Dr. Soraya Guimaraes Hoepfner
Storytelling your Artwork: Future-proofing Wisdom Against Intelligence
Seminar, English/Deutsch, 2 SWS, 2 ECTS
Thursdays, 14-18 h, weekly from 16.4. - 4.6.2026, 7 dates: 16.4., 23.4., 30.4., 7.5., 21.5., 28.5., 4.6.2026, Hardenbergstr. 33, room 150

Registration on Moodle starts on 9.4.2026:https://moodle.udk-berlin.de/moodle/course/view.php?id=3032
Enrolment Key: stories

In this workshop, participants will practice structuring a conceptual narrative for their own artwork project in an organic way, consciously using storytelling techniques to create meaningful, authentic accounts of their artistic vision. The most common question, “What do you mean by this artwork?” is then the starting point for learning how to develop wiser rather than intelligent narratives that stand the test of time.

Firmly grounded in philosophical premises (What does meaning mean? What is the relation between art and intention?), the course guides students through an analysis of their creative work by means of collaboratively drafting a curatorial statement for their fictional collective exhibition, in which they also present their artworks of any kind, storytelling their vision in written form.

The workshop is intended to help participants develop a critical perspective on contemporary art-critique discourse and to strengthen their own artwork storytelling organically and collaboratively. The ultimate goal is to encourage students to build analytical resilience, promoting storytelling skills that can go beyond intelligent forms of discourse, thus creating a future-proofed narrative against the loss of meaning over form driven by machine-intelligent content production.

The workshop is divided into four stages: 

Intention > Resonance > Reflection – A series of hands-on exercises, using published curatorial art statements, to help students identify narrative issues. The critical analysis is based on a philosophical approach to concepts, such as art, bullshit, intention, and meaning.

Shaping your Story –  With the help of a simple, structured formula (Fact + Circumstance + Vision), students will draft and present their own artwork conceptual statement, practicing constructive feedback and art criticism.

The Cooperative Principle – Based on the elements of a good text (quality, quantity, context, and manner), the group will develop a Curatorial Statement that reflects their common identity.

Wiser than Intelligent – Once their narrative is done, the group will make a comparative analysis using specific prompts on generative AI. The exercise is prepped with a brief explanation of the mechanics of predictive text behind computer-generated content.

At the end of the workshop, participants will have organically and collaboratively developed statements for a fictitious collective exhibition and their featured artwork. By finally comparing and depurating their narratives with machine-intelligent resources, they will have also reflected on meaningful artistic self-expression in written form, as well as received introductory guidance on how to ethically and productively balance natural wisdom with machine intelligence.

Fulfilment criteria for ungraded accreditation: Participants must ideally have a concrete or potential artwork project of any kind, at any stage of development, which they are willing to work on for the concept presentation. It is also required to have or create a free Notion user account and to be willing to participate in the collaborative writing process on the platform.

Soraya Guimaraes Hoepfner: I am a Brazilian researcher, author, and translator, living in Berlin since 2009, where I work primarily as a freelance Editor and Transcreation Specialist, in addition to continuously collaborating on academic and artistic projects. I hold a Ph.D. in Philosophy, a Master's in Philosophy, and a Bachelor's in Communication. My lecturing experience dates back to 2000, when I taught digital technology-related subjects at the Journalism and Advertising School in Brazil. In Germany, I taught for one semester at Humboldt University in the Master of Media Studies Program, on the topic of my thesis, “Philosophizing in the Era of Information” (2011). My latest publishing contributions are as one of the editors of “On the Edges of Graphic Design from AZ∞” (The Green Box|Set Margins, 2025). I was also Guest Editor for the Scientific Review of the Communication Post-Graduate Studies of the University of Brasilia, with a special issue titled “Criativity Crisis: Communication between Wisdom and Artificial Intelligence” (2024).