Ontography….

What Is Ontography?

n. a description of beings, their nature and essence.

n. That division of geography which is concerned with the responses of organic beings to their physiographic surroundings or environment.

 

Adrian Miles is a current staff member in the media program running a class this semester on ‘Documentary Ontography: nonfiction story, lists, and things’.

 

The course prompts really thought-provoking questions like: What happens when things in the world, not us, is made a cause and the centre of story telling?

 

Adrian was enthusiastic and passionate as he spoke about documentary ontography and the questions, philosophies and concepts the course was concerned with. The class is based on some rather fresh and innovative theories which are referred to loosely as ‘media materialism, speculative realism, and post digital media’.  Specifically the point he made was that as new media students it is becoming increasingly important to start viewing media creation and media outcomes with a different mindset. This mindset encourages us to gently steer away from letting society, language, mainstream media consumption, and our own storytelling form our outlook and interpretation of the world.  I believe it inspires us to create an understanding of our existence and our earth based on organic and unique ideas, our environments, the sciences, the facts, natural beings and natural happenings.

 

Adrian also emphasised that the idea’s or thoughts that come to us are not an existing ‘thing’ until we transform that ‘thinking’ into a ‘doing’. This sits really well with me. I am pretty guilty of pondering, deliberating and considering things in my mind, like school projects or assignments, and then having the mentality that simply by thinking about them I have done something. Adrian’s message really stressed to me that unless you convert those thoughts and ideas into a physical form, or a ‘doing’, they will cease to become real.