{"id":648415,"date":"2026-10-16T17:26:19","date_gmt":"2026-10-16T17:26:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/648415\/"},"modified":"2026-10-16T17:26:19","modified_gmt":"2026-10-16T17:26:19","slug":"viral-boar-chasing-robot-visits-lithuanian-ai-exhibit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/648415\/","title":{"rendered":"Viral boar-chasing robot visits Lithuanian AI exhibit"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Remember Edward Warchoki? The Polish humanoid robot that went viral in April for chasing wild boars through a parking lot in Warsaw<\/a>? Even late-night comedian John Oliver did a bit on him, calling Warchoki \u201ca pretty canny PR campaign for anthropomorphic robots. All I\u2019m saying is, \u2018That is a nice way to get us all used to him before he\u2019s inevitably one day used as a weapon of war.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n

Warchoki has not yet turned into a weapon of war \u2014 unless you consider being an online influencer a form of digital warfare. As the first robot influencer, Warchoki has his own social media accounts <\/a>and appeared at Poland\u2019s parliament. Last week he entered the art world when he was among the first visitors to what looks to be a fascinating exhibition, \u201cHow to Feel Real. Art, Technology and Us,\u201d at MO Museum in Vilnius, Lithuania. The show is a collaboration of the modern art museum with ZKM | Center for Art and Media Karlsruhe, which specializes in media art.<\/p>\n

According to a news release, the show \u201cexplores questions that are becoming increasingly urgent in a world shaped by technology: How do we feel real, and what does it mean to be alive?\u201d Apparently Warchoki was there to address the issue head on.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople keep asking me if I\u2019m real, so when I heard about an exhibition asking what \u2018real\u2019 actually means, I thought: Finally, someone is asking the right question. I\u2019m coming to the beautiful Vilnius to see what the artists have to say \u2014 and, of course, to check whether they think I\u2019m real,\u201d Warchocki said in the release.<\/p>\n

A number of works in the exhibit explore artificial intelligence, automation, \u201cand the ways machines are increasingly taking on roles we once considered distinctly human,\u201d said MO Museum director Milda Ivanauskien\u0117. \u201cBringing Edward into the museum is a playful extension of this idea, as his deliberately human-like and slightly absurd persona makes the questions raised by the exhibition tangible \u2014 inviting us to wonder why we are so eager to find the human in a machine.\u201d <\/p>\n

I am intrigued by this last question and wonder about it myself: Why exactly are we so quick to anthropomorphize AI? Every time I\u2019ve interacted with a chatbot I feel the urge to be polite in my dealings, to say \u201cplease\u201d and \u201cthank you\u201d when I ask questions. I certainly don\u2019t do that with a Google search. And once, when I saw a delivery robot hopelessly stuck in a pothole, I felt genuinely bad for it. \u201cPoor little guy,\u201d I thought. I imagine if I met Warchoki, I\u2019d react the same way.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m glad MO Museum is exploring these impulses by using artist\u2019s thoughts and interpretations as a way to offer answers to an issue that is not going away \u2014 but only growing more powerful and omnipresent by the day.<\/p>\n

I hope Warchoki 2.0 isn\u2019t used as a future ICE agent, but I also hope we are not at the dawn of the rise of the robot influencer. Warchoki already has his own line of super gross-looking flavored drink concentrates,<\/a> as well as snacks like an ice cream, chocolate and popcorn popsicle. This is going nowhere good fast.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m Arts editor Jessica Gelt and I\u2019ve got a pickle-kimchi lollipop to sell you. This is your arts and culture news for the week.<\/p>\n

You’re reading Essential Arts <\/p>\n

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The week ahead: A curated calendarFRIDAY \"Elim <\/p>\n

Elim Chan conducts the L.A. Phil in 2024.<\/p>\n

(Gina Ferazzi\/Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

Elim Chan Conducts the L.A. Phil
It will be a busy couple of weekends in L.A. for the San Francisco Symphony music director-designate. First up is a program featuring Dongshoon Shin\u2019s \u201cDance Card,\u201d Franz Liszt\u2019s \u201cPiano Concerto No. 2 in A major, S. 125\u201d with pianist Yefim Bronfman, and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky\u2019s suite from \u201cSwan Lake.\u201d Next week will be \u201cA Symphonic Ballet,\u201d with Claude Debussy\u2019s \u201cPrelude to the Afternoon of a Faun, L. 86,\u201d Karen Gomyo premiering Samuel Adams\u2019 \u201cViolin Concerto No. 2 (The Wheel),\u201d and Igor Stravinsky\u2019s \u201cPetrushka (1947).\u201d
\u201cSwan Lake,\u201d 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday. \u201cSymphonic Ballet,\u201d 8 p.m. Thursday, 2 p.m. Oct. 17-18. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. laphil.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Kuniko Kato Presents Reich90
The North American tour of the Steve Reich Project, conceived and produced by Japanese percussionist Kato arrives downtown in honor of the composer\u2019s 90th birthday.
7:30 p.m. Colburn School, Zipper Hall, 200 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. colburnschool.edu<\/a><\/p>\n

Victoria Marks : A Deer Walks into a Dance
The award-winning choreographer and four performers (Rian Alcid, Maya Billig, Karen Chuang and Aaron Mason) explore the idea connection in a world of division via movement, text and the deconstruction of a (bad) joke.
8 p.m. Friday-Saturday. UCLA Nimoy Theater, 1262 Westwood Blvd., Westwood. cap.ucla.edu<\/a><\/p>\n

SATURDAY \"L.A. <\/p>\n

L.A. Opera\u2019s new music director, Domingo Hindoyan, conducts a dress rehearsal of \u201cCarmen.\u201d<\/p>\n

(Jason Armond \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

Carmen
Los Angeles Opera\u2019s new music director, Venezuelan conductor Domingo Hindoyan, opens the company\u2019s season with a new production of Bizet\u2019s \u201cCarmen.\u201d It stars mezzo-soprano Rihab Chaieb, who has dazzled in Mozart at L.A. Opera. The Spanish gothic new production is by director\/designer Thaddeus Strassberger and choreographer Antonio Najarro. (Mark Swed) The season-opening performance will be broadcast live in high definition, free of charge, at Steinmetz Park in Hacienda Heights and at the Santa Monica Pier.
Through Nov. 7. Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 135 N. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. Free simulcast, 6 p.m. Saturday, Santa Monica Pier and Steinmetz Park, 545 S. Stimson Ave., Hacienda Heights. laopera.org<\/a><\/p>\n

Strauss, Ravel, Beethoven
Music Director Jaime Mart\u00edn conducts the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra in Richard Strauss\u2019 \u201cMetamorphosen,\u201d Maurice Ravel\u2019s \u201cPiano Concerto in G Major\u201d with Conrad Tao, and Ludwig van Beethoven\u2019s \u201cSymphony No. 3 in E-flat Major (Eroica).\u201d
7:30 p.m. Saturday. Zipper Hall, 200 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A.; 4 p.m. Sunday. The Wallis, 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd., Beverly Hills. laco.org<\/a><\/p>\n

SUNDAY \"Dale <\/p>\n

Dale Brockman Davis, Alonzo Davis and David Hammons.<\/p>\n

(Museum Associates)<\/p>\n

The Brockman Gallery: Los Angeles,1967-1990
For more than two decades, the Leimert Park gallery, founded by Alonzo and Dale Davis, served as a vital cultural hub, staging exhibitions, festivals, concerts, literary events and more. Named after the brothers\u2019 maternal grandmother, born enslaved, the Brockman Gallery was a flourishing, ongoing act of self-determination in the wake of the 1965 Watts Rebellion. It showcased Black artists whose opportunities were severely limited at mainstream, white-run institutions and galleries: David Hammons, Suzanne Jackson, John Outterbridge, Elizabeth Catlett, Betye Saar, Carrie Mae Weems, Senga Nengudi, Noah Purifoy and many more. More than 60 works by artists associated with the gallery will be included in this first full-scale consideration of the Brockman\u2019s scope and impact. (Leah Ollman)
Through Jan. 24. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 5905 Wilshire Blvd. lacma.org<\/a><\/p>\n

Pacific Jazz Orchestra: A Tribute to Quincy Jones
Led by Chris Walden, and featuring vocalists Nayanna Holley and Adam \u2018Aejaye\u2019 Jackson, the ensemble performs early work by the late producer\/composer. Presented by Ventura Music Festival,
3 p.m. Sunday. Rancho Campana Performing Arts Center, 4235 Mar Vista Drive, Camarillo. pacificjazz.org<\/a><\/p>\n

TUESDAY<\/p>\n

Mendelssohn & Brahms
Members of the Los Angeles Philharmonic perform a program of chamber works from Joseph Haydn, Felix Mendelssohn and Johannes Brahms.
8 p.m. Walt Disney Concert Hall, 111 S. Grand Ave., downtown L.A. laphil.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Ulysse Marion
A new work by choreographer Dimitri Chamblas, created with former Paris Opera Ballet dancer Marion Barbeau and dancer and musician Ulysse Zangs, explores the journey of a performer throughout a life in art.
8 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday. REDCAT, 631 W. 2nd St., downtown L.A. redcat.org<\/a><\/p>\n

THURSDAY<\/p>\n

At the Very Bottom of A Body Of Water
The latest work by Benjamin Benne, a dramatist many have been keeping close tabs on, continues his collaboration with veteran director (and fellow L.A. native) Juliette Carrillo, and dives even further into magical realism in an unconventional work exploring the oceanic depths that grief can reveal. (Charles McNulty)
Through Nov. 29. Boston Court Pasadena, 70 N. Mentor Ave. bostoncourtpasadena.org<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Judy <\/p>\n

Judy Baca, detail from the 1960s segment of the Great Wall of Los Angeles mural.<\/p>\n

(Judy Baca and the SPARC Archives.)<\/p>\n

Skirball Cultural Center
Three new exhibits open: \u201cThe 1960s \u2014 A Generation on Fire: Judy Baca\u2019s Great Wall of Los Angeles\u201d presents new murals as part of the evolving L.A. landmark; \u201cPatrisse Cullors: Wishes Made Material\u201d features three new works inspired by conversations between Black and Jewish communities; and \u201cJenny Yurshansky: What We Carry\u201d explores local immigration stories, memories and family history through collected objects.
Skirball Cultural Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. skirball.org<\/a><\/p>\n

The SoCal scene \"Zoe <\/p>\n

Zoe Ryan, director of UCLA\u2019s Hammer Museum.<\/p>\n

(Christina House\/Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

ICYMI, the best of this week\u2019s L.A. Times arts coverage:<\/p>\n

The Hammer\u2019s director, Zoe Ryan, is hoping to make the museum the anchor of a Westside Arts District<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Times theater critic Charles McNulty was not taken by Jaclyn Backhaus\u2019 \u201cWives,\u201d<\/a> which opened Sunday at East West Players\u2019 David Henry Hwang Theater.<\/p>\n

At 80, artist Lita Albuquerque is not slowing down.<\/a> She has two upcoming shows: one at the Palm Springs Art Museum, and an installation at A\u2013Z West in Joshua Tree.<\/p>\n

K-pop star and Blackpink member Ros\u00e9 <\/a>will perform at LACMA\u2019s Art+Film Gala as its musical guest.<\/p>\n

Advance reservations for the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center<\/a> will go live on Oct. 21 at 9:30 a.m., ahead of its opening on Nov. 13.<\/p>\n

\" <\/p>\n

Actor Alan Mandell died Tuesday. He was 98.<\/p>\n

(Allen J. Schaben \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n

Alan Mandell, a classical actor and renowned interpreter of playwright Samuel Beckett\u2019s work<\/a>, died Tuesday at his home in Westwood at the age of 98. McNulty also penned a lovely and personal appreciation of Mandell<\/a>, whom he felt lucky to have spent time with.<\/p>\n

The 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games are around the corner, yet serious questions remain about funding and coordination for the Cultural Olympiad.<\/a><\/p>\n

L.A. Opera\u2019s new music director, Domingo Hindoyan i<\/a>s stepping up to the podium for the first time in his new role with the opening of \u201cCarmen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Enjoying this newsletter? Consider subscribing to the Los Angeles Times<\/p>\n

Your support helps us deliver the news that matters most. Become a subscriber.<\/a><\/p>\n

Culture News<\/p>\n

Climate activists in Tallahassee this week unveiled a statue of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis that was created to melt.<\/a> \u201cIn response to the Governor\u2019s recent \u2018Don\u2019t say climate change\u2019 action in state law, 350Action (one of the world\u2019s most influential climate change advocates) built quite a visual \u2014 a statue that couldn\u2019t withstand Florida\u2019s daily climate. It\u2019s provocative but for a purpose, to encourage young people to vote in a few weeks for candidates that recognize the threat from climate change,\u201d a news release noted of the \u201cclimate denial statue.\u201d <\/p>\n

And finally, not strictly arts related, but some Halloween fun for you: Street Food Cinema is hosting its annual Boo-ze, Bites and Frights events<\/a> with some spooky horror film screenings at Heritage Square and the Ford over the next few weekends, including a Saturday showing of \u201cA Nightmare on Elm Street,\u201d which is a film that still genuinely terrifies me. <\/p>\n

\u2014 Jessica Gelt<\/p>\n

And last but not least<\/p>\n

Speaking of robots \u2014 they are now roaming the aisles of local grocery stores.<\/a><\/p>\n