Silent Parties

A legal case from 1989 involving a submersible robot that salvaged a shipwreck full of gold and was found capable of ‘telepossession’ and of transmitting ownership of the find. benandsebastian with Louis de Gouyon Matignon (Toucan Space), read by Scott Fins, and Michael Listner (Space Law and Solutions), read by Rob Milton. Artwork and concept by benandsebastian. Music by Sternum. Mixing and mastering by Conor Dalton. Photo:David Stjernholm.

A legal case from 1711 concerning water rats that were charged with eating crops, found guilty of unlawful damage to property and sentenced to excommunication. benandsebastian with Adam Bencard (Medical Museion) and Bengt Holst (The Danish Animal Ethics Council).  Artwork and concept by benandsebastian. Music by Sternum. Mixing and mastering by Conor Dalton.  Photo by David Stjernholm.

A legal case from 1824 concerning a chess-playing robot that was suspected of hiding a human, involved in a lawsuit over unpaid profits and shipped to America to escape charges.  benandsebastian with Karina Vold (Alan Turing Institute) and Kumar Yogeeswaran (University of Canterbury).  Artwork and concept by benandsebastian. Music by Sternum. Mixing and mastering by Conor Dalton.  Photo by David Stjernholm.

A legal case from 2016 concerning a macaque monkey that took selfies with a photographer’s camera, was claimed to be the rightful author of the images but denied copyright as nonhuman animal. benandsebastian with Raffael Fasel (Cambridge Centre for Animal Rights Law) and Eyal Weizman (Forensic Architecture).  Artwork and concept by benandsebastian. Music by Sternum. Mixing and mastering by Conor Dalton.  Photo by David Stjernholm.

A legal case from 2005 concerning a police robot that was attacked with an automatic shotgun by a man who was subsequently charged with assault and sentenced to 52 years’ imprisonment.  benandsebastian with James Bridle (Author of 'New Dark Age') and Jessica Sorenson (University of Southern Denmark).  Artwork and concept by benandsebastian. Music by Sternum. Mixing and mastering by Conor Dalton. Photo by David Stjernholm.

A legal case from 1386 concerning a sow that was charged with eating an infant, found guilty of murder and sentenced to be hanged at the gallows. benandsebastian with Laurie Shannon (Northwestern University) and Mette Svendsen (University of Copenhagen).  Artwork and concept by benandsebastian. Music by Sternum. Mixing and mastering by Conor Dalton. Photo by David Stjernholm.

A legal case from 1987 concerning animatronics that were charged with live performance, found innocent of having skill or talent and exempted from amusement tax. benandsebastian with Lucia Pietroiusti (Serpentine Galleries) and Lasse Blond (UC Berkeley). Artwork and concept by benandsebastian. Music by Sternum. Mixing and mastering by Conor Dalton.  Photo by David Stjernholm.