Benjamin Gaulon

Benjamin Gaulon (born 29 June 1979 in Montereau-Fault-Yonne, Seine-et-Marne, France) is a French artistresearcher, educator and cultural producer whose work explores the environmental and social impacts of consumer technologies. Since the early 2000s, his practice has addressed issues such as planned obsolescence, consumerism, disposable society and consumer culture through circuit bending, hardware hacking, and media archaeology. He has previously released work under the name "recyclism". More recently, Gaulon has expanded his research into ecological and technological symbiosis, co-founding the collective Nø and Nø School Nevers (2019),

He received a degree in Visual Communication from l'École Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs de Strasbourg and a MFA in Interactive Media & Environment from the Frank Mohr Institute. During his time at the Frank Mohr Institute, he developed several high-profile projects, including de Pong Game, the Recycling Entertainment System, The PrintBall and Corrupt. inviting participants to create art projects from recycled electronic waste.

From 2006 to 2013, he was a lecturer in fine art media at the National College of Art and Design in Dublin, where he taught courses on digital media, electronics, and critical approaches to technology.

In 2018, Benjamin Gaulon co-founded the collective Nø

Since 2019, he has also been co-director of Nø Nevers, an annual summer school and festival in Nevers, France, combining workshops, lectures, and exhibitions on digital culture and critical design.

He currently teaches at SciencesPo, École normale supérieure Paris-Saclay (diplôme en Recherche-Création, ARRC), CentraleSupélec – Université Paris-Saclay, and is a regular lecturer at HEAD – Genève (Haute école d'art et de design). De Pong Game : Augmented Reality (2003) – An augmented architecture interactive projection. Corrupt (2004) – An online glitching software. The PrintBall (2004-2005) – A modified paintball gun used as a printing device, merging street art, robotics, and hacking culture (with Géraud de Bizien) Hard Drivin''' (2010) – A Twitter controlled installation. (with Ivan Twohig and Brian Solon) ReFunct Media (since 2010) – A Hardware hacking installation. Internet of Living Things (2025) — Developed during a residency at Creative Coding Utrecht (CCU), IoLT is a prototype "technological totem" merging obsolete artifacts, live plants, and electroculture devices, investigating how electromagnetic fields might influence plant growth and how electronic waste can be reimagined within ecological systems. The Internet of Dead Things (2025) — This book explores the creative reuse of obsolete digital devices and electronic waste. Developed through the Internet of Dead Things Institute, the book presents projects that transform outdated technologies—like Minitel terminals—into functional, open-source tools, investigating sustainability, planned obsolescence, and the ecological and cultural potential of “dead” technologies.

Exhibitions Selected exhibitions, screenings and performances include: 2011, Resonate – Belgrade – Serbia 2011, C4 Contemporary Art – Los Angeles – USA 2011, Flux Factory – New York City – USA 2011, R.I.P. – Recycling Pervasive Media, Intervening in Planned Obsolescence – Banff – Canada 2011, New York Electronic Art Festival 2011 – Harvestworks – NYC – USA 2011, Bent Festival 2011 – NYC – USA 2011, Filtering Failure, Amsterdam, the Netherlands 2010, BLK River Festival, Vienna, Austria 2010, Les Grandes Traversées 2010, Royan, Soulac, Bordeaux, France 2010, Arts Research: Publics and Purposes conference, GradCam, Temple Bar Gallery, Dublin, Ireland 2009, International Symposium on Electronic Art 2009, Dublin, Ireland 2009, ISEA 2009, The LAB, Dublin, Ireland 2008, Dublin Electronic Art Festival 2008, Dublin, Ireland 2008, Square Eyes Festival, Arnhem, The Netherlands 2008, TECHNOTHREADS, The Science Gallery, Trinity College. Dublin, Ireland 2008, Lightwave08, The Science Gallery, Trinity College. Dublin, Ireland 2007, Dublin Electronic Art Festival 2007, Dublin, Ireland 2007, Cluster, Gallery la Chaufferie, École Supérieure des Art Décoratifs de Strasbourg, France 2007, Come out and Play, Amsterdam, the Netherlands 2007, Sous la Plage, Paris, France 2006, SUPERFLUX, Gallery Roger Tator, Lyon, France 2006, €10000 SHOW, W139, Amsterdam, the Netherlands 2006, Art Rock, Inter-disciplinary Festival, St Brieuc, France 2005, Ososphere Festival, Strasbourg, France 2005, Axis Festival, Assen, The Netherlands 2004, Cite Rap Festival N.6, St Brieuc, France 2004, Festival Sonic Acts X Unsorted, Amsterdam, the Netherlands