UFO
UFO is not a university in a traditional sense—or in any sense. It is a model, continuously revising what a university is or could be. Its goal is to act as a transformative vehicle, capable of moving through impossible spaces and concepts. It operates with complexity, computation, dynamics, ontology, and intelligence, which form the bedrock of the transformative formations that emerge through its behavior and characteristics.
We are living in a time when existing structures and organizations are being stripped down. Their true face is exposed: a lack of care for humanity at their core, built entirely on power and struggle. Our task begins with recognizing this, and understanding ourselves as a force capable of transforming struggle into a different kind of power.
We have, historically, given our power away to a small few. But that no longer makes sense—these figures no longer carry any real organizational value. What is emerging is the possibility for any character to rise into such positions. Not the same positions, but new configurations—new forms. This opens up a global scale of resistance, because the mediatory connections that once held power in place are dissolving through the mutation of existing structures. Not their total destruction, but a selective removal and addition—a mutation that turns them into something far more horrible.
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Posthuman Studies Lab
Ana Ruiz Valencia
Ana Ruiz Valencia is a Colombian performer/improviser, curator and researcher living in Medellin and Bogota. Her experimental sonic work moves between classical tradition, free improvisation, and contemporary music. As a curator, Ana is interested in contemporary artistic practices, particularly those related to aural culture, and philosophy and politics of sound. She is co-author of Charles Fréger – Cimarrón: Freedom and Masquerade (Thames & Hudson, 2019) and was part of the curatorial team at the 45 Salón Nacional de Artistas, in Colombia. She currently serves as Curator at the Universidad de Antioquia's Museum, MUUA, curator of Auditum Festival, and co-director of the experimental music ensemble Doble Cero Carnicero and Bruitcollage label.
Sounding the Continuum
With a background in music performance and museum studies, my work deals with the role of language and communication in the creation of intersubjective realities. I assume language in a broad sense: textual, sonic, spoken, musical, mathematical, and/or body languages are intertwined, looking to unveil the intangible structures sustaining what we perceive as real. Sound functions as my main material of expression as much as the sonic experience constitutes my philosophical approach to the world. I approached noise both from a sonic and an epistemological perspective, especially around the notion of ruido pasito (soft noise).
Recently, I became interested in sound performances that exceed the musical experience and the concert hall. This has taken me to exhibition venues, creating solo or collaborative performances that build up fictional narratives through translation, interpretation, and imitation. As a curator, I am interested in establishing links and conversations with artists, both through experimental processes and exhibitions at non-traditional venues. My curatorial and research projects are currently connected to the idea of domestication as a powerful and violent —yet silent— form of oppression.