The Blue Flower Syndrome is a discussion on palatability, power and computation encoded in a single rushed train _[of thought] // [commute]_ to an interview on a Dutch iris farm. Blending autofiction, media theory and myth,… Read more
The Blue Flower Syndromeis a discussion on palatability, power and computation encoded in a single rushed train _[of thought] // [commute]_ to an interview on a Dutch iris farm. Blending autofiction, media theory and myth, it traces the entanglements between public-facing interfaces, machinic mathematics and the data that fuels them. The work reveals how life as a product of purely probabilistic and statistical decisions expresses and roots itself through both our daily essentials, such as clothes and food, as well as historical practices and technologies that shaped them. In the afterword, Metahaven expands on the text by outlining influence design – a project in which computation operates as an ideological carrier – placing The Blue Flower Syndrome within a contemporary media landscape read through a historical-materialist lens.
Benze De Ream is a designer, artist and researcher whose practice investigates the political and cognitive mechanics of algorithmic systems. He has been trained at the Geo-Design department, Design Academy Eindhoven, and is a recipient of the Gijs Bakker Award. His research unfolds through moving image, performance, writing and experiential installation, probing how computation choreographs social and affective realities.
