Software art is a practice that regards software as a cultural phenomenon that defines one of the principal domains of our existence today. Thus, software is not regarded as an invisible layer, but rather as a decisive level and a language working at reproduction of certain orders, whether aesthetic, cultural, social or political. Software art creatively questions and redefines software and its ways of functioning.
Mirko Tobias Schäfer is Assistant Professor for New Media & Digital Culture at the University of Utrecht at the Department for Media and Culture Studies.
Mirko studied theater, film and media studies and communication studies at Vienna University (A) and digital culture at Utrecht University (NL). He obtained a magister (master) in theater, film and media studies from the University of Vienna in 2002, and a PhD from Utrecht University in 2008.
Mirko publishes on participatory culture, modified electronic consumer goods, software development and the socio-political debates on information and communication technology. He is co-editor of the recently published volume "Digital Material. Tracing New Media in Everyday Life and Technology". Recently, his book "Bastard Culture! How User Participation Transforms Cultural Production" has been released at Amsterdam University Press.
