This century is drawing to a close with a new artistic notion. Creation, evolution and fate are not merely accepted 'givens'. Mankind has a say in these things. Genetic-technology, artificial Intelligence, insemination and artificial life signal the start of an all-powerful dream on earth being fulfilled.
The production of digitally produced Images and its legiti­ macies in the future can be speculated upon no differently than with technologies, like genetic technology, either de­ veloped or being developed. The basic law applies here: access to knowledge makes its application unavoidable. Whatever lends itself to research within a given period of time will, in fact, be researched. In the production process, new findings will transform everything into the realm of the possible. In the future, every producible image will be generated at will on computers, and everything perceived or imagined - captured on film, on video or other information carrying systems - will let itself be converted Into seemingly authen­ tic reproductions. The unimaginable, or never before depic­ ted, will be made visual.
Unlimited creativity, in the best sense, also means a total manipulation. So alongside mounting technical advance­ ments, the Imagination of the producers plays a greater role now. First of all, whoever feeds his imagination best into the machines reaches the top of the production-ladder. Secondly, the more a powerful Imagination satisfies the general need, the greater the influence on the market. The sought after perspective is to transfer the imagination di­ rectly Into the computer before feeding pictures directly into the brain. This is the next big step towards a dls-informed society founded upon threats of terror, subversion, control and power. Finally a glimpse into the generating, manipulating and aborting of pictures: picture-geneticists in artificial Imagina­ tion-labs, visual mutations, brain-injected visual drugs and picture-penal-colonies. It sounds like Burroughs and Gibson at the fun-fair. The parallel to genetic-technology is direct: following a picture's generation, its future existence must be decided upon. "Abort" as a command stems from today's machine-lingo-where "cancel" equals an Interrupted preg­ nancy. Comparisons like these might inspire a provocative discussion on a controversial problem.