The Electronic Literature Organization 2023 international conference and media art festival took place in Coimbra, Portugal, July 12 to 15, and I had the great pleasure of co-chairing this massive event with my beloved Rui Torres and Manuel Portela, as well as Daniela Côrtes Maduro (who first suggested this event should take place in beautiful Coimbra).
ELO2023 included talks, performances, workshops, exhibitions… Do make sure to check out everything on our website! And, I will not lie, this was probably the toughest organizational task of my professional life. The post-pandemic academic and artistic world is a challenging one, filled with administrative and logistical challenges, as well as rising costs and environmental and health problems. And yet, we somehow managed to make this happen, and it was truly great. I love the ELO community, and I feel very proud of being part of its Board of Directors.
The Electronic Literature Organization’s (ELO) annual conference and media arts festival, “Overcoming Divides: Electronic Literature and Social Change,” will take place in Coimbra, Portugal, July 12-15, 2023, at the São Francisco Convent, the Exploratório-Centro Ciência Viva de Coimbra, and the Teatro Académico de Gil Vicente. Presenting an academic program of panels, round tables, and workshops, as well as an artistic program of exhibitions and performances, ELO 2023 showcases the diversity of contemporary digital literary practices, as well as theoretical reflections on algorithmic society, culture and art. 200 researchers and artists from over forty countries across all continents will gather for ELO 2023.
*Press release excerpt
The academic conference was a true success, with wonderful talks and three amazing keynote addresses by Lori Emerson, Jussi Parikka and Amira Hanafi. The performances at the Teatro Académico Gil de Vicente were incredible, and the exhibition “Arborescent || Resistance” was a dream come true. All works can still be accessed here.
There is a lot to share, the event was covered by local and national media (read some news clippings here), but I will be succinct and simply leave some pics below… (most photos by Nuno Pessoa and a couple by myself).
