Content:

The minor hacking is inspired by historical collectives like The Yes Men, Rain Dance Corporation, and Institutional Critique, with modern examples of their impact. We explore unforeseen uses within systems. We can all recognize that the world does not work for everyone. But how can we hack systems, create alternatives, and ask critical questions? To proceed, let us consider "reverse engineering." This is a hacking method that opens and analyses how a device is made. You learn to understand how it works and can redesign it. The next question is: how do we redesign or destabilize social, economic, and political structures? In this minor, we will explore ways to analyze and visualize such systems, as well as understand their ethical foundations. We will also discuss how collective collaboration and self-organization can lead to alternative systems like open kitchens, time-sharing, blockchain technology, and galleries. Ethical considerations are an important part of this process, so we will look at the social and political ethics of systems, as well as the ethics of our own actions and interventions.

 

Format:

During the minor, you will create your own project. The subject and medium are optional, but we expect you to apply the methods we discuss in this minor. The final presentation is a collaborative effort, a self-organized event that showcases your Hacking Minor projects. This collective work will be facilitated during MAKING PUBLIC. There are times during the semester when we will meet to discuss and work out the logistics of sharing your work with a public audience. Some will be organized by tutors, while others will be self-organized by students.

 

Key terms:

Reverse engineering, social engineering, historical analysis in electronic media, among others.

 

External Partners:

Students interact with professionals at the intersections of DIWO (Do It With Others), bottom-up, and collaborative work through quest lectures, collaborations, and short excursions. The program aligns with ongoing discussions in Autonomous Practices, emphasizing the meaning of autonomous creative practice. Dialogues and engagements with local organizations and self-organizing practices continue, resulting in a comprehensive learning experience.

 

Research methods used;

Subversive tactics, ownership, privacy, sharing, piracy, disruption, collaboration, deconstruction, and cryptosystems.

 

Goals:

Create a dynamic and engaging environment within the program by actively encouraging discussion, dialogue, and practical making alongside visual work.
Cultivate a holistic approach that seamlessly integrates discussion, critique, and practical application, reinforcing their mutually beneficial relationship.
Actively investigate and participate in system subversion while critically examining the ethical consequences of such actions.
Establish a meaningful connection between shared desired outcomes and hacking processes, with a focus on applying activism as a core principle.
Encourage students to combine theoretical discussions with hands-on activities to develop a thorough understanding of hacking as both a conceptual framework and a practical endeavour.

Learning outcomes:

• You can create visual work that is research-based and expresses your artistic vision.
• Through artistic research, you can examine, analyse, interpret, problematize, position, and evaluate your own work and work process, as well as that of others.
• You can keep an active and critical attitude toward the environment in which you create and present your work.
• In the context of a collaborative effort, you can actively participate in the creation of an artistic product or process.
• You can reveal to an audience the personal intentions that inspired your work, both on a political, ethical, and social level, as well as the motivations that led to your medium/material and method selection.
• You can complete a research cycle with a consistent thread of inquiry, design, reflection, and conclusion.
   

Deliverables & Assessment:

• Written research document (max. 2000 words).
• Artistic project. The written document will be evaluated individually and asynchronously.
• The artistic component will be assessed after being presented in class.
   

Entry requirements (Non WdKA students HR + KOM):

This minor is open to WdKA students. Students from other institutes at Hogeschool Rotterdam are required to respond to a few written questions. You will receive more information once you have registered for this minor.

Goals:

• Create a dynamic and engaging environment within the program by actively encouraging discussion, dialogue, and practical making alongside visual work.
• Cultivate a holistic approach that seamlessly integrates discussion, critique, and practical application, reinforcing their mutually beneficial relationship
• .Actively investigate and participate in system subversion while critically examining the ethical consequences of such actions.
  Establish a meaningful connection between shared desired outcomes and hacking processes, with a focus on applying activism as a core principle.
• Encourage students to combine theoretical discussions with hands-on activities to develop a thorough understanding of hacking as both a conceptual framework and a practical endeavour.

Learning outcomes:

• You can create visual work that is research-based and expresses your artistic vision.
• Through artistic research, you can examine, analyse, interpret, problematize, position, and evaluate your own work and work process, as well as that of others.
• You can keep an active and critical attitude toward the environment in which you create and present your work.
• In the context of a collaborative effort, you can actively participate in the creation of an artistic product or process.
• You can reveal to an audience the personal intentions that inspired your work, both on a political, ethical, and social level, as well as the motivations that led to your medium/material and method selection.
• You can complete a research cycle with a consistent thread of inquiry, design, reflection, and conclusion.

Entry requirements (Non WdKA students HR + KOM):

This minor is open to WdKA students. Students from other institutes at Hogeschool Rotterdam are required to respond to a few written questions. You will receive more information once you have registered for this minor.

Deliverables & Assessment:

• Written research document (max. 2000 words).
• Artistic project. The written document will be evaluated individually and asynchronously.
• The artistic component will be assessed after being presented in class.

Are you a student from another educational institution and you want to take a minor at Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, you can apply in 2 steps as follows:

1)     Register for the minor of your choice via the blue button Enroll. You can find this button at the top right of the minor's page.

Download and fill in the learning agreement

Submit this learning agreement to the Exam Board of your study programme.

Once the Board of Examiners has given its approval, please register for the minor in step 2 no later than 23 may 2025

 

2)    After approval, register in OSIRIS Aanmelding of Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences via the link below (create an account first).

           https://osiris.hr.nl/osiris_aanmeld_hrprd/WelkomPagina.do?proces=KOM2509&opleiding=MINOR-WDK-VT+00

Part of the registration process is to upload the following documents:

-   The learning agreement signed by you and by your institution;

-   A scan or photo of your passport or ID card;

You will receive a message from Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences whether your application has been positively assessed or not.

In OSIRIS Aanmelding, you must also upload the Evidence Paid Tuition Fee (BBC) for the academic year in which you want to follow the minor. You can request the BBC from your institution after you have signed or issued an authorization for the payment of the tuition fees for the academic year in which you want to take the minor.

You will receive a message from Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences when your application has been approved.