School of Communication and Culture

Vocable Code is both a work of ‘software art’ (software as artwork, not software to make an artwork) and a ‘codework’ (where the source code and critical writing operate together) produced to embody “queer code”. Collective statements and voices complete the phrase ‘Queer is…’ and together make a computational and poetic composition for two screens: on one of these, texts and voices are repeated and disrupted by mathematical chaos, together exploring the performativity of code and language; on the other, is a mix of a computer programming syntax and human language. In this sense queer code can be understood as both an object and subject of study that intervenes in the world’s ‘becoming' and how material bodies are produced via human and nonhuman practices. Through mixing the natural and computer language, this article presents a script in six parts from a performative lecture for two persons and a computer. The purpose is to exemplify the speech-like qualities of a computer program, and to explore the constant regeneration and re-running of code as a way to rethink computational logic from a posthuman position.