A Sexual History of the Internet

About the event

Deemed “the internet’s sexual historian” by the LA Times, US artist and technologist Mindy Seu brings her acclaimed participatory lecture-performance to Vivid Sydney, following sell-out shows across North America, Asia and Europe. Revealing the pervasive and perverted origins of our digital tools, A Sexual History of the Internet questions how technologies have shaped and been shaped by sexuality, decades before AI-relationships or the OnlyFans economy. For starters: Did you know that the first JPG was a digitalized Playboy centerfold? Or that an early operating system was called Sex OS? Pulling together facts, cultural legacies and hidden histories, Seu engages the audience to read lecture citations aloud through a shared script accessible via your mobile device* in a collective performance of re-citation. Together, you’ll examine the relationships between techno-development and sexuality, innovation and autonomy, lust and extraction. *This performance requires a mobile device compatible with Instagram. Please have Instagram downloaded on your mobile device prior to the event. Content Warning Recommended for Ages 18+. Please note that this performance includes explicit references to sex and sexual assault. It also includes bright, transmissive light in a very dark space. Your comfort and safety is important to us, so please feel welcome to exit if you have discomfort with either of these. Credits Designer: Laura Coombs Editor: Meg Miller Lecture Format Collaborator: Julio Correa Illustrator: Ven Qiu Timecode Scripting: Jon Gacnik Videographer: Gabriel Noguez 3D Artist: Tom Hancocks Website Support: Charles Broskoski Metalabel: Yancey Strickler, Lena Imamura