Gray Area Grand Theater: The Body Digital: Vanessa Chang in conversation with Leia Chang

How have technologies throughout history extended our senses, and what can this teach us about building better relationships between bodies and machines?

We’re excited to host Vanessa Chang whose new book The Body Digital explores the intricate and often surprising ways technology has shaped our relationship with our bodies throughout history. From eyeglasses to artificial intelligence, Chang reveals how each technological breakthrough has been met with both fear and fascination, reminding us that our current anxieties about AI and digital transformation echo centuries of human adaptation to innovation. In conversation with Leia Chang, a creative technologist whose work bridges the digital and physical through embodied art and interactive installations, this conversation will examine how we might better understand our technological future by looking to the past. The talk will also look at how artists and makers continue to negotiate the boundaries between body, machine, and identity in an age of rapid change.