Sinofuturism as Speculative Design

Abstract

The video essay Sinofuturism (1839–2046 AD) by artist Lawrence Lek is difficult to categorize. It is an hour-long film collaging documentaries, news clips, video games, and CGI. Most often exhibited and discussed in a (new) media arts context, it has been described as a pseudo-documentary, a manifesto, a conspiracy theory, science fiction, and “radical realism.” As an architect-by-training, musician, simulation artist, and now filmmaker, Lek himself is equally difficult to pin down. Given the artist’s formal training in a design discipline, it is curious that Sinofuturism has not yet been discussed by scholarship through the lens of design. This essay discusses Sinofuturism (1839–2046 AD) for the first time as a work of speculative design. First, I introduce the work and its creator. Next, I discuss its negative reception, laying the basis for my central argument that analyzing Sinofuturism as a work of speculative design might yield more fruitful insights and discussion. I then explore the emerging field of speculative and critical design (SCD) and its potential to critique and reimagine societal structures. Finally, I discuss the effectiveness of Sinofuturism as a work of speculative design and analyze its vision, whether it be utopian, dystopian, or something else.