November 2024 — May 2025
The Virtual Realisms public lecture series critically investigates the evolving forms of reality created through algorithmic worldbuilding, where advanced digital technologies give rise to new and diverse interpretations of what is considered ‘real.’ As virtual spaces reach unprecedented levels of fidelity, this seemingly contradictory term suggests that, rather than a unified representation of our reality, we are now enmeshed within multiple new artificial realisms shaped by the proliferation of immersive technologies, CGI, and intelligent automation across all sectors. Spanning both technical and speculative practices, the series of lectures will explore how real-time virtual environments, and the technologies that underpin them, are redefining the logics of cultural production, creativity, power and politics in our increasingly rendered world.
Virtual Realisms was a monthly series of public lectures taking place throughout the 2024-25 academic year at the University of Westminster in London.
The series was curated by Tadej Vindis, Lecturer in Creative Technologies, and Teodora Sinziana Alata, Lecturer in Creative Computing and Algorithmic Cultures, at the University of Westminster.
Tobias Revell**: What if Our World is Their Heaven?**
12th June 2025 The Fabrication Lab, Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster
Daniela Gandorfer: After the Law
8th May 2025 The Fabrication Lab, Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster
Paolo Ruffino: Gaming the Post-Anthropocene
10th April 2025 The Fabrication Lab, Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster
You+Pea: Videogame Urbanism, Prototyping Cities Through Virtual Play