«A arte pós-Darwin»: política dos artefactos e da tecnologia a partir de uma experiência etnográfica

Regarding the subject of the place of biotechnosciences in contemporary society, this article attempts to explore the political dimension of technologies and artifacts based on a field experience at the public exhibition Inside: Arte e Ciência. Considering the art and science approach as a potential element of amplification of the public debate on artistic and scientific techniques and practices, the exhibition was thought of as a special situation, a collective environment which, due to its properties, awakens impressions in its experience, condensing tensions between meanings and relations between several groups of agents (the construction of situations proposal, from the Situationist International, and the case studies of the Manchester School, were primary sources of inspiration). With a particular focus on the idea of “technological choice” and of art and technology as systems of action, antagonist views from public and artists regarding the manipulation of biological and artificial life – based on different representations of life and nature –, the artifact’s agency and authorship rights, are highlighted. As concluding remarks, the relative everyday life alienation from these matters and the importance of ethnographically studying initiatives of this nature, which induce reflection and allow contact between usually unarticulated groups, are recognized.