In 1966, at the cusp of the computer age, Olof Johannesson published the sci-fi novel The Tale of the Big Computer, about the rise to power of an all-encompassing, perfectly rational computer network. But “Olof Johannesson” never existed—the name concealed the identity of Hannes Alfvén, the 1970 winner of the Nobel Prize in physics. Alfvén's novel, a Swedish best seller, inspired in turn a “computer opera” by the composer Karl-Birger Blomdahl, never to be completed or premiered after Blomdahl died of a heart attack. All that remain are fragments of evidence. Lists of noises such as “sword against shield, water boiling, meat frying, steam engine, a falling guillotine, subway, a radio being squeaky and noisy, the first voice of a sputnik, washing machine, dishwasher, A-bomb explosions.” Collaborators and collaborators' collaborators including Billy Klüver, Pontus Hultén, Öyvind Fahlström, and others involved with E.A.T. (Experiments in Art and Technology).
- Anna Lundh is a visual artist, born in Sweden and based in Stockhom and New York. Lundh’s work investigates cultural phenomena, social agreements, technology, and language and takes the form of video, text, installation, and various experiments. In recent years she has participated in residency programs such as LMCC Workspace and Flux Factory, New York, and Omi International Arts Center, Ghent; and shown her work at Bonniers Konsthall, Haninge Konsthall, Kalmar Konstmuseum, and Norrköpings Konstmuseum in Sweden and X-Initiative (Rhizome), Marian Spore, Leo Koenig Inc. Projekte, and Apexart in New York.