obn@zkm -- background


During initial planning for their contribution to net_condition in The Lounge program at ZKM, Karlsruhe, the old boys network (OBN) received the Manifesto overleaf by email. Since one of the most important goals of OBN is international cyberfeminist networking, it seemed urgent to respond to the concrete demands of a new cyberfeminist initiative group at the Center for Art and Media technologies (ZKM). For this reason we decided to make our catalog pages available to the group calling itself obn@zkm to publish their manifesto; and to offer the new Karlsruhe "Old Boys" a discussion of their manifesto within the context of our public presentation at ZKM, in order to develop further cyberfeminist perspectives together.

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from: obn@zkm.de
to: boys@obn.org
re: obn@zkm manifest

Only through a focus on cyberfeminist activities can ZKM add to its important status of the establisher of interactive artforms in the nineties, and achieve the goals of its new phase as a center of expertise for all questions of the technological, scientific, and information society. Cyberfeminism is a phenomenon which distinguishes itself by the fact that no one can escape it. In particular, a Center for Art and Media (ZKM) which addresses those technical media which were of essential importance for the creation of cyberfeminism , cannot just define itself locally, but must consciously network with international cyberfeminism.

ZKM: a networked cooperation, a network of common duty and dedication -- we will take it at its word. With digital media into a cyberfeminist Millenium!

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The old boys network (OBN) came together in the summer of 1997 as the first cyberfeminist alliance. Basing itself on a politics of dissence, the old boys network works through personal and media networks on cyberfeminist strategies in the fields of gender and the net. In addition to its work on the theory, praxis, aesthetics and politics of cyberfeminism, the core group of old boys (currently eight of them) develops various distribution, connection, and meeting formats. As well as maintaing a website (www.obn.org) and a mailing list, obn organized/s regular live presentations, lectures, workshops, and symposia for face-to-face exchange, including the First Cyberfeminist International in the Hybrid Workspace in the context of dX (Kassel, September 1997) and the Next Cyberfeminist International in connection with Next5MinutesFestival (Rotterdam and Amsterdam, March 1999). Documentation of these activities and further materials have been published thus far in two readers which are available from OBN. In preparation is a book with the provisional title „Cyberfeminism: Next Protocols", expected publication date 2000.
E-mail to: <boys@obn.org>