"We didn’t have speculation, but we had divination": a tarot experiment in collective sense-making with Laura Lotti

"We didn’t have speculation, but we had divination": a tarot experiment in collective sense-making with Laura Lotti takes place on 11 November 2026. Venue: Well Read, Lisbon.

“We did not have speculation. But we had divination,” declared the Manifesto Antropófago in 1928. Nearly a century later, speculation has become the operative logic of our infrastructures, while our sense of orientation grows ever more precarious. Taking a cue from the Brazilian avantgarde, this interactive session invites participants to turn to divinatory practices as a tool for collective navigation amidst the generalized volatility of our digital and physical environments. Guided by Suzanne Treister’s HEXEN 5.0 Tarot deck, Laura Lotti opens this year's Rare Effect with a tarot experiment, looking for new coordinates to make sense of the present, and train our critical gaze on the systems that speculate on us. Space is limited for this event, and registration via Luma is required. Rare Effect festival tickets get you into the full programme, and are on-sale via Resident Advisor now: https://ra.co/events/2537677 — Laura Lotti is a recovering web3 researcher and relapsing academic investigating protocols for material autonomy and interdependence across new and old technologies. She is an assistant researcher in the History of Science, Technology, and the Environment at the Institute of Contemporary History, NOVA University. She co-founded Other Internet Research Institute, where she keeps scheming about the many dimensions of networked organization. — *​By RSVPing you agree to be added to the Well Read mailing list, send us a message on hello@wellread.pt if you'd like to opt-out.