on Earth (Discussion)

“Time(s) on Earth” is an intertwining of art and science, presented in an experimental format as a performative, temporal ecology. Extending from the disciplines of music, artistic research, and social studies of science and technology, this study takes an ecological position to explore interrelations of temporalities, decision-making, and acting. Our planetary ecosystem is in crisis, and “time” is precious. Meanwhile, the dynamics of global capitalist economies appropriate “time” for more profit, and they hold parts of society in temporal slavery. The sense of time — that is, the experience of time and duration — are at the core of the current predicament. Palme & Valkenburg respond to this by reconceiving time and duration as multiple temporalities within an ecosystem, in short: “Time(s) on Earth.” The co-authors will explain how balancing multifold perceptions of time(s) becomes an important aspect of artistic practice, research studies, and a wide array of activities and activisms. In so doing, they intend to encourage processes of decision-making and acting in complex environments, and they propose that artistic practices can become examples of acting-with-time in a responsible way. The co-authors compose an experimental presentation format inspired by the very theme of the research: a performative, temporal ecology, blending scholarly sections with poetic and performative passages. Unfolding in counterpoint, the various threads of the exploration are designed to interact and interfere with each other. Together, they form a polyphony. In this way, the presentation in itself can become an example of how to conceive, compose, and perform a complex structure of actions unfolding within a given time-span. Members of the audience will complement the presentation through their own processes of creative perception. As they bring their individual “pasts” into a collective “present,” the temporalities of listeners and performers begin to interrelate.