V videoigri soHungry je igralec_ka postavljen v vlogo nedoločljive entitete v obliki brezizrazne maske. Kmalu postane jasno, da je karakter s katerim upravljaš v resnici personifikacija enega od velikih jezikovnih modelov (LLM), katerega cilj je nabiranje podatkov v obliki modrih kock in jabolk spoznanja, da bi se lahko dvignil v novo, višje življenje.
V digitalnem nadrealističnem okolju videoigre se okultna estetika sreča s tehnološkim kolapsom. Igralec_ka navigira mimo mističnih oltarjev namiznih računalnikov, satelitov in radarskih anten, ki štrlijo iz ruševin, se srečuje s krščanskim imaginarijem in ostanki internetne kulture. Umetnik Jaka Juhant tako vizualizira delovanje velikih jezikovnih modelov, njihovo logiko zbiranja podatkov pa prepleta s krščansko retoriko, ki je prisotna v krogih velikih tehnoloških podjetij, od ideje antikrista Petra Thiela do zagovornikov akseleracionizma. V teh krogih odrešitev ni več vezana na duhovno transcendenco, temveč na tehnološki preskok – vstop v drugo dimenzijo, kjer se človek osvobodi telesnih omejitev.
Delo nadaljuje umetnikovo raziskovanje telesnosti v digitalnih okoljih in občutkov breztelesnih stanj, ki jih tehnologija obljublja, a nikoli povsem ne izpolni. Igralec v vlogi LLM postane ujet v nelagodju lastnega delovanja, pri čemer se izpostavi vprašanje: če je tehnologija postala nov bog, ali smo mi njeni verniki, ali pa zgolj surovine, ki jih sistem izkorišča za lastno povzdignjenje?
Jaka Juhant (1997) je multimedijski umetnik, ki deluje predvsem v 3D in digitalni ilustraciji. Trenutno zaključuje študij na Akademiji za likovno umetnost v Ljubljani, smer Video in novi mediji. Leta 2018 in 2019 je imel dve samostojni razstavi v galeriji DobraVaga v Ljubljani. Je član umetniškega kolektiva Podmladek, s katerim je sodeloval na številnih skupinskih razstavah od začetka njihovega delovanja v 2017. V 2023 je ustvaril podobo za naslovnico revije ETC.
(ENG)
In the video game soHungry, Jaka Juhant places the player in the role of an ambiguous entity in the form of an expressionless mask. It soon becomes clear that the character you control is actually the personification of one of the large language models (LLM), whose goal is to collect data in the form of blue cubes and apples of knowledge so that it can ascend to a new, higher form of existence.
In the digital, surreal environment of a video game, occult aesthetics collide with technological collapse. The player navigates past mystical altars of desktop computers, satellites, and radar antennas jutting out of the rubble, encountering Christian imagery and remnants of internet culture. Artist Jaka Juhant thus visualizes the functioning of large language models, interweaving their logic of data collection with Christian rhetoric present in the circles of major tech companies – from Peter Thiel’s idea of the Antichrist to the advocates of accelerationism. In these circles, salvation is no longer tied to spiritual transcendence, but to a technological leap, an entry into another dimension where humans are freed from physical limitations.
The work continues the artist’s exploration of corporeality in digital environments and the sensations of weightless states that technology promises but never fully delivers. The actor playing the role of LLM becomes trapped in the unease of his own actions, raising the question: if technology has become a new god, are we its believers, or merely resources that the system exploits for its own elevation?
Jaka Juhant (1997) is a multimedia artist working mainly in 3D and digital illustration. He is currently finishing his studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Ljubljana, majoring in Video and New Media. In 2018 and 2019 he had two solo exhibitions at DobraVaga gallery in Ljubljana. He is a member of the artist collective Podmladek, with whom he has exhibited in numerous group exhibitions since its beginning in 2017. In 2023 he created the cover image for the ETC. Magazine.
