an evening of art, performance, film, and critical discussion exploring the evolving entanglements of data, place, and imagination. Presented by Lancaster University’s School of Art and Future Places Centre in collaboration with Abandon Normal Devices, Lancaster Arts, and Deco Publique, the event invites audiences to engage with two provocative artistic works: LUMI, a film by Abelardo Gil-Fournier and Jussi Parikka that imagines an AI-driven restoration of planetary light; and Gardeners of the 5th Industrial Revolution by BRiGHTBLACK, a speculative performance mapping human agency and ecological renewal in a post-labour world.

Bridging these works, a keynote by Jonathan Gray introduces Public Data Cultures, asking how we can reclaim collective agency in an age increasingly governed by data infrastructures. Together, the programme prompts critical reflection on how futures are modelled, who gets to shape them, and how artistic practices can help imagine—and cultivate—new paths forward.