Obsolescence Party Residency

obsolescence.party is an art and technology project by Lauren Lapidge and Cecylia Bocovich. They were residents on Aegina, at Vessel, in August 2023.

Obsolescence is a state of being when a service, object or practice is no longer maintained or required even though it may still be relevant or in working order. It is the process by which products or technologies become outdated or no longer useful over time. Obsolescence is complex phenomenona that can be driven by a range of factors, including technological innovation, changing consumer preferences, deliberate corporate strategies, and advertising aimed at increasing profits.

obsolescence.party is an exploratory project that set the foundations for a deeper dive into the repurposing of obsoleted devices, with a focus on mobile phones. Mobile phones are notoriously difficult to repurpose or sustain due to the past rapid increases in computational power, the proprietary nature of phone hardware, and the consumerist drive to purchase the latest device that leads to the abandonment of older versions. The residency provided the participants with the opportunity for a literature review and material exploration topics related to obsolescence, permacomputing, and reverse engineering. They also created an online resource for the project, and a summary of progress posted on https://obsolescence.party.