The MARes in Hybrid Arts program of the Department of Audio & Visual Arts, Ionian University, cordially invites all interested parties to attend the public defense of the following Master’s thesis:
Thesis Title:
A Fungal Hack for Other-than-Human Learning: Speculative Design Fiction and Tabletop Roleplay as a Fungal Pedagogy
Candidate:
Anne Vlaanderen
Supervisor:
Dalila Honorato
Date & Time:
Wednesday, 23 September 2026 — 15:00 Greece
Join via Zoom:
https://ionio-gr.zoom.us/j/91719034195
Examination Committee
- Dalila Honorato — Professor, Department of Audio & Visual Arts, Ionian University
- Tania Tsiridou — EEP, Department of Audio & Visual Arts, Ionian University
- Jude Abu Zaineh — Visiting Lecturer/Researcher, The Nancy Rowell Jackman Chair in Women’s Studies (Nancy’s Chair), Mount Saint Vincent University, Canada
About the Thesis
A Fungal Hack for Other-than-Human Learning investigates how speculative design fiction and tabletop roleplay can be used to develop a post-anthropocentric pedagogy in which fungi are approached not simply as objects of study, but as subjects through which other modes of perception, relation, and learning can be explored. Situated at the intersection of mycology, speculative design, tabletop roleplaying, posthumanist pedagogy, and hacking, the research asks under what conditions temporarily inhabiting a fungal perspective might unsettle assumptions about the human world and the ways knowledge is produced within it. At the centre of the research is The Pact, a tabletop roleplaying game developed as both an artistic work and a pedagogical tool. Rather than learning about fungi from an external human perspective, participants are invited to think and act as fungal characters within a collectively narrated world. Played orally around a table, without screens, fixed outcomes, or winners, The Pact uses speculative fiction and roleplay to create a space for negotiating interdependence, transformation, collaboration, and other-than-human agency. Through this practice, the thesis proposes fungal pedagogy as a form of experiential learning capable of challenging anthropocentric habits and opening alternative ways of imagining multispecies relations.
About the Candidate
Anne Vlaanderen is an interdisciplinary designer specializing in digital fabrication and mycology. Her expertise in fungal systems extends beyond material applications to a deep engagement with the care, cultivation, and creative potential of diverse fungal species. As an instructor at the Willem de Kooning Academy (WdKA) in Rotterdam, she teaches courses in digital fabrication and bio-integrated design, and she has also lectured at the BioHack Academy at Waag. Her work has been exhibited at Teylers Museum as part of its first Art–Science event, reflecting her commitment to connecting historical scientific inquiry with contemporary bioart. Building on this research, she explores collaborative pedagogies, AI-enhanced fungal interfaces, and post-anthropocentric design methodologies, developing innovative approaches to learning and co-creating with living systems inspired by the adaptive and decentralized nature of mycelial networks.
Attendance
The defense is open to the public. Students, researchers, artists, educators, designers, and all interested individuals are welcome to attend.
