Angela Washko: "Romancing the NPC"
Romancing the NPC, an essay by Catherine B. Heller Professor of Art and Director of MFA Program Angela Washko, is featured in Non-Playable Characters, a new book that brings together the contributions of eight theorists, curators, artists, journalists and game modders, each offering a distinct lens on what it means to be a ‘non-playable character’ (NPC) in today’s networked society. a collection of essays, short stories, interviews, and visuals that explores the figure of the NPC as a cultural symbol, internet trope, social mirror, and conceptual vessel.
At the core of this collection lies a deeper inquiry into NPCs and AI, agency vs. servitude, NPC-ification, surveillance capitalism, and the emotion economy. It examines how automated roles and behaviours are embedded in our digital environments, and how they shape our affective, cultural and political realities.
Non-Playable Characters features contributions from:
- Kyle Chayka
- Günseli Yalcinkaya
- 2girls1comp (Marco De Mutiis & Alexandra Pfammatter)
- Nora O’ Murchú
- LAN Party (Vienna Kim & Benoit Palop)
- Morgane Billuart
- Angela Washko
- Alex Quicho