Sci-Fi, Cyberpunk, Sago, Good Night Out & ‘The Culture of Death’
Mildred German
Unceded Territories – Art influences our present realities. Technology plays a large part in expanding the the horizons of Art. Drones and robots not only can take images in the bird’s eye view, transport items, and are treated as tools in the workplaces, they can also fill the night skies with bright visual art.
Drones and robots are just one of the many examples of how technology resonates in Art and in many of our present social realities of technology advancements.
MILK SWEATER
WRITTEN BY MILDRED GERMAN, DIGITAL ART BY SULLECILE
Milk Sweater is an anime literature episode in the sci-fi series ‘The Culture of Death’ by Vancouver-based Filipino-Canadian multidisciplinary artist Mildred Grace German, and digital art by Sullecile, from Leyte, Philippines.
A science-fiction, Milk Sweater is a story of Queer + non-binary young Filipinos who work in the most exploitative service-related industry post-technological and post-industrial apocalypse.
The storytime of Milk Sweater exposes lawlessness which is everywhere. There are many different bubbles of surviving civilizations, thriving yet are different and disconnected to each other, with or without technology, and are hidden in the darkness of the abyss of the universe. There are displacements, confusion, famine, sickness, loss of homes, greed, and loss of values.
Categorized as ‘dreamers’, ‘sponsored’, ‘natural intellectuals’ and ‘beautifully strange’ in a time of forced galactic labour and of armed-service demands, the main characters of Milk Sweater present their raw daily struggles, inspirations and dreams, and out-of-this-world visions.
“THE CULTURE OF DEATH” SERIES
The series aims to present characters as they are forced into random survival jobs and navigate a lawless broken universe amidst the ‘past’, ‘present’, ‘future’ and of ‘the end times’.
There are many adventures and misadventures presented to these characters in The Culture of Death. From plots of conflicts, the disarrangement of the traditional storytelling, disagreements of values, and of prophecies are some of the experiences of these characters.
SCI-FI, CYBERPUNK, & JUXTAPOSITIONS
According to Wikipedia, “Cyberpunk” is a subgenre of science fiction in a dystopian futuristic setting that tends to focus on a “combination of lowlife and high tech” featuring advanced technological and scientific achievements, such as artificial intelligence and cybernetics, juxtaposed with a degree of breakdown or radical change in the social order.”
As history repeats itself, it may, and can repeat even in a post-technological and post-industrial apocalyptic world. Yet, technological stories can be developed through the consciousness or sub-consciousness, historical accounts, written visions and prophecies, science, artificial intelligence, misinformations, erasures of histories and datas, and through broad science and technology to propel brains across and within this vastness of the universe.
There are many styles and ethos of the cyberpunk culture. The venues are endless – from literature, architecture, fashion, anime, visual arts, games, music, and innovations. Cyberpunk plots are often centered on conflicts, social realities, mega machines and corporations, artificial intelligence, hackers and hustlers. Settings are in the far-future, galactic areas, the chaotic and solemn abyss corners of the universe.
Famous cyberpunk representations are featured in highly acclaimed works, such as The Matrix and its sequels, James Cameron’s Avatar, Steven Spielbergs’ A.I. Artificial Intelligence. Also, the DC Comics, the Marvels, Ghibli Studios, and video games like Final Fantasy are also inspired by cyberpunk culture. The newly-released Filipino anime series Trese, also carries cyberpunk influences with its plot of the criminal underworld, and comic anime artistry.
MILK SWEATER AND GOOD NIGHT OUT – SAFER NIGHTS OUT FOR ALL
Excerpts of Milk Sweater are recently published and accessible via the newly released zine by ‘Good Night Out Safer Nights Out For All’ by Good Night Out (GNO) Vancouver.
This zine is entitled, “Safe, love & robots, cheap liquor & tacos, from The What? Gallery to Pxssypalace, and some spaces of softness; Stories from BIPOC nightlife”. It is a collaboration of Black, Indigenous, and People of Colors (BIPOCs) living in the diaspora, including those displaced.
As the pandemic exposes a lot of systemic problems, white supremacy, hate crimes, toxic masculinity and misogyny, BIPOCs’ sense of safety and belongingness are again violated and shaken. News after news of the attacks, police brutality, untimely deaths, and hate crimes are pervasive.
This zine explores the nightlife, of what night spaces and safety have become from the perspectives of BIPOCs. As the economy strives to open and come back to ‘normal’, what do these reopenings mean to the safety, wellness, and basic necessities and human rights of BIPOCs?
It is inspired by the Good Night Out campaign, an international campaign on sexual harassment and unsafe night environments started in London, UK.
Vancouver is the first non- UK chapter to tackle harassment in venues, pubs, bars and clubs and aims to raise awareness to concepts of belonging, fun, and what threats can look like in night spaces. As harassment unfortunately does happen, GNO Vancouver also aims to have businesses send out a strong message to the community that when harrassment is unacceptable and will be dealt with appropriately.
In addition, this zine is GNO Vancouver’s very first zine and a fundraising campaign for two great community campaigns. All proceeds will go to Vancouver Black Therapy and Advocacy Foundation and Western Aboriginal Harm Reduction Society. The zine is pay-what-you-can. GNO Vancouver has pick-up arrangement options in East Vancouver. A wide variety of ways to purchase, and more information are accessible via https://www.goodnightoutvancouver.com/zine.