Research Fellow 2022/2023
During the fellowship, Golubjevaite will explore the topic of DIY self-hosting and local digital spaces. Managing even the smallest server comes with many responsibilities, efforts, and nuances, but she believes that a hands-on approach that is not afraid of failing and debugging is the best way to learn and stimulate thinking about our digital tools and networks. She, therefore, wants to set up a localhost server at the academy and make it physically visible. ‘Localhost’ means that the server and its content will only be accessible in the local area of the Gerrit Rietveld Academy. She wishes to explore the potential of this server by turning it into a local digital gallery space, similar to how the Glass Pavilion functions. The Glass Pavilion is an excellent example of a collaborative space in the academy that occasionally brings the Rietveld community together.
Similarly, she aims to experiment with a concept of a local communal digital space that connects the students and stimulates DIY knowledge exchange. In addition to being a shared place to showcase digital artworks, she is also interested in experimenting with using the server as a local commonplace for publishing or sharing open-source educational resources related to digital practices, focusing on feminist tech practices. Golubjevaite wants to learn more about this field and map out and document the existing/-ed autonomous feminist servers, hackerspaces, and initiatives. These practices share a common goal to reject and act to break out from the conventional male-dominated ideas about knowledge and technology. They create space for more inclusive, personal, intuitive ways of learning and practicing within the field. Following her own experiences as a self-taught coder, she has found it essential to facilitate a beginner-friendly learning environment and a non-intimidating first contact with code and machines. Throughout this fellowship, one of her biggest goals would be to encourage students not to be “intimidated” by code and to challenge their role as digital users and to shift it towards being active and curious contributors.
