the OBSCENE machine

History of the Obscene Machine Cyberhive...

The Obscene Machine is an ever-evolving "ARTkive" chronicling cultural studies advancements in something I call the "ersatz human"--broadly understood, it is a series of links to stories that document the history of human self-fashioning, from ancient "primitive" totems and fetiches, to contemporary digital avatars and dolls.

In other times, this blog has served as a community exchange vehicle for my students at San Diego State University. In Fall 2011, The Obscene Machine was a cultural studies seminar at San Diego State University entitled TECHNOSEXUALITIES--the course is led by head cyborg Professor William A. Nericcio. Previously, it was the host cyberHIVE for a Spring 2011 undergraduate English 220 seminar: Robotic, Erotic, Electric: Televisual Nightmares, Seductive Hallucinations, and Naked Pscyhes in Literature, Film, Art, and the Web.

Know, also, that this blog had earlier incarnations and aspirations: The Obscene Machine began its life as an online supplement both to English 493, a literature and film undergraduate class at San Diego State University, and English 725, an Ethnic American cultural studies graduate seminar--both were directed in the Spring of 2007 by the aforementioned Dr. Nericcio and the posts associated with those two classes remain online here as an ersatz gallery and a living memorial.

These mirrored courses, both experimental, fuse an interrogation of Ethnic American critical theory with a more general probing of "fictional humans"--hence the term "Ethnic Mannequins" as a subtitle for the graduate seminar and its coincident obsessions with cyborgs, novels, stereotypes, and film. Both courses may be interpreted as supplements, if not revisions, to Tex[t]-Mex (UT Press, 2007) book and precursors to Eyegiene.

The Robot Running this Site...

William Anthony Nericcio is the Director of MALAS, the Master of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences at San Diego State University. When not shepherding brilliant graduate student devotees of cultural studies, Nericcio also hangs his hat as a Professor of English and Comparative Literature, Chicana/o Studies, and serves on the faculty of the Center for Latin American Studies. Utterly more than is necessary to know can be found in his perplexing, image-laced online autobiography and a complete digital index of his web-based shenanigans is located here. Lastly, can also see a graphic design portfolio by Guillermo Nericcio García, his, er, 'cousin,' at memogr@phics designcasa.

Monday, May 10, 2010

A Noir Allegory on the Ersatz Human and Robots

Friday, May 07, 2010

Robots Running About LOCO!

Wednesday, May 05, 2010

Toward an Aesthetics/Erotics of the Ersatz Human

Friday, April 16, 2010

cool robot gracias to boingboing.net

Monday, April 05, 2010

Venus de Barbie, and More...

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Robots! Melting Faces! Classic Take on Ersatz Humans and More... COMICS STYLE!

Robots, Now! The Big Picture

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

New Robotic Erykah Badu Album/Cover via BoingBoing.net

Monday, March 29, 2010

Steampunk Barbie! Cool Robotic/Ersatz Human Mixes! via BoingBoing.net

Sunday, February 28, 2010

"Progress" Voyeur BARBIE-style

Monday, February 15, 2010

More of the Ersatz Human: Pregnancy Edition

Wednesday, January 06, 2010

ALMA: Animated Meditations on the Uncannyness of the Ersatz Human

Monday, December 14, 2009

The Ersatz Human: Discarded Prosthetics Division

Monday, December 07, 2009

Dear {CYBER} Abby: I AM IN LOVE WITH MY VIRTUAL GIRLFRIEND

Monday, November 09, 2009

Cool New Takes on the Mechanical Ersatz Human

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Priceless EC Comics Cover

Thursday, October 22, 2009

More Meditations on the Ersatz Human: Illustration Edition

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

More Ersatz Human Hijinks: The Ralph Lauren Edition

Friday, October 09, 2009

Piece by Piece with the Ersatz Human

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Robot-Man Creature as Playground! From the new boingboing.net