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Psy-Geo-Conflux 2003 marks the inauguration of an an annual event dedicated to current artistic and social investigations in psychogeography. Part festival and part conference, it will bring together visual and sound artists, writers, urban adventurers and curious city dwellers to explore the physical and psychological terrain of the urban landscape.
In 1955, Guy Debord defined psychogeography as "the study of the precise laws and specific effects of the geographical environment, consciously organized or not, on the emotions and behaviour of individuals."(1) It has also been summarized as “the active search for, and celebration of, chance and coincidence, concurrently with the divination of patterns and repetitions thrown up by the [meeting/collision] of the chaos and structures of cities, personal histories and interpretations. It is based on the technique of the "derive,” an informed and aware wandering, with continuous observation, through varied environments. It can be sought and can lead anywhere.” (2)
The idea for Psy-Geo-Conflux originated in an ongoing online conversation with a network of psychogeographers actively pursuing investigations in Utrecht, Rotterdam, London, Berlin, Lisbon, Paris, New York and San Francisco, to name a few places. As part of this dialogue I proposed organizing an event in New York as a prototype for an annual gathering to be held in different cities and bring like minds together. The response was enthusiastic, and a steady stream of proposals followed.
Projects for Psy-Geo-Conflux include a live, city-scale chess match using volunteers with cell phones as players on the Manhattan street grid, a tour/acoustic parade with Brooklyn street art collective Toyshop, a walk with artist Sal Randolph (organizer of last year’s Free Biennial) to distribute copies of her book Free Words, and an experiment in walking the urban itineraries catalogued in a database by Paris-based artist and professor Karen O’Rourke. In addition, there will be projects that explore translating digital networks into pathways through the city, a lecture on the psychological effects of urban planning in divided cities such as Berlin, and a presentation on the subject game theory. Finally, there will be a reception featuring video works and DJs using found sound recorded on the streets and subways, and an exhibition of artwork, photographs, maps and documents relating to the various projects. All events will be free and open to the public.
With the inauguration of this annual event, I look forward to helping create an exciting and collaborative atmosphere for those already engaged in psychogeographic pursuits, and in turn engaging city residents in new ways to explore our surroundings.

   Christina Ray
   Glowlab founder/editor
   February, 2003

(1) Debord, Guy. An Introduction to a Critique of Urban Geography.
(2) Monocular Times. Psychogeography: a working definition.


Psy-Geo-Conflux 2003 is produced by ABC No Rio, the Brooklyn Psychogeographical Association and Glowlab. Sponsored in part by Artists Space Independent Project Grant. Exhibition funded in part by the New York State Council on the Arts.