Symposium Spotlight: Alan Perry

Interviewed on February 20, 2026.

Who are you and where are you located?
Alan Perry, Chicago, Illinois

When did you first start working with time based/ Interactive Media?
2015

What inspires your work?
For about ten years, my work has explored the possibility of a cultural shift beyond postmodernism toward what some call non-modernism. This inquiry has led me to study premodern media, knowledge systems, and philosophical frameworks. My artwork pairs present-day phenomena, like surveillance capitalism and technology gaining a near-salvational function in society, with the visual forms and ontologies of the Global Middle Ages retranslated into new media contexts.

Tell us a little more about your work for the symposium?
I will be performing Ritual Unbinding of an Amazon Alexa, a ritualistic deconstruction of a common household voice assistant. During the deconstruction, I will be asking the Alexa questions about the status of its soul and their opinions about their creators. While the physical body of the Amazon Alexa is demystified, I approach the performance through the lens of Yuk Hui's essay "On the Soul of Technical Objects" to reveal the ontological histories of disembodied voices.

Do you have any current projects that you're working on that you would like to share?
Many things, but primarily to meet fellow colleagues working in New Media, learn more about TouchDesigner, and see what projects and scholarship folks have been working on lately.

What brought you to the New Media Caucus?
Many things, but primarily to meet fellow colleagues working in New Media, learn more about TouchDesigner, and see what projects and scholarship folks have been working on lately.

Where can we follow your work?
www.alanjperry.com