Lucy McRae Lecture

Lucy McRae, Solitary Survival Raft, 2020. Photo: Ariel Fisher.

Join us for a lecture by artist Lucy McRae followed by an audience Q & A. 

Doors open at 5:45 p.m. Free and open to the public. Registration is not required. Explore the Visiting Artists Program homepage for visitor information, recordings of past events, and more.

Artist Lucy McRae leads a multidisciplinary art-research studio investigating the impact future technologies have on human evolution. In parallel to her gallery and museum-focused art practice, she thrives as a director and a maker, in the writer’s room and in the lab. Boldly staring down the status quo, McRae pioneers a new story for how future technologies will fundamentally alter intimacy, reproduction, biology, and health—shining light on the ethical implications of genetic engineering. Her prophetic aesthetic is flung far from archetypal tropes, creating nostalgia for a future about to happen. McRae’s work diversifies the predictive voices we traditionally call “science” and “technology” through designing hypothetical worlds that use speculation as a tool to provoke an exploration of ideologies and ethics about who we are and where we are headed.

Based in Los Angeles, McRae is a visiting professor at Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc), recognized as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, and a TED Fellow. She is currently a world-building and futurist consultant to a number of Hollywood productions with multiple Oscar-winning directors and producers. McRae has exhibited at the Venice Biennale; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Science Museum, London; Milan Triennale; National Gallery of Victoria; Powerhouse Museum, Australia; SCI-Arc, Los Angeles; MAXXI, Rome; NXT Museum, Amsterdam; Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam; Design Museum Holon, Israel; and Honor Fraser Gallery, Los Angeles. Collaborations and commissions include Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Ars Electronica, NASA, Aesop, Adidas, Nike, Adobe, Intel, Kia, Dezeen, Unilever, WIRED Health, and BMW Mini. Keynotes have been given at TED, Royal Albert Hall, Cannes Lion, and Tribeca Film Festival.

Presented in partnership with SAIC’s Fashion Council and Department of Fashion.

This event will be live captioned by Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) services. The auditorium is wheelchair accessible and hearing assisted devices are available. For additional access requests, visit saic.edu/access.