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HttpError406:NotacceptableBastardisingTechnologyasaCriticalModeofCulturalPracticeAdissertationpresentedinpartialfulfilmentoftherequirementsforthedegreeofDoctorofPhilosophyinFineArtsatMasseyUniversity,Wellington,NewZealand.
DanielJames2010DanielJamesHTTPError406:NotAcceptableBastardisingtechnologyasacriticalmodeofculturalproductionIAbstractAnabstractofthedissertationofDanielJamesfortheDoctorofPhilosophyinFineArts.
Title:HttpError406:NotAcceptableBastardisingTechnologyasaCriticalModeofCulturalPracticeTechnologyperforms(orfailstoperform)numerousinstrumentalfunctionsinmodernsociety.
Thisthesisinvestigates,throughasuiteoffourartworks,howitmightbepossibletoreconfigureand'bastardise'technology,inordertoscrutiniseit.
Eachoftheseworksdeployarangeofmediums,includingsculpture/robotics,installation,performance,audio/musicandvideo.
Thisinterdisciplinaryapproachtomediaseekstointerrogatetheplethoraofhybridisedwaysinwhichtechnologyevolvesandinfiltratesintoourdailylives.
Technologyhasaprofoundimpactuponoursubjectivity,andthisinvestigationexploresslippageasamodeinwhichbastardisedtechnologycanenablemultiple(andconflicting)subjectpositions.
Thisresearchinvestigateshowtheintegrationofhighandlowtechnology,andtheconflationof'high'and'low'art,mayleadtonewunderstandingsofartasamodeofsocialandpoliticalenquiry.
Theroboticassemblages,althoughfairlycomplextechnologically,donotadheretohigh-techaesthetics.
Theeclecticuseofsampled/appropriatedpop-culturalaudioandvideomaterialscrutinisesthemediatisingsubterfugeoftechnology.
Theartworksnavigateanumberofculturalmodalitiessuchasthegrotesque,humour,theglitch,performance,appropriationandmashups,inordertocreateexperiencesofdisorientationanddisquiet.
Thisbodyofworkisanexplorationoftheselfasinseparablycomplicitwith,butstillcriticallyreflexiveabout,technologyandthepower-knowledgestructuresthatitpropogates.
IIAcknowledge(-power)mentsIwouldliketothankanybodywhohasusedoneormoreofthefollowingexpressionsinconversationwithme:etymology,subjectivity,simulacra,heterotopia,heterogenesis,liminality,photoshoppery,hack,mash,filter,ohrwürm,appropriation,compression,distortion,subjugation,hegemony,whitebalance,mediatisation,deterritorialisation,controlaltdelete,suture,gaffertape,solderingiron,airguitar,performativity,theatricality,heteronormativity,nurse'sdress,postproduction,server,opensource,participatory,creativecommons,frontispiece,fretlessgirlfriend,thegirlfriendwith88keys,werckmeister,timesignature,acapella,303,404,808,909,1200/1210(R.
I.
P.
),MIDI,V4,DVJ,BPM,AVCAS,MP3,WAV,MP4,MOV,H.
264,HTML,PHP,FTP,GST,fundingproposal,actionscript,keystone,pressrelease.
IwishtosincerelythankmysupervisorsattheMasseyUniversitySchoolofFineArtsfortheirpatientandthoroughcriticalengagementwithmyrelentlesseclecticism:Dr.
DavidCross,EugeneHansenandBryceGalloway.
IalsowishtothankallofthecolleagueswhoIhavetaughtalongsideovertheyears;andtoexpressmysincerestgratitudefortheuntiringtechnicalsupportofMikeHeynes.
IwouldliketothanktheMasseyUniversitySchoolofFineArtsforprovidingtheinstitutionalsupporttoenablemetoundertakethisresearch,andalsoforhelpingtosendmeoffonmymerrywaytopresentworkatconferencesinLondonandMelbourne;andtoLitmusResearchInitiativeforsupportingmyearlycuratorialendeavours.
Ialsowishtoexpressmydeepestloveandgratitudetoallofmyfriendsandcollaborators/co-conspiratorswhohavesharedaspectsofthisdauntingprocesswithme(innoparticularorder):totheoneandonlyPaulBradley(probablytheonlypersonwhohasusedalloftheaboveexpressionsinconversationwithmeatsomepoint);BronwynHaines(xxx);MichelleHughes;anyonewhoparticipatedinStrayCinema(andforthatmatteranyonewhocontractedtheservicesofStrayMediatoo);SophieLewis-Smith;HelenVarleyJamieson;VickiSmith;anyonewhousesorendorsesUpStage;SharmilaAgnihotri;anyonewhodeliveredenhancementstomytemporaryhomeinhospital-especiallycoffee,music,videos,books,flowers,afeaturewall,alaptop,abass,asampler,orahug;DamianStewart;JoshRutter(suchoddsynchronicitiespertainingtoacertainroboticmonkey);LadyAcroline(mama…);RhylieAlexander;ChristinaBellis;CharlesBarrie;anyoneI'veeversharedastage,decksorajamwith-especiallytheAxisofWeevils(pastandpresent:Mr.
Paulagain,Mr.
Joshagain,MicWatts,KimNewall,JeremyCloake,MonseiurEscargot,TuiMamaki),Elbowvs.
Knee(BronwynHollowaySmith),andLaserdisco(nottelling);MarkAntony;RyanMcFadyen;PrincessHans;Bron(again)andMattHollowaySmith(muchrespectforyourachievementswiththeCreativeFreedomFoundation);RaeannaThomas;JeramiahRoss;FranDenton;KowhaiMontgomery;StephChristie(aparticularlyreluctantthanksforpullingmeuponmyerrantdefinitionof'performativity'at7amwhileIwasbarelyawake);SylvieHaisman;Tara(whohassupervisedmerewiringcomputerpartssinceshewasapuppy);myflatmatesovertheyears-especiallytheTasmanSt.
whanau-DominikaZielinska,VanessaStacey,TheresaBowen,NiamHegarty,Vanityandalloftheotheruntitledpisceanswhohavesharedhertank,andPeekoakaUglycatakaYodaakaFugly.
FinallyIwouldliketothankallofmyfamilyforloveandsupport,andfortheattemptstowrapyourheadsaroundmyvariousstrangeendeavours.
I'mcertainIwillhaveforgottensomeone,toexpressyourforgivenesspleasecomeuptomeanduseoneoftheaforementionedexpressionsinasentence.
IIITableofcontentsPageAbstractIAcknowledge(-power)mentsIITableofcontentsIIIListofimagesIVAlayerofprimer1Introduction(containingafewcluesaboutthemethodologytomymadness)2Researchoverview3Chapter1Lowtechne:bastardisingmedia7PsychiatricAssessment8Lowtechne:bastardisingmedia9CodeMonkey1.
118Chapter2Power-knowledge:theparadoxofcomplicity20ProjectAssessment21Power-knowledge:theparadoxofcomplicity22SchoolofFineArts33Chapter3Lowperformance:theglitchandperformativity35MedicalPractitionersaccusedoverDeathofSiameseTwin36Lowperformance:theglitchandperformativity37AnaesthesiaAssociates44Chapter4Informationaldelirium:thenormativedimensiontothemashup47***PRESSRELEASE–FORIMMEDIATERELEASE***48Informationaldelirium:thenormativedimensiontothemashup49BrokenWineGlasses2.
061Thisisnotaconclusion63References66Imagesources70IVListofimagesFig.
DetailsPageADanielAgnihotri-Clark,SéanceforNamJunePaik(2008).
1Curatorialproject(publicityimageusedonposters,fliersandweb).
1.
1MarcelDuchamp,TheLargeGlass(1915-23).
12Mixedmedia.
1.
2NamJunePaikandShuyaAbe,RobotK-456(1964).
13Robotics.
1.
3NamJunePaik,TheFirstCatastropheoftheTwenty-firstCentury(1982).
13Performance(stageddestructionofRobotK-456).
1.
4Stelarc,PingBody(1996).
15Performance.
1.
5EduardoKac,GFPBunny(2000).
16Transgenicartwork.
1.
6TonyOursler,Junk(2003).
17Mixedmedia.
1.
7TonyOursler,Judy(2004).
17Mixedmedia.
1.
8DanielJames,CodeMonkey1.
1(2008).
18Installation.
2.
1DennisOppenheim,ReadingPositionforSecondDegreeBurn(1970).
28Photograph.
2.
2RirkritTiravanija,PadThai(1991-1996).
29Mixedmedia.
2.
3SantiagoSierra,160cmLineTattooedon4People(2000).
29Intervention.
2.
4MaurizioCattelan,APerfectDay(1999).
31Performance.
2.
5MaurizioCattelan,MassimilianoGioniandAliSubotnick,TheWrongGallery(2002-2005).
31Curatorialproject.
2.
6DanielJames,SchoolofFineArts(2010).
33Installation(detail:gaffertape).
2.
7DanielJames,SchoolofFineArts(2010).
33Installation(detail:headofrobot).
2.
8DanielJames,SchoolofFineArts(2010).
34Installation(videostill).
3.
1DavidHall,ThisisaTelevisionReceiver(1976).
39Video(stills).
3.
2LenLye,AColourBox(1935).
40Filmstills.
3.
3AvatarBodyCollision,TriptheLightFantastic(2006).
43Cyberformance(photoshoppedimagefromblog).
3.
4AnaesthesiaAssociates,IMissYou,GreattoSeeYouAgain(2007).
44Performance(videostill:Intimacyconference,GoldsmithsCollege,UniversityofLondon).
3.
5AnaesthesiaAssociates,TheBestAirGuitarAlbumintheWorld,Ever,Vol.
II(2007).
45Performance(photograph:070707UpStageFestival,NZFilmArchive,Wellington).
4.
1KingTubbyinhisstudio.
544.
2GrandmasterFlash.
54Film(still).
4.
3MaurizioCattelan,Untitled(1996).
57Acryliconcanvas.
4.
4RamonandPedro,TheGreyVideo(2004).
58Video(still).
4.
5JamieFMusic,DMXVs.
Ghostbusters(2007).
59Audio(videostill:audiotrackonYouTube).
4.
6DanielJames,BrokenWineGlasses(2009).
61Installation(videostill).
1Alayerofprimer"Iusetechnologyinordertohateitmoreproperly"NamJunePaikFig.
A:DanielAgnihotri-Clark,1SéanceforNamJunePaik(2008).
Curatorialproject(publicityimageusedonposters,fliersandweb).
InFebruary2008Icuratedaproject(ascreening/performanceevent)entitledSéanceforNamJunePaik.
ApproximatelytwoyearsaftertheseminalKoreanartisthadpassedaway,2IwantedtoseehowAotearoa/NewZealandaffiliateddigitalmediaartspractitionersmightcreatenewartworkstochannelthespiritofhispractice.
3Iwillnotdiscussthatproject(norforthatmatteranyofmycuratorialprojects)inrelationtothisresearch,butIdowishtoinvokethespiritofSéanceforNamJunePaikasemblematicoftheinvestigationthatisabouttounfold.
Paikisanextremelyinfluentialfigureinthefieldofcontemporaryculturalpracticethatintersectsartwithtechnology–heiscommonlyknownasthe'fatherofvideoart',andheisalsoknownasoneofthefirstartiststomakeroboticsartworks;heisinpartnotableforhisinterdisciplinaryapproachandhissenseofdaringininvestigatinghownewtechnologiesmightbedeployedforartisticends;heisknownforhissenseofhumour,playfulnessandfun,butatthesametimehisworkinvokesequaldosesofquietmeditation.
Channelingthespiritofthisartistisaslightlycheekythingtodo–itclaimsalevelofconnectionwithanartistwhoseimportanceinthefieldisalreadywellestablished;itputsemergentpracticesonequalfootingintheirdialoguewithcanonisedpractices.
Inshort,itaskshowcurrentartistscanretainadegreeofreverenceforthehistoriesandestablishedstrategiesofculturalpractice,butthenmovebeyondtheworkofestablishedandcanonisedpractitionersanddosomethingnew.
TocreatethepublicityimageforSéanceforNamJunePaik(Fig.
A),IappropriatedanimageofaséancethatwasheldforthefamousillusionistHarryHoudini,andIphotoshoppedinsomebigflatscreentelevisions(inthesameconfigurationasthetelevisionswhichwereinstalledattheactualevent).
Makingartinvariablyinvolvesslippagesandindexesfromthepast,butIliveandworkinthepresent.
LikePaik'soeuvre,myownartpracticeisfirmlyinterdisciplinary:traversingthedisciplinesofvideo,audio,installationart,performanceandrobotics.
LikePaik,Ioftenworkcollaboratively:invariousprojectsandtestworksproducedoverthecourseofthisresearchIhaveworkedwithcomputerprogrammersanddesigners,dancersandchoreographers,theatrepractitioners,DJs/VJs/musicians-practitionersworkingbothinsideandoutsideoftraditional'finearts'contexts.
LikePaik,myinterestsengageheavilywithpopcultureandmainstreammedia,andIdeploystrategiesofdeconstructionandreconstruction,appropriationandrecontextualisation.
LikePaik,myworkbalancesprecariouslybetweenplayfulness/humourandsobermeditation.
LikePaik,Iusetechnologyinordertohateitmoreproperly.
ButIamnotNamJunePaik.
1Agnihotri-Clarkwasmyformersurname-itwasthenameIusedatthetimeofthatproject.
2PaikdiedinJanuary2006.
3ThisprojectwaspartofTendingNetworks,thefifthoftheannualAotearoaDigitalArts(ADA)symposia,andtheeventwaspresentedinconjunctionwiththePhysicsRoom'spublicexhibitionsprogrammeinChristchurch.
2Introduction(containingafewcluesaboutthemethodologytomymadness)Technologyperforms(orfailstoperform)numerousinstrumentalfunctionsinmodernsociety.
Thisthesisinvestigateshowitmightbepossibletoreconfigureand'bastardise'technology,inordertoscrutiniseit.
Eachofthechaptersinthisdissertationprovidesthecontextforanartwork.
ThefourworksaretheinstallationCodeMonkey1.
1(2007),theinstallationSchoolofFineArts(2010),anuntitledperformancebyAnaesthesiaAssociates(2010),andtheinstallationBrokenWineGlasses2.
0(2009).
Theseworksdeployarangeofmediums,includingsculpture/robotics,installation,performance,audio/musicandvideo.
Thisinterdisciplinaryapproachtomediaseekstointerrogatethemyriadofwaysinwhichtechnologyevolvesandinfiltratesintoourdailylives.
Technologyhasaprofoundimpactuponoursubjectivity,andthisinvestigationexploreswaysinwhichbastardisedtechnologycanenableslippagestooccurbetweenmultiple(andconflicting)subjectpositions.
Thisresearchfocusesontheintegrationofhighandlowtechnology,andtheconflationof'high'and'low'art,investigatinghowthesestrategiesmayleadtonewunderstandingsofartasamodeofsocialandpoliticalenquiry.
Thisdialecticbetweenhighandlowischallengedinanumberofways.
Theroboticassemblagesdonotadheretohigh-techaesthetics–theserobotsarefairlycomplextechnologically,buttheyarealsodistinctlyabject,creepyanddysfunctional,andtheirquasi-humancharacteristicselicitclearaffectiveresponsesfromtheaudiencesthatencounterthem.
Theuseofsampled/appropriatedaudioandvideoalsointerrogatesthedialecticbetweenhighandlow.
Thispop-culturalmaterialisiconoclasticallyre-presentedas'high'art,andtheslippagesthatoccurareakeymodeforscrutinisingthemediatisingeffectsoftechnology.
Theartworksnavigateanumberofculturalmodalitiessuchasthegrotesque,humour,theglitch,performance,appropriationandmashups,inordertocreateexperiencesofdisorientationanddisquiet.
Thisbodyofworkisanexplorationoftheselfasinseparablycomplicitwith,butstillcriticallyreflexiveabout,technologyandthepower-knowledgestructuresthatitpropogates.
Mytheoreticalresearchdrawsheavilyonpoststructuralist(philosophical)concepts.
Theseconceptsareanalysedtogetherwithother(applied)culturaltheorytoformulateatheoreticalpositionfromwhichmyartpracticecanbecontextualisedandinterpreted.
Iusepoststructuralistframeworksbecause,indirectcontrasttostructuralism'sclaimsthatmeaningcanbeculturallyindependent,4poststructuralismrejectstheideathatatext5hasonesingularmeaningorpurpose.
6Inordertounderstandaculturaltext,itisnecessarytostudyboththetextitself,andthesystemsofknowledgewhichwerecoordinatedtoproducethetext.
Inthisway,poststructuralismpositionsitselfasastudyofhowknowledgeisproduced.
Poststructualismis,initsrejectionofsingularmeanings,fundamentaltounderstandingpracticesthatengagewithdigitalmediaandothertechnologies.
Thegenerationofmultiplemeaningscharacteriseshybridisedartspracticeswhichsample,appropriate,andreconfigureexistingtexts.
Aselectionofkeypracticalcasestudiesareoutlinedanddiscussedinlightofthetheoreticalissuesraised.
Inlinewithmyfirmdedicationtointerdisciplinarity,casestudiesarenotsolelydrawnfromcanonisedmovementsin'fineart'history.
Therearenumerousexamplespresentedfromotherspheresofculturalproduction,mostnotablypopularmusic.
Ifrequentlyusetheterms'culturalproducer'and'culturalproduct'inplaceofthewords'artist'and'artwork'respectively.
Idonotusecapitallettersfor'fineart',nordoIcapitalisethenamesofcanonisedartmovements(unlessIamdirectlyquotingsomeonewhodoes).
Eachchapterraisesaclusterofissuesandasksaquestion.
Eachartworkrespondsbychallengingandinterrogatingtheissuesraised.
Concludingthechaptertowhichtheyhavebeenassignedisnotthesoledutyofeachartwork.
Thisdocument,liketheartworksthatitcontextualises,isresistanttohierarchy.
Assuch,thereisnometa-conclusiontodrawattheend.
Iftheartworksoperateasintended,thespiritofeachartworkwillhauntthetheoreticalandpracticalissuesthatareraisedinallfourchapters.
4Structuralismexplorestherelationshipsbetweenlanguage,literatureandotherfields,uponwhichhigherlevel'structuralnetworks'canbedrawn.
Accordingtostructuralistthought,meaningisproducedfromwithinaparticularpersonorculture.
5Theterm'text'referstoanythingwithasemioticcomponent,toanythingthatcarriesmeaning.
AsIuseithere,thetermdoesnotonlyrefertowrittenliterature.
Anartworkisaculturaltext.
6Further,RolandBarthesfamouslydeclaredthemetaphoric"death"oftheauthorasanauthenticsourceofmeaningforagiventext(1967).
Thisdestabilisingoftheauthormeansthatpoststructuralistsneedtoinvestigateothersourcesofmeaning,suchasthereader'sinterpretation,culturalnorms,otherliteratureandsoforth.
IwillinvestigateBarthes'ideasinChapter2.
3ResearchoverviewIfyouarea(brave)readerwhoistacklingthisdocumentwithlittleornopreexistingknowledgeaboutthefieldunderdiscussion,pleasestartreadinghere…DuringaperiodoftimeIspentinhospitalrecoveringfromaninjury,Iwasforcedtolearnhowtocommunicatewithmedicalspecialists.
WhileIlayinhospital(dopeduponstrongpainkillers),Ireceivedregularvisitsfromthesepeople.
Theyscuttleduptomybed(usuallyingroups,withtraineestailingbehind),andtheyspoutedcomplexandunfamiliartermsatme.
IhadtoquicklygetmytonguearoundthewordstheywereusinginordertomakesureIunderstoodwhattheymeant-beforetheyrushedoffandadministeredacourseoftreatmentthatIwasnothappywith.
Everyfieldofexpertiseinevitablydevelopsitsownspecialisedlanguage.
IfIweretostatethatmyattiudetowardsmedicalterminologyis'Foucauldian',somereaderswouldneedanexplanation.
OtherreaderswouldimmediatelyrecognisethenameoftheFrenchtheoristMichelFoucault.
ReaderswhoarefamiliarwithFoucault'sworkarelikelytoknowthatthemedicalinstitutionwasakeysubjectofinquiryinhiswriting.
Thesereaderswouldrealisethatthemedicalprofessionprovidesaclearexampleofhowpowerandknowledgeareintertwined.
Theywouldprobably(correctly)inferthatmystatementprodsbackatthemedicalprofessionalsIencountered-andhowtheyusedtheirspecialistlanguagetotalkdowntome,toasserttheirauthority,andtoacertainextenttoevaderesponsibilityfortakingthetimetoadequatelyexplainmytreatment.
UnlikethemedicalspecialistsIencounteredinhospital,Iamnotinahurry.
IactuallywantmyreaderstounderstandwhatIamtalkingabout,andIwantmyworktoarouseinterest–topromoteopen-endeddialogue,ratherthananunquestioningacceptanceofmyexperienceandexpertise.
Havingsaidthat,therearetimesinwhichspecialisedlanguageisnecessary.
Inthesectionbelow,forexample,IamabouttooutlinethekeyconceptsIwilladdress,andthenamesofthekeytheoristsandpractitionersthatIwilldiscuss.
Itisanextremelyabridgedandjargonyoverview–asectionthathasbeenwrittenforpeoplewhoalreadyhaveahighlevelofpreexistingknowledgeaboutthefield.
Readerswithexperienceinacademiclanguagewouldexpectthis(evenrequireit)inordertogetafeelforhowIampositioningmyownworkinrelationtothefield.
Ialsoreiteratethesecondensedoverviewsatthestartofeachchapter.
Ifyoufindtheseintroductoryparagraphsaretooopaque,simplyjumpinatthefirstsubheadingofeachchapter,whereIwillstarttonavigatetheterrainataslowerpace.
Ifyouwanttoskipthepreambleandcuttothecriticalchasepleasestartreadinghere…Chapter1ofthisresearchbeginswithadetailedstudyoftechne,anotionwhichiscentraltoacriticalexaminationofthemeetingplacebetweenartandtechnology.
IcommencebyinvestigatingMartinHeidegger'setymologicalstudyoftechne.
IntheoriginalGreekusage,thetermencompassedfunctionalmechanismsforbringingnewproductsintobeing-theinstrumentalqualityoftechnology.
Thetermalso,however,denotedaestheticattemptstobringnewideasintobeing.
Thelattermeaninghasbeenlostincommonunderstandingsoftheterm'technology'-wepredominantlythinkoftechnologyaspurelyinstrumental.
Inaculturalcontext,itiscrucialtorevisittechneinordertounderstandtheoverlapbetweeninstrumentalvalueandaestheticvalue–especiallyforartworkswhichdeploytechnologicalproductstocritiqueideasabouttechnology.
InArthurKroker'sanalysisofHeidegger'swork,Krokerintroducesthenotionof'reverseengineering'totheoriseaestheticstrategiestobecriticalabouttechnology'sforwardmomentum–reverseengineeringisastrategybywhichartistsdeploytechnologyasbothmediumandsubject,inordertocritiqueit.
Icointheterm'bastardmedia'torefertotheillegitimateusageoftechnologyinculturalpractice-fortheexpresspurposeofchallengingitsforwardmomentum.
Anumberofcasestudiesfromculturalpracticearescrutinisedbasedontheextentthattheychallengetheforwardmomentumoftechnology.
IcommencewithmechanomorphicartfromtheDadaperiod,specificallyfocussingonMarcelDuchamp'sTheLargeGlass(1915-23),anartworkinwhichthebodyisliberatedfromit'slimitationsbyanecstaticecalationofpowerthatisreceivedbytherepetitionsofmachines.
Conversely,inJeanTinguely'sHomagetoNewYork(1960),andinNamJunePaik'sroboticsartworkRobotK-456(1964,incollaborationwithShuyaAbe),theforwardmomentumoftechnologyiscriticisedratherthancelebrated.
Thesefluxus-affiliatedartworksemphasisedysfunctionalityandplayfulness,drawingattentiontotechnology'sabilitytobecounterproductivetosocialprogress.
Movingontomorerecentexamples,Stelarc'sPingBody(1996)isanartworkthatdoesecstaticallycelebratetechnology,inordertoextendthebiologicalbodyoftheartistthroughtechnologicalmeans.
Similarly,EduardoKac'sGFPBunny(2000)directlyimplicatestechnologyonbiologicalbodies,inaprojectthatistheworld'sfirsttransgenicartwork.
Conversely,however,GPFBunnyappliesscientificstrategiesinordertofacilitatedialogueandcritiquetheseverystrategies.
4Unliketheseartworks,whichdirectlyimpactuponactualbiologicalbodies,thegrotesqueisanaestheticstrategytoconstructfancifulnarratives.
Iwillarguethatthismodeofoperationisimportantbecauseithighlightstheabilityforarttocreatepsychologicalresonances(anddissonances)thatchallengethestatusquo.
TonyOursler'sJudy(2004)isanexamplarygrotesqueartworkwhichdeploystechnologyinordertocreateafancifulnarrative,butinthisartworktechnologyisdeployedasmedium,butnotasthesubjectofscrutiny.
Thischapteraskswhetherthestrategiesofthegrotesquecandirectlyscrutinisetheforwardmomentumoftechnology–thedialecticofhighandlowtechnology,andvisavis'high'and'low'art.
Further,canfancifulnarrativesbedeployedwithasenseofhumourtoactuallyheightenthesenseofdisquietAnartworkentitledCodeMonkey1.
1challengesandinterrogatestheissuesraised.
CodeMonkey1.
1isaninstallationartworkcomprisedofaroboticmonkeyandavideoprojection.
Therobotitselfisgrotesque,abjectandcreepy,andassuchitisformallycriticalofahigh-techdesignstyle.
Thetechnologicalfunctionality/instrumentalitythatthepiecedoeshaveisunnervingpreciselybecausethepieceissoabject.
Themonkeyisalsoeasilyanthropomorphisedtocarryfancifulnarratives.
Viewersexperiencewhatmightbecalledadissonanceofcognitions,wheretheyaresimultaneouslyrepulsedbyhowtherobotlooksandit'snarcissisticbehaviour,buttheyarealsolikelytofinditcute,funnyandendearing.
Chapter2investivgatesthenotionofsubjectivity,whichiscentraltounderstandingtheinterrelationshipsbetweenhumansandtechnologicalmachines.
Iwillfocusontheintersectionbetweenpowerandknowledge.
Whilethefirstchapterdelineatedabroadstrategyofbastardisingtechnologyinordertobecriticalaboutit,intheremainingthreechaptersIwillinvestigatethelimitsandparadoxesthatareinherenttothisapproach.
Inthischapter,mykeyinterestishowartpracticecanbecriticalofpowerrelations,whilstoperatingfrominsidethoseverysamestructures–whatIcalltheparadoxofcomplicity.
ThischaptercommencesbyoutliningNietzsche'sTheGayScienceasakeytreatise,becauseitisseminalinpositingthecollapseofasingularnotionofabsolutemoralauthority.
IcomparethiswithRolandBarthes'proposalthattheauthorofacreativework,similarly,cannotlayclaimtoabsoluteauthorityoverit'smeaning.
MichelFoucault'sworkisalsocrucialbecauseitarguesforthetotalinseparabilityofpowerandknowledge,withhisneologism'power-knowledge'.
Inordertounderstandtechnologicalformationsofpower-knowledgeinaculturalcontext,IwillalsoexamineMarshallMcLuhan'sseminalworkinmediastudies.
Whilsthighlyinfluential,McLuhan'smantrathat'themediumisthemessage'iscriticisedhereasproblematicduetoit'stechnologicaldeterminism-apositionwhichisincompatiblewithpoststucturalistthoughtwhichallowsformultiple(andsometimesconflicting)meanings.
IthereforereturntotheFoucauldianframeworkofpower-knowledge,andcontrastitwithGillesDeleuzeandFelixGuattari'sframeworkofthe'machinic'-whichdescribestheinterrelationshipsbetweenbiologicalandtechnologicalmachinesasevolutiveandcollective.
Theseframeworksarekeybecause,unlikeMcLuhan'swork,theydoallowformultipleandconflictingsubjectpositions.
ThekeypracticalcasestudiesIinvestigatearemodalitiesofartpracticethatsharetheclusterofideologicalconcernshighlightedabove,butwhichdonotfocusontechnology.
Iidentifyachasminwhichthecanonisedartmovementsthatbestexemplifyascrutinyofhegemonicpowerrelationspredominantlyignoretheroleoftechnology,andconverselythecanonisedartpracticesinwhichtechnologyisthefocusareusuallyframedinamannerthatdoesnotadequatelyaddresstheissueofsubjectivity.
Iwishtolearnfromtwoartmovementswhichattemptedtosystematicallyaddresstheissueofsubjectivityandpowerrelations,butwhichfailedtoachievetheirideologicalgoals–tolearnfromthesefailuresandthenapplythisknowledgeinatechnologicalcontext.
Theconceptualartmovementofthe1960siscrucialbecauseofitscriticalityabouttheinstitutionalpowerstructures(galleries,museums),andtheirpropogationoftheideologiesof'permanence'and'commodification'.
Thekeyreasonforinvestigatingtheconceptualartmovementisbecausethemovementclaimedtoreject'permanenceand'commodification',butconceptualartistsstillreliedongalleriesandmuseumstoshowtheirwork,andthedocumentationoftheseworkswouldbecomepermanentartefactswhichholdahighcommodityvalue.
TheideologicalfailureofconceptualartiscomparedtothefailuresinherentinNicholasBourriaud'smorerecentframeworkofrelationalaesthetics.
Bourriaudclaimsthatartfacilitates'conviviality'inordertocreate'microtopias'(small,localisedversionsofthe'utopia').
Thisframeworkalsofailsideologically,becausetheseconvivialencountersoccurpredominantlyfortheartelite,andinpractice(aswiththeutopia)someonewillalwaysbeleftout.
AlthoughIhighlightthefailuresofBourriaud'sframework,thereareartistslabelledaspartofthatcanonwhodocohesivelyaddresshegemonicpowerstructures,butinamannerthatismoresubtleandnuancedthantheframeworkitselfallows.
Idrawparticularattentiontothepracticeof(theso-called'relational'artist)MaurizioCattelan,illustratinghowself-reflexivityandhumourcanbedeployedtocreateartworkswhichacknowledgeaninescapablecomplicitywithhegemonicstructures,butwhichalsomaintainalevelofcriticalityaboutthesesamestructures.
Thepracticalcasestudiescitedinthischapterdonotpredominantlyfocusontheroleoftechnology,buttheydosharethesameclusterofideologicalconcernsthatunderpinformationsofpower-knowledgewhichareenabledbytechnology.
Thischapterconcludesbyaskinghowself-reflexivityandhumourcanbedeployedtocreateanartworkwhichretainsatheoreticalfocusonsubjectivitybuthasapracticalfocusontechnologyAnartworkentitledSchoolofFineArtschallengesandinterrogatestheissuesraised.
SchoolofFineArtsconfigurestworoboticentitiesandavideoloopintoaninstallationthatisreminiscentofanofficeenvironment.
Theworkcreatescomplex,multipleandconflictingsubjectrelationsbetweentheelementsthatcompriseit.
Thetitleofthe5workclearlylocatesanelementofautobiography,makingthepieceself-reflexivelycriticalaboutaninstitutionalstucture(artschool)whilstremainingparadoxicallycomplicitwithit.
Chapter3investigatesthenotionoftheglitch,andhowitrelatestoideasaboutperformance.
Firstly,tounderstandthetechnologicalglitch,weneedtounderstandthephysicalityofrecordedmedia-thatdataisencodedontoaphysicalsurface(egthesurfaceofaCD,theharddiskofacomputer),andthatthechangestothatphysicalsurfacewillcausechangesintheplaybackofthemedia.
Inthisresearch,theglitchisemployedinabroaderculturalsense,ratherthansolelyandspecificallyreferringtotechnologicalmalfunction.
Theglitchisidentifiedasaslippage–itisaconcreteexampleofwhatDeleuzeandGuttarirefertoas'deterritorialisation'.
Theglitch,asIemployit,isavaluabletheoreticalnotionbecauseitcanencompassslippagesinformalqualities(aswithglitchesinelectronicmusic),butalsoslippagesinmeaning.
IwillalsoinvestigateJonMcKenzie'sexpandedframeworkfor'performance'.
McKenzie'sframeworkencompassesthetermintwosensesthatareprescienttothisresearch:aculturalsense(forexampleatheatricalperformance),andatechnologicalsense(forexampleahigh-performancecar).
Ineithersenseoftheword,'performance'assessestheextentthatsomethingorsomeonebehavesinthewaytheyaresupposedto.
Performance,inanexpandedsenseoftheterm,isaboutsuccessandfailure,dominanceandsubjugation.
Assuch,McKenziedescribesperformanceasastratumoftheFoucauldiannotionofpower-knowledge,andheclaimsthat,inanexpandedsense,'performance'willdisplacetheFoucauldiannotionof'discipline'.
Amachinethatglitchesislowperformanceinatechnologicalsense,butitcanbehighperformanceinaculturalsense.
Iwilltraceatrajectoryofartistswhodeploytheglitchasakeymodalityofpractice-casestudiesaredrawnfromexperimentalfilm,videoartandelectronicmusic.
Initsidiomaticusage,theterm'glitch'usuallyreferstounintentionaloutcomes,butthesecasestudieshighlighthowtheglitchcanbeadesired/intendedoutcomethatsimulatesmalfunction.
Thisleadsmetoredefinetheglitchasanyslippage-eitherintentionalorunintentional.
Theseslippagescanbepurelyformal(suchasslippagesintheaural/visualqualitiesofaudio/video),buttheycanalsobesemantic-changesinmeaningoccurwhentheseslippagestakeplace.
Theperformancearttraditionofexploringthephysicallimitsofone'sownbodyhasobviousparallelstotheexplorationoftechnologicallimitsthroughtheglitch.
Thevisceralperformanceartworksofthe1960sand1970s-andalsomorerecenttechnologicallymediatedvisceralworkssuchasStelarc'sPingBody-emphasiselive,bodilyexperience.
Theprimaryconcernofthisinvestigation,however,isperformancepracticesthatemphasisetheatricalityandmediatisationasthecentralconcern.
RobertRauschenberg'sperformancepracticewillbehighlighted,sincehishybridofperformanceartandtheatre(aswellasdanceandotherdisciplines)providesaclearexampleofcreatingintertextualslippagesofmeaningbylayeringtogetherseeminglyincongruousimages.
Inothermorerecenttechnologicallymediatedperformances,slippages(ofbothformalqualitiesandmeaning)areaestheticisedandhighlighted.
Onekeyrecentcasestudyisprovidedhere–AvatarBodyCollision'sTriptheLightFantastic(2006)-acyberformanceartwork/project.
Thispiecehighlightsthesubterfugeofmediatisedperformancethroughliveonlinetheatre.
Inthisprojecttheaudienceexperiences(andevenbecomescomplicitin)theperformativeprocessesofdeterritorialisation,andthenreterritorialisation.
Thischapterconcludesbyaskinghowtechnologicallyenabledculturalperformancecanembodyanoscillatingtensionbetweenhighandlowperformance(inasensethatintegratesbothculturalandtechnologicalmeaningsoftheterm)Further,thechapterasksifitispossibletoachievethisinamannerthatscrutinisesmediatisedrepresentationsofidentitymoreclosely,inrelationtomainstreammediainapop-culturalcontextAperformancebyAnaesthesiaAssociateschallengesandinterrogatestheissuesraised.
TheperformancesofAnaesthesiaAssociatesarefast-cutliveremixesofaudioandvideosampledfrompop-culturalsources.
Glitchylow-techaesthetics(pixellatedvideofilters;compressedandfilteredaudio)aredeliveredbytechnologicallycomplexmeans(anarrayofaudioandvideoequipment),creatingatensionbetweenhighandlowperformanceinatechnologicalsense.
Glitchesintheformalqualitiesoftheaudioandvideooccuralongsideslippagesinthemeaningsembeddedinthesourcesamples.
Becauseofthepopulistmaterialsampled,theseperformancesarealsocriticalofmediatisedrepresentationsofidentity.
Chapter4examinestheculturalphenomenonandcriticalpossibilitiesofthemashup.
Mashupsareculturalproductsinwhichtwoormorepreexistingproductsarecombinedandjuxtaposedtocreatenewandunexpectedresonances.
Ifocusonaudiomashupsinthischapter.
Firstly,tolocatethisculturalphenomenontheoretically,Ishallinvestigatethenotionofthesimulacrum.
JeanBaudrillardfamouslyheldtheviewthat'nothingexistsoutsideofthesimulacrum'.
Baudrillard'sbleaknihlisticpositionframesthesimulacrumasencompassingonlyexternal,superficial(subjective)relationsbetweensigns,anddoesnotallowforanyobjectivity.
InaninterpretationofDeleuzeandGuattari'swork,BrianMassumireconfiguresthesimulacratoencompassallrelations–bothobjectiveandsubjective.
Redefininingthesimulacratoencompassallrelations,Iargue,makesthetermfartoovaguetobeofanyuse.
EvenifthesimulacrumasBaudrillarddescribesitisaproblematicconcept,itisstillmoreusefultohaveatermwhichhasaclearlydefinedscope.
Further,eventhoughasingular,absoluteviewofrealityisnave,therealmofartpertainstocreatingpassagesofexperience–signspointtophenomenainlifewhichareexperientiallyreal.
Thesubjectivityofartneedstobeunderpinnedtoacertaindegreebyasenseofsomethingtangible.
6Inordertounderstandtheexperientialimplicationsoflivinginaworldofendlesslyreplicatingsigns,IturntoFoucault'snotionoftheheterotopia.
Foucaultprovidesalucidtheoreticalframeworkforunderstandingdisplacement-theheterotopiaisaspacewhichissimultaneouslymythicandreal,andwhichchallengesalinearunderstandingoftime.
Asopposedtothe'fundmentallyunreal'utopia–theheterotopiaisdescribedasarealspace,whichexistsprimarilytocontestotherrealspaces.
Foucault'sideasareespeciallyapplicablewherehedescribestheheterotopiaascapableofjustaposingseveralrealsitesthatare,inandofthemselves,incompatible(givingthelibraryasanexample)-anotionwhichisclearlyapplicabletotheculturalphenomenonofthemashup.
Thestateoftransitionwhereweexperiencethesedisplacementscanbedescribedasliminal–astatewhichischaracterisedbyambiguity,opennessandindeterminacy.
Akeyproblemexists,however,inthatweliveinahyperrealculturalclimateinwhich,asJonMcKenzienotes,liminalityisthenorm.
Iftheliminalstateisnowthenorm,itbegsthequestionofwhetherheterotopiasstillactuallyfunctiontocontestestablished'reals'.
UnlikeMcKenzie,however,Idonotbelievethatthisnormativedimensiontoliminalityisafault.
Thecoreissueisactuallyoneofassimilation.
Artistswillalwaystrytocontestestablishednormsofculturalpractice(itis,infact,theirroletodoso),buttheseliminalstrategieswillalsobesubjecttoacontinualprocessofassimilationintoacanonofacceptedpractice.
Sincethisnormativedimensiontoliminalityisnotactuallyafault,theheterotopicstateofdisplacementdoesindeedfunctiontocontestrealsites.
Iemploytheterm'informationaldelirium'todescribethecurrentculturalclimate.
Thisclimateisproliferatedbyculturalproductswhichreconfigureotherculturalproducts,andinwhichliminalculturalpracticesareperpetuallyassimilated.
Inthisclimatesignsrefertoarealitywhichisnotabsolute,butyetourexperienceofitistangible.
Turningtopracticalcasestudies,Iwillinvestigatethehistoryofappropriation,samplingandremix/mashuppractices,focussingpredominantlyuponthistraditionwithinmusic.
Itisnotathoroughhistory,butratheritdenotesafewkeymarkersinatrajectorytowardsthecurrentculturalclimate-inwhichthesetacticshavebecomethenorm.
Thestrategiesofappropriationinvisualartspracticearecomparedtothoseofmusicalworkswhichdeploysampling,inordertoestablishhowmashup/samplingstrategiescanoperateinanartcontext.
NicholasBourriaud'sframeworkof'postproduction'isoutlinedandcruciallycriticisedhereforformulatingwell-establishedtraditionswithinmusic(andinvisualarts)as'newtrends'inthefieldoffinearts.
Thestrategiesofthemashuparenotlocatedasnewandoriginalintheirownright.
Instead,thenormativedimensiontothesepracticesishighlighted.
Themashupistreatedasawell-establishedculturalstrategywhichcanitselfbedeconstructedandrecontextualised.
Mashupsareemblematicoftheculturalclimateofinformationaldeliriumfortwokeyreasons:firstlybecausetheyaredisorientatingandheterotopicintheirownright,andsecondlybecausemashupsarenotallthatnew,andtheyhavebeenassimilatedintomainstreampop-culturalpractices.
Chapter4concludesbyaskinghowthestrategiesandimplicationsofmashupproductioncanberecontextualisedinaninstallationartworkthatreflectsuponthenuancesofinformationaldeliriumAnartworkentitledBrokenWineGlasses2.
0challengesandinterrogatestheissuesraised.
BrokenWineGlasses2.
0isaninstallationartworkthatisreminiscentofthedysfunctionalaftermathofanabandonedparty.
Thepieceiscriticalabouttheverynotionoforiginality,throughtheconflationofmultiplepreexistingrecordings.
Recontextualisingaudiomashupsintoaninstallationartwork,however,shiftstheexperience.
BrokenWineGlasses2.
0reflectsupontheaftermathofthismodeofcreativeexpression,whichhasbeenassimilatedintothemainstreamalmostassoonasitgainedculturalcurrency.
Thefunplayfulnesstobeexpectedonadancefloorisreconfiguredintoanexperienceofdeliriouspathos.
7Chapter1Lowtechne:bastardisingmedia8PsychiatricAssessmentCodeMonkey1.
1'sneedtospendhoursplayingwithaclosedcircuitvideoprojectionofhisownimagerevolvesaroundapatternofgrandiosity,hisneedforadmiration,andhissenseofentitlement.
Heoftenfeelsoverlyimportant-heexaggeratesandgiggles/gibbersabouthisachievements,andheaccepts(oftendemands)praiseandadmiration.
Hemaybeoverwhelmedwithfantasiesinvolvingunlimitedsuccess,power,love,orbeautyandfeelthathecanonlybeunderstoodbyotherswhoare,likehim,superiorinsomeaspectoflife.
Thereisasenseofentitlement,ofbeingmoredeservingthanothersbasedsolelyonhissuperiority.
Thesesymptoms,however,arearesultofanunderlyingsenseofinferiorityandcanbeseenasovercompensation.
Becauseofthis,heisoftenenviousandevenangryofotherswhohavemore,receivemorerespectorattention,orotherwisestealawaythespotlight.
CodeMonkey1.
1hasnotsoughttreatmentforhiscondition.
Sincehedoesnotactuallyacknowledgeandacceptthiscondition,histreatmentoptionsarelimited.
Someresearchhasfoundlongterminsight-orientedtherapytobeeffective,butconvincingCodeMonkey1.
1tocommittothistreatmentwouldbeamajorobstacle.
9Lowtechne:bastardisingmediaThischapterinvestigatesthenotionoftechne,fromwhichtheterm'technology'isderived.
MartinHeideggeridentifiesthattheterm'soriginalGreekmeaninghighlightsaninseperablelinkbetweenartandtechnology–initsoriginalusagetechnedenoted'bringingintobeing'inbothafunctional,instrumentalsense(howweusuallyunderstandtechnology),butalsoinanaestheticsense(bringingideasintobeing).
Thislinkisforegroundedbythespectrumofcontemporaryartpracticeswhichdeployemergenttechnologiesasbothmediumandsubject.
Thetermisthusimportantcritically,becauseithighlightsthedeephistorybehindhowartandtechnologyareinterrelated.
Firstly,Imakepreliminarydelineationsaboutwhatishappeningintheculturalspherewhereartandtechnologymeet.
Asignificantnumberofartistsusetechnologyinordertocritiquethesociopoliticalimplicationsoftechnologicalprogress-the'forwardmomentumoftechnology'.
Someartistsdothisby'reverseengineering'thenormalusesoftechnology–decompilingthesemioticcodesofexistingtechnologicalproductstomakenewculturalproducts.
Iusetheterm'bastardmedia'torefertotheillegitimateculturalchildrenoftechnologicalprogress–tospecificallydemarcatethoseartworkswhichdeploytechnologyinordertocritiqueit'sforwardmomentum.
Byemployingthisphrase,Iwishtoemphasisetheassumeddialecticbetween'lowandhigh'.
Sincetheetymologicaloriginsoftechneencompassbothtechnologyandcreativepractice,thetermishighlyrelevantcritically.
Itforegroundsaparallel–thatanartisticscrutinyofthedialecticbetween'high'and'low'technologydoublesasascrutinyofthedialecticbetween'high'and'low'inartpracticeitself.
MarcelDuchamp'sTheLargeGlass(1915-23)providesaseminalhistoricalentrypointforthisinvestigationintoartpractice,becauseofitsecstaticmechanisticallegory.
Selectedworksfromthefluxusmovementarealsoexaminedwhichdeploytechnologyinasomewhatdysfunctionalandplayfulmanner:JeanTinguely'sHomagetoNewYork(1960)andNamJunePaik'sRobotK-456(1964,incollaborationwithShuyaAbe).
TheseartworksarecomparedtorecentworksbyStelarcandEduardoKac,whichmaintainamoreserioustoneintheirinvestigationofthenexusbetweenartandtechnology.
Alloftheseartworksaddresstechnologydirectlyassubject.
Somecanbeidentifiedascelebrationsoftechnology,andothersarebastardisationsthatarecriticalofitsforwardmomentum.
Theaboveworks-whicharequiteliterallyaboutthetechnology-arecontrastedwiththestrategiesofgrotesqueart,inwhichtheemphasisisuponfancifulscenesofeccentricity.
CasestudiesofartworksbyTonyOurslerareenabledbytechnology(usingvideoprojectionsandtimingcircuitry),butunlikethepriorexamples,thetechnologyitselfisnotthesubjectoftheartworks.
Akeyquestioninvestigated,then,ishowthetacticsofthegrotesquecanbeappliedtocreateanartworkthatengagesthevieweronbothlevelssimultaneously,constructingafancifulnarrativebutalsomaintainingacriticalityabouttheforwardmomentumofthetechnologyfromwhichtheartworkisconstructedThischapterconcludeswithCodeMonkey1.
1,aninstallationartworkwhichdeploystechnology(robotics,audio,andprojectedvideo)inagrotesquemanner(aconstructedsceneoffancy–anarcissisticroboticmonkey).
CodeMonkey1.
1createsanuncomfortabledissonanceofcognitions.
7Theartworkisbuiltusinghigh-technology,butitisambivalentabouthigh-techaesthetics-itiscriticaloftheverymechanismsthatbringitintobeing.
Thepiecealsogeneratesadissonanceofcognitionsatanarrativelevel,bydeployingtacticsofthegrotesque.
Therobotisapieceoftechnology,butitcanalsobeanthropomorphisised-interpretedthroughit'squasi-humancharacteristics.
Inanencounterwiththeartwork,viewerscanberepulsedbytherobot(itisgrotesque,abject,creepy,anditbehavesnarcissistically),buttheycanalsobeattractedtoit(afterspendingsometimewithit,mostpeoplefinditcute,funnyandendearing)–sometimesbothatthesametime.
Theetymologyandhistoryof'techne'FortheGreeks,technologyandartwerecloselyintertwined.
Thisrelationshiphasnotsimplybeenlostinthecommonunderstandingoftheterm'technology',butrather,theemphasishasshiftedfromtheGreekunderstandingtoamodernfocusontheinstrumentalorfunctionalqualitiesoftechnology.
ThemediatheoristR.
L.
Rutskyassertsthathightechnologyequipmentcannolongerbediscussedintermsofitsfunctionalityalone.
Referringspecificallytoa"high-techdesignstyle",henotesthatthemodernistidealoffunctionalistformhasbeenabandonedinfavourofanemphasisontheaestheticsofahightechnologyobject.
8Theaestheticmetaphorburiedwithinthephrase'stateoftheart',forexample,isoftenoverlookedbythephrase'scommonusage,whereitsimplyreferstohighlydevelopedtechnology.
9TheEnglishword'technology'derivesfromtheGreekwordtechnologia,combiningtechneandlogia.
Techneisgenerallytranslatedas"art,skill,orcraft",butthetermhasafarbroaderscopethanit'susualassociationwithtechnologyalone.
TheGermanphilosopherMartinHeideggerclaimsthat7Thenotionof'cognitivedissonance'originatesinthefieldofsocialpsychology,anditreferstothediscomfortingfeelingofexperiencingtwoconflictingideas(dissonantcognitions)atthesametime.
8Rutsky,1999.
9Ibid.
10"[the]revealingthatbringsforthtruthintothesplendo[u]rofradiantappearancewasalsocalledtechne.
.
.
Therewasatimewhenthebringing-forthofthetrueintothebeautifulwascalledtechne.
Thepoiesisofthefineartswasalsocalledtechne".
10Logiaiscommonlytranslatedas"sayings","words"or"discourses".
Evenacursoryglanceattheetymologyof'technology'emphasisestheinseparabilityoftechnologyandculturalproduction.
ThebroadercontextofHeidegger'spositionontechnehasbeenwidelydebated.
Whilehisetymologicalapproachre-presentedawayofviewingtechnologyas'revealing'and'bringingforthtruth',thisinsightdidnotshrinkfromhisembitteredvisionofasocietydrivenbythe'willtotechnicity'.
TheculturaltheoristArthurKrokerdescribesHeideggeras"[a]futuristwithoutfaith,ametaphysicianwithoutthewilltobelieve,aphilosopheropposedtoreason,[…]theperfectrepresentativeofthetechnologicaltrajectoryattheouteredgeofitsparaboliccurvaturethroughthedarkspacesofthepost-humanfuture".
11ItistemptingtoconflateHeidegger'sphilosophywithhisquestionablepersonalandpoliticallife.
12Adhominemargumentsgenerallyproducefallaciousthinking,butitisworthconsideringthepossibilitythat,givenHeidegger'sprovenduplicitybothpersonallyandpolitically,wemightinferaduplicitousapproachphilosophically.
Inotherwords,didHeideggeruseetymologytodeliberatelyshiftthemeaningsoftermsdependingontheargumenthewasmakingatthetimeForexample,IainThompsonparodiesHeidegger'scomplicitywith-butlaterdenouncementof-Nazismthus:"It'sasifIweretosay,duringtheBushyears:"Wemustallsupportthewaronterror!
"ButthenIwentontosuggestthatby"war"Imean"polemos",theunderlyingtensionofoppositesthatshapesoursenseofallthings,andby"terror"Imean"aidos",theawesomeandterriblefeelingonehaswhenconfrontedwitharealitytoolargeforthemindtograspconceptually.
Finally,Icouldsay,"on"meansthatwehavetounderstandtheformerintermsofthelatter.
.
.
"13Thompson'sposition-whichIagreewith-maintainsthatHeideggershiftedthemeaningsoftermsinordertoleveragepublicityforhisphilosophyoffthepoliticalmomentumthatNazismwasgainingatthetime,ratherthanviceversa.
Thompson'spositionisnotanadhominemcritiqueofHeidegger,itimpliesthedeeperissueofstrategicanddeliberateduplicity.
14Idonot,therefore,quiteagreewithKroker'sdepictionofHeideggeraswithout'faith'or'thewilltobelieve'.
Heidegger'sthinkingisnotreallyunderpinnedbybelief(oranembitteredlackthereof),itisunderpinnedbyamotivationtouncoverhowtechnecanbeusedtoassertsociopoliticalpower.
Hiscomplicitywiththesociopoliticalpoweroftechneisimportanttohighlighthere,sinceIwilllookmorecloselyatthenotionofcomplicityintheinterrelationshipbetweentechnologyandsocietalpowerinchapter2.
Icannot,however,dismisstheaccuracyofHeidegger'setymologicalstudyoftechne-thattheGreektermencompassespoeticcreationaswellasskillandcraft.
NorcanInegatetheinfluence15ofhisembitteredvisionofsociety's'willtotechnicity',irrespectiveofanyquestionablemotivationsbehindhisformulations.
FollowingKrokerthen,evenifHeidegger'scynicismtowardstechnologywereduplicitous,thisveryduplicityabouttechnologyandsociopoliticalpowerispresicelywhatmakesHeideggersuchaninterestingfigure-especiallywithregardtothepotentialfortechnologyitselftobefascist.
ForthemomentIwilllookmoregenerallyathowtoframeculturalresponsestotheforwardmomentumoftechnologyinsociety.
10Heidegger,1978,p.
339.
11Kroker,2002.
12AsKrokernotes,somecriticsfaulthimfortakingadvantageofthepre-warfascistupsurgeinGermanytogainauniversityrectorship-abetrayalofhisphilosophicalmentorHusserl.
OthercriticsarecompletelyresistanttoHeidegger'sthought,simplybecausehewascomplicitwithGermanFascismatall-evenifonlyforaperiod.
13Thisinformalcommentwasmadeonlinebytheuser'iaint',whoidentifieshimselfasthepublishedHeideggercommentatorIainThompson-authorofHeideggeronOntotheology:TechnologyandthePoliticsofEducation(2005).
HiscommentwasmadeinthecontextofaresponsetoCarlinRomano'sreviewofEmmanuelFaye'sHeidegger:TheIntroductionofNazismIntoPhilosophy.
Faye'sbookcontainswhatisessentiallyaflawed'bookburning'argument,concludingthatduetoHeidegger'scomplicitywithGermanFascism,publishersshouldceasepublishingthephilosopher'swork,anduniversitiesshouldstopteachingit.
Thompson'sonlinecommentwashighlycriticalofbothFaye'sbookandRomano'sreviewofit.
Thereviewandsubsequentdiscussionthreadcanbeaccessedat.
(NotethatforclarityandconsistencyIhaveitalicisedtheGreekwords,andalsoaddedinvertedcommasaround"polemos"-theseweremissingfromThompson'sinformalonlinepost.
)14ItmayseemtangentialtodiscusstheslipperyduplicityofHeideggerasafigureinphilosophy,butitisactuallyveryimportant.
Heidegger'sphilosophyneedstobeseeninthesociopoliticalcontextfromwhichhewaswriting.
Iamnotinterestedinhispoiliticalleaningsperse,butintheextenttowhichhisetymologicalre-definitionsareframedinordertoexertsociopoliticalpower(andhowinHeidegger'scasetheseexertionsareinfactmovingtargets).
Thisiscrucialtoestablishattheoutset,sinceIwillgoontoexamine(inchapter2)theinterrelationshipbetweentechnologyandpower.
15Inchapter2,forexample,IshallinvestigateFelixGuattari'snotionofthemachinic,whichrevisitsHeidegger'sanalysisoftechne.
11ReverseengineeringandthebastardisationoftechnologicalmediaIncomputersoftwareterminology,'reverseengineering'referstothedecompilinganddisassemblyofredistributablecodes.
Krokerappropriatesthetermtodescribeasimilarprocessinthedigitalarts.
Emergenttechnologiescreatesemioticcodesthatdictatetheforwardmomentumofatechnologicallymediatedsociety.
AccordingtoKroker,thesesemioticcodesarebeingdisruptedbytheappropriationofthesesametechnologiestomakeart.
Thegenreofnewmediaart"reanimatesasystemwhichisdyingofitslackofcreativeenergywiththerepressedmemoryofthatwhichhasbeenexcluded,bothfromitsanalogpastanditselectronicfuture".
16Krokerusestheterm'newmedia'todenoteemergenttechnologies,and'newmediaart'todenotetheculturalpracticesthatutilisethesesametechnologiestomakeart.
Itisworthnoting,however,thattheterm'newmediaart'iscommonlydislikedamongstculturalproducerswhousetechnologiesthatareemergent.
17Thisislargelybecauseitdoesnotactuallyinformdiscourseinanymeaningfulway.
Theterm'newmedia'isfrequentlyusedtodescribevideoartforexample,butvideotechnologieshavebeenusedinartsincethe1960s.
18Whiletherehasalwaysbeennewmediumsinventedthroughoutthehistoryofculturalproduction,emphasisingthenewnessofeachtechnologydoesnotactuallyenhancediscourseaboutthesepractices-labelingemergentpracticesassimply'new'doesnothelpustoclarifythewaysinwhichthesepracticesactuallyoperate.
Ratherthanusing'newmedia',oreven'digitalmedia',19Ishallfirsthighlightthehybridityofcurrentpracticesinthefieldwiththeterm'hybridmedia'20-encompassingartworksthatdeploydigitaltechnologies,analoguetechnologies,andother(non-technological)sculpturalandperformativeelements.
Kroker'semphasison'newness'doesnotdetractfromtheessenceofhisargument.
Hedrawsacleardistinctionbetween'newmedia',whichishypedtocreateaforwardmomentumtowardenhancedperception,andthe'newmediaart'whichiscriticalofthe"numbing"effectofenhancedperception,thenumbingeffectthatmassmediatechnologiesarebestat.
21AccordingtoKroker,culturalproductionthatdeploystechnologieswhichareemergentorrelativelynewatthetimeconstitutes,essentially,acritiqueoftheforwardmomentumoftechnology.
Thisisnotalwaysthecase-ifaculturalproducerusesnewtechnology,theydonotnecessarilyofferacritiqueoftheforwardmomentumofthattechnology.
22Forthemoment,however,itwillsufficetoconcurthatasignificantnumberofproducersdoindeedofferthiscritique(andIamoneofthem).
Since'new'isatermthatquicklydatesandbecomesamisnomer,and'hybrid'isasomewhatneutralterm,Ishallusetheterm'bastardmedia'tocategoriseaspecificsubsetofhybridmediaartworks-theillegitimatechildrenoftechnologicaladvancement.
'Bastardmedia'referstoculturalpracticeswhichhybridisedigital(andother)processes,butwhichdosowiththegoalofbeingcriticalabouttechnologicaladvancementintheartworksthatensue.
Bycoiningtheterm'bastardmedia',Ialsowishtoemphasisetheassumeddialecticbetween'low'and'high'.
Recallthattechneencompassesbothtechnologyandart.
Thedialecticbetween'lowand'high'significantlyinfiltratesdiscoursesurroundingbothtechnology('lowtech'versus'hightech')andart('high'or'fine'art,andconverselywhatisdisdainfullydescribedas'low'art-populistculturalproduction).
Iwillnowturntoapracticaldiscussionofculturalpractice,investigatinghow(orinfactwhether)aselectionofkeyartworksscrutinisetheforwardmomentumoftechnology.
16Kroker,2004.
17InNewZealand,forexample,JanineRandersonwritesthat"[t]heterm'newmedia'hasbecomewidelyacceptedtodenotecomputer-basedartforms";that"newmediaarthaslostit'syouth"butthat"itsurvivesasacontestedtermintheoreticaldiscourse"(2008,p.
90).
18MostsourcesclaimthatvideoartbeganwhenNamJunePaikusedaSonyPortapaktofilmPopeJohnPaulVI'sprocessionthroughNewYorkintheautumnof1965,andsubsequentlyscreeningthefootagethesamedayatacafeinGreenwichVillage.
Theseoriginsaredisputedbysomesources-citingWolfVostell'sDeutscherAusblick(1959)(apiecewhichincorporatedatelevisionset),andalsoWarhol'sundergroundscreeningofvideoworkmereweeksbeforePaik'sproject.
19Togivealocalexample,LissaMitchell(collectionsmanagerattheMuseumofNewZealandTePapaTongarewa),citingChristianePaul,distinguishesbetweenartworkswhichdeploydigitalmediaasatool(suchasdigitalphotography)andartworkswhichusedigitalmediaasamedium(suchasnetworkedart)(Mitchell,2008,p.
62).
Againtheterm'digital'istoorestrictivetoaccuratelydescribethepracticesinvestigatedinthisresearch-whichmayusedigitaltoolstocreatehybridoutcomes.
20Ifirststartedusingtheterm'hybridmedia'torefertoanintegratedclusteroftechnicalservicesthatareofferedbymyproductioncomapyStrayMedia-whichIlaunchedtogetherwithMichelleHughesin2009.
WhilstatthattimeIbelievedthatthiswasafairlynovelusage,Idonotclaimtohavecoinedtheterm.
Therewereacertainlyanumberofcommercialoperationswith'hybridmedia'intheircompanynames,butin2009'hybridmedia'wasnotincommonusageasatermtorefertothemixingofdigitalmediaprocesses.
IhavesincediscoveredthattheAustralianartistAdamDonovanusedtheterminanartcontextwhenhepublishedhiswebsite()in2007(andtheremaybeotherstoo).
21Kroker,2004.
22Forexample,TonyOursler'swork-whichIshalldiscussshortly–usestechnologiessuchasvideoprojectionsandtimingcircuitry,buthisartworksdonotdirectlyscrutinisetheroleofthesetechnologiesinbringinghisartintobeing.
12Earlycasestudiesinart'scriticalrelationshiptotechnologyThemechanomorphic23artworksattributedtothedadaperiodarecommonlycitedasanearlyreferencepointinthehistoryofmachinesinart.
Thekeyinnovationoftheseearlyworkswasthemixingofimpliedbodieswithmechanicalschematics,toprovideatemplateforinvestigationsintotherelationshipbetweenhumansandmachines.
InworkssuchasFrancisPicabia'sSingulierIdéal(1915),orMarcelDuchamp'sTheLargeGlass(1915-23,fig.
1.
1)thereisanimplicitsexualisedrhythm–thebodyisliberatedbyanecstaticsetofcapabilities,whichitreceivesthroughtherepetitionsofmachinery.
Mechanomorphicworkscanbeunderstoodasearlyexpressionsofposthumanism,24offeringarigourousscrutinyofsubjectivitythatchallengesthemodernistexistentialconceptofthesingularindividual,liberatingthebodyfromlineartime,andresultinginaspiralofdisplacement–anescalationofpowerthatJeanBaudrillarddescribedas'pornographic'.
25Fig.
1.
1:MarcelDuchamp,TheLargeGlass26(1915-23).
Mixedmedia.
ItisdifficulttounderstatetheimportanceofDuchamp'sTheLargeGlassinthehistoryofartthatforegroundstechnologyasitssubjectmatter.
Thisartworkissoextremelyiconicandsowidelydiscussedthatitisalmostimpossibletodecidewhichkeypointstohighlighthere.
AthoroughanalysisofthevaryinginterpretationsofTheLargeGlassiswelloutsideofthescopeofthisresearch,butIshallprovideabriefoverviewheretoputthisartworkintocontext.
Duchampinventedanapproachwhichhecalled"playfulphysics"–inwhichheassumestheroleofanamateurscientist,playingwiththephysicalpropertiesofthemediathathewasusing,butalsotoadegreeparodyingthestrategiesfoundinthescienceofphysics.
27ThisstrategyofplayfulphysicsfounditsculminationinDuchamp'suseofglassandshadoweffectsinTheLargeGlass.
28Earlycritics29widelyconstruedTheLargeGlassasdepictinga'lovemachine'–amechanisticallegoryfortheunionofmaleandfemale.
A'bride'ispresentedintheupperpanel,andnine'bachelors'or'malicmoulds'appeartoonesideofthelowerpanel.
Inthedomainofthebachelors,thereisalsoachocolategrinder30–arepresentationofthe"desiremotor,consequenceofthelubriciousgearing".
31Needlesstosay,Duchamp'sartdoesnotliterallydeploymachinesthemselves(inthisartwork32),buthefigurativelydepictsthesemechanisms-inrelationtooneanother,frozenintime,incomplete.
23TheAmericanpsychologistAbrahamMaslowalsoclaimstohavecoinedthetermmechanomorphichimself,playfullycategorisingthemechanomorphicastheoppositeoftheanthropomorphic,thushighlightinghisviewthatbehaviouristpsychologyreductivelytreatslivingorganismsasmachines(Maslow,1968,p.
244).
MaslowiscriticalofbothFreudianandbehaviouristpsychology,andheismostfamousforhis'hierarchyofhumanneeds',whichhasbecomeacornerstoneofmodernhumanisticpsychology.
24Thetermposthumandescribessentientbeingswhoareconsideredtohavedevelopedbeyondwhatwouldbenormallycategorisedashuman,especiallybymakingartificialadjustmentstotheirownformorcapabilities.
ThetermiscommonlyassociatedwiththeexhibitionPostHumanfirstseenattheFAEMuséed'ArtContemporaininLausanneinJune1992(seeDeitch,1992),andthetermisalsonotablyassociatedwiththecyborgtheoryofDonnaHaraway(Haraway,1991),andwiththeworkoftheAmericanintellectualFrancisFukuyama(Fukuyama,2002).
25AccordingtoBaudrillard,pornography(asopposedtoseduction)fixesthesubject'spositionaspowerlesstocontrol,concealornuanceanything.
Baudrillardapplieshisnotionofpornographyperhapsmostnotablyindescribingthespectacularescalationsofsymbolicpowerthatoccurduringwartime,inessayssuchasWarPorn.
(Notethetechnologicalfacetofwartimedisplaysofpower–anissuetowhichIshallreturninChapter2.
)26ThefulltitleofthisfamousDuchampworkisTheBrideStrippedBarebyHerBachelors,Even(TheLargeGlass),buttheabbreviatedtitleTheLargeGlassiscommonlyusedforthesakeofsimplicity(asIhavedonehere).
27TheDuchampianconceptofplayfulphysics,coinedinhisownwritingandnotes)undoubtedlyalludestotheFrenchwriterAlfredJarry'snotionofpataphysics(literally'thatwhichisabovemetaphysics',orevenmoreliterally'thatwhichisabovethatwhichisafterphysics').
ThetermcouldalsopossiblyalludetoFriedrichNietzsche'sAGayScience(firstpublishedin1882),whichIshalldiscussinchapter2,butIdonothavethespacetoentertainthatspeculationhere.
28Perloff,1998.
29ArturoSchwarz,forexample,articulatedthispositioninhiscompletecatalogueofDuchamp'swork,initiallypublishedin1969(Schwarz,1969).
30Thismachineappearsintwopriorpaintings:ChocolateGrinder,No.
1(1913)andChocolateGrinder,No.
2(1914).
31DuchampcitedinSanouilletandPeterson(Eds.
),1975,p.
39.
32Themechanismofabicyclewheelisnotablyre-presentedinDuchamp'sfirstreadymade:BicycleWheel(1913).
13MorerecentcriticsdiscussTheLargeGlassasagestureofridiculetowardsartcriticismitself.
Inthisinterpretation,the'bride'istakenasallegoricalforanartwork,amysteriousandun-knowablefigurewhois'strippedbare'bythe'bachelors'whocourther.
AccordingtothecriticMarjoriePerloff,forexample,TheLargeGlass"isalsoacritiqueoftheverycriticismitinspires,mockingthesolemnityoftheexplicatorwhoisdeterminedtofindthekey".
33TheartofDuchampplayfullyproblematisesthedialecticbetween'high'and'low'art.
Perloffwritesfromthebroadercontextofanargumentforthe'poeticsofindeterminacy'inwhichtheartistexperimentswithopen-endedstrategiesofmaking:"[a]rtbecomesplay,endlesslyfrustratingourlongingforcertainty.
"34TheplayfulnessofDuchamp'sstrategiescertainlysetaprecedentthatmanyfutureartistswouldfollow.
ForthepurposesofthisargumentitdoesnotactuallymatterwhetherTheLargeGlassispredominantlyseenasallegoricaloftheinterrelationsofsexualunionorthoseofartcriticismitself(orboth).
Eitherwayitisevidentthattheartworkecstaticallycelebrates(andevenfetishises)technology.
WhileDuchampdoeschallengetheheirarchyofhighandlowinart,andalthoughhisstrategiesalsoparodyscientificinvestigation,Ireluctantly35cannotcategorisethisartworkas'bastardmedia'init'sownright.
Hisworkcannotbeseenasabastardisation,becauseitisnotdirectlycriticalaboutthemechanisationsdescribed-despitethefactthatDuchampianstrategiespavedthewayforlater,morecritical,investigationsintotechnologicalprogress.
Inthe1960s,anumberofartistsrevisitedmechanomorphicthematics,butthedestructionoftechnologybecameanimportantcriticalmode.
TheSwisspainter/sculptorJeanTinguelyisespeciallynotableforhisdada-esquemachineswhichsatirisetherampantconsumerismandtheoverproductionofmaterialgoodsinindustrialisedsociety.
Hisbestknownprojectisaworkheproducedin1960,HomagetoNewYork(hereafterHTNY),whichwassupposedtodestroyitselfinthesculpturegardenofNewYork'sMuseumofModernArt.
OntheeveningofMarch17,1960,TinguelyallowedtheeightmetrehighsculptureHTNYtoselfdestruct.
ThepiecewasbuiltincollaborationwiththeBellLaboratoriesresearchscientistBillyKlüverandtheartistRobertRauschenberg.
Itwasanassemblageconsistingofwheels(frombicycles,tricyclesandbabycarriages),abath,apiano,ameteorologicalballoon,bottles,scrapsoftheAmericanflag,andvariousotherelements–allpoweredby15engines.
Themechanismperformedfor27minutes,toanaudienceof250invitedguests.
Intheend,thepiece'sself-destructionwasthwartedbyafireman(whowasgreetedbyabooingcrowd),amidconcernsforthepublic'ssafety.
36Thearch-conservativecriticJohnCanday,writingintheNewYorkTimes,outlinedhow"Mr.
Tinguelymakesfoolsofmachineswhiletherestofmankindpermitsmachinestomakefoolsofthem.
Tinguely'smachine"hegoesontosay,"wasn'tquitegoodenough,asamachine,tomakehispoint.
"HTNYdidnotsucceedinit'smechanicaltask,butthisartworkdid,Ibelieve,succeedinperformingit'saesthetictask.
It'smechanicalfailurewasanevocativeaestheticsuccess–asevidencedbytheimpassionedbooingwithwhichtheaudiencegreetedthefirefighter.
HTNYiscommonlycitedasanantecedenttotheriseofbothhappeningsandperformanceartin1960sNewYork,butitisperhapsmorepoignantheretonoteTinguely'scorecriticalityabouttheroleoftechnologyincontemporarysociety-andtheresponsibilityofartiststoaddresstheissue.
WhilethemechanomorphicworksoftheDadaperiodecstaticallyfetishisedtechnology,Tinguelyandother1960sartistsusedtheirworktoscrutinisetheroleoftechnologyinbroadersocialchange.
HTNYisaclearearlyexampleofwhatIhavetermed'bastardmedia'.
Thisartworkhybridisesandusesthecurrenttechnologyofthetime,butitdoessoinordertobehighlycriticalofit.
Tinguely'scollaborationwithKlüverandRauschenbergwasformativeinfoundingtheseminalEAT(ExperimentsinArtandTechnology)group,wholatermountednumerousprojectsexploringtheintersectionbetweenartandtechnology.
37AkeycharacteristicoftheEATgroupistheiremphasisoninterdisciplinarity.
Thefoundingideawasthatartistsandscientistscouldworktogethertoinvestigatethepotentialfordeployingtechnologytoopenupnewcreativepossibilities.
33Perloff,1981,p.
34.
34Ibid.
35Seeninthesociopoliticalcontextofanhorrificmechanisedwar,itmaybepossibletointerpretTheLargeGlassascriticaloftechnologytoacertainextent(especiallywhencontrastingtheDadaistswiththeFuturistsofthesameperiod).
Theevidenceofhis(innuendo-laden)celebrationoftechnology,however,isfarmorecompelling–thevastmajorityofinterpretationsfocusuponhisfetishisationoftechnology(andtheseinterpretationsderivefromDuchamp'sownnotesontheartwork).
Eveniftherewasadegreeofcriticalityabouttechnologyalsoinoperation(Duchamp'sworkis,afterall,riddledwithparadox),itisoutsidethescopeofthisresearchtoestablishthatlevelofnuancehere.
36DescriptionfromArt:HomagetoNewYork,areview(authornotidentified)inTimemagazine,28Mar1960,accessedat.
Tinguely'slaterpieceStudyforanEndoftheWorldNo.
2(1962)didsuccessfullydestroyitself-detonatingforanaudienceinthedesertoutsideLasVegas.
37IwilldiscussRauschenberg'scollaborationsthroughEATandhisperformanceworkinchapter3.
14Sincemyownnewartworkthatthischaptercontextualisesisaroboticspiece(CodeMonkey1.
1),Ishallturnforamomenttotheoriginsofroboticsinartpractice.
TheCanadianartistEduardoKactracesthehistoryofroboticsinarttothreelandmarkworks:NamJunePaikandShuyaAbe'sRobotK-456(1964,fig.
1.
2),TomShannon'sSquat(1966)andEdwardIhnatowicz'sTheSenster(1969-1970).
38Kac'sastuteresearchaddressesthehistoricalimportanceofthesethreelandmarkprojects(remotecontrol,cyberneticentities,andautonomousbehaviour),andhealsoelequentlydiscussestheproblematicsassociatedwithdefiningtheterm'robotics'.
39Forthepurposesofthisdiscussion,IwishtospecificallyemphasisetheworkofNamJunePaikhere.
KacnotesPaik'ssenseofhumourandplayfulapproachtorobotics-identifyingthatPaikusesrobotstocaricaturehumantraits,ratherthantoemphasisefear(oflostemployment,oferasedidentity).
InPaik'svideoTributetoJohnCage(1973),hedeclaresthat"myrobotistheretoincreasetheworkforpeoplebecauseweneedfivepeopletomakeitmovefortenminutes,yousee.
Haha.
"Paik,likeTinguely,bastardisestechnologyinordertobecriticalaboutit.
Fig.
1.
2:NamJunePaikandShuyaAbe,RobotK-456(1964).
Robotics.
In1982,Paikremovedhisremote-controlledRobotK-456fromhisretrospectiveexhibitionattheWhitneyMuseumofAmericanArtandguideditupthesidewalkalongMadisonAvenue.
Theincidentwasstagedsothat,whilecrossingtheavenue,Paik'srobotwasstruckbyacarandfelltotheground(fig.
1.
3).
Paikdeclaredthisstaged"accident"torepresent"…a'catastropheoftechnologyinthetwentiethcentury',statingthatthelessontobegainedfromthesetentativetechnologicalstepsisthat'wearelearningtocopewithit'.
"40Fig.
1.
3:NamJunePaik,TheFirstCatastropheoftheTwenty-firstCentury(1982).
Performance(stageddestructionofRobotK-456).
AstheGuggenheimMuseumcuratorJohnHanhardtexpands,"Paik'sstagedeventdrewattentiontothefragilityofhumankindandoftechnologyitself.
Twentyyearsafterhisfirstexperimentswiththetelevisionset,thisstreetperformancewasmadefortelevision:aftertheperformance,hewasinterviewedbytelevisionnewsreports;Paiktookthisplayfulmomentasanopportunitytorecalltheneedtounderstandtechnologyandmakesurethatitdoesnotcontrolus.
"41Paikhadawell-documentedaffiliationwiththefluxusmovement.
Fluxus–anamederivingfromtheLatinfor'flow'–referstoaninternational,interdisciplinarygroupofartistswhoaimedtoturnthetideupontheelitismofartandtoendorsebroaderaccessibility.
42ThesenseofplayfulnessandhumourthatweseeinPaik'sworkiscentraltothetenetsofthefluxusmovement.
InPaik'swork,then,weseeatensionbetweenhighandlowtechne–instrikingaplayfulbalancebetween'high'and'low'technology,healsovisavisforegroundsthetensionbetweenconceptionsof'high'and'low'inartitself.
38Kac,1997.
39KactracesmythologicaldefinitionstotheGreekstoryofGalatea–astatuewhowasbroughttolifebyAphrodite,andtotheJewishlegendoftheclayanthropoidGolem.
HecitesMaryShelley'sFrankenstein(1818)andotherliteraryorigins,includingKarelCapek'splayR.
U.
R.
(Rossum'sUniversalRobots,1922)whichcoinedtheword"robot"(thetermwasderivedfromtheCzechwordrobota,whichreferstodrudgerousorlaboriouswork).
Healsonotesthatindustrialrobotsdatebacktothe1960s,andtheindustrialdefinitionencompassesmachines/manipulatorsthatareprogrammedtoperformaspecifictask.
Itisimportanttonoteherethatthisindustrialdefinitiondoesnotnecessitateartificialintelligenceorautonomy.
40CitedinHanhardt,nodategiven.
41Hanhardt,nodategiven.
42GeorgeMaciunas'1963Fluxusmanifestodeclarestheaimto"promotearevolutionaryfloodandtideinart[.
.
.
]tobegraspedbyallpeoples,notonlycritics,dilletantesandprofessionals".
15TworecentcasestudiesTheworkoftheAustralianperformanceartistStelarchasafarmoreserioustonethanHTNYandRobotK-456,dramaticallyemphasisingtheambiguitiesthatarisewhenbiologicalandtechnologicalbodiescollide.
PingBody(1996,fig.
1.
4)43wasaninternetactuatedanduploadedperformanceinwhichtheartist'sbodywaswiredtomoveinvoluntarily:hismovementsweretriggeredbyimpulsesthatweregeneratedbytheactivityoftheinternetitself,by"theexternalebbandflowofdata".
44WhileStelarc'sPingBodyperformancesexploitthemediatisingnatureoftheinternetasamedium,theyalsoprobedeeper,investigatingtheverynatureofextremebodilyexperience.
Fig.
1.
4:Stelarc,PingBody(1996).
Performance.
Stelarchimselfproteststhathisworkoperatesentirelyoutsideofthe"metaphysicaldistinctionsofsoul-bodyormind-brain".
45BrianMassumiexplicatesthisnotion,identifyingthatStelarcisnotinterestedincommunicatingconceptsaboutthebody,butrather,toexperiencethe"bodyasconcept".
46WritingonanearlierseriesofStelarc'sworks,theSuspensionworks(1978-1985),47MassumiemphasisesStelarc'spropositionthatthebodyisactuallyobsolete.
Bysuspendingthebody-objectintheseworks,Stelarcdirectlytargetsthegeneralityofthebody.
48Thebodyasanobjectisimplicatedinacollisionbetweenthephysicalandthevirtual.
Agreatdealoftheoryinthe1990sdiscussedprosthesis-thewaysinwhichorganichumansconnecttomachinesandbecomecyborg.
49IntheworkofStelarc,however,wedonotseeasimplescenarioofprosthesis.
Bodiesandtechnologiesareextendedratherthansubstituted.
50FelixGuattariwoulddescribethescenarioasamachinicheterogenesis:humansarepartofamuchlargernetworkofinterconnectedprocessualmachines.
IwillreturntothisnotioninChapter2.
ThekeyquestioninvestigatedhereiswhetherStelarc'spracticeactuallycritiquestechnologicalprogressoraffirmsit.
IdonotbelieveStelarc'sworkisacritique.
Rather,itechoestheapproachofdada/mechanomorphicworkssuchasTheLargeGlass,explicitlycelebratingtheprogressionoftechnology,byallowinghisownbodytobecomeextendedbyit.
Stelarc'sownvoicemakesthispointperfectlyclear:"Technologyhasspeededupthebody.
Thebodynowattainsplanetary-escapevelocity,hastofunctioninzero-Gandingreatertime-spacecontinuums.
Formethisdemonstratesthebiologicalinadequacyofthebody.
[…][W]ecan'tcontinuedesigningtechnologyforthebodybecausethattechnologybeginstousurpandoutperformthebody.
Perhapsit'snowtimetodesignthebodytomatchit'smachines.
Wesomehowhavetoturbo-drivethebody-implantandaugmentthebrain.
Wehavetoprovidewaysofconnectingittothecyber-network.
"51Stelarc'sworkiscertainlyahybridisationoftechnology,buthisecstaticcelebrationoftheforwardmomentumoftechnologymeansthathisartpracticeisnotbastardmedia.
43PingBodywasfirstperformed10thApril,1996atArtspace,Sydney,Australia,aspartoftheDigitalAestheticsConference,andithasbeenperformedanumberoftimessince.
44Accessedfromtheofficialwebsiteoftheartist:.
45Stelarc,1994and1995,citedinMassumi,2002,p.
89.
46Massumi,2002,p.
89(italicsauthor'sown).
47Sitting/Swayingeventforrocksuspension(1980),CitySuspension(1985),PullOut/PullUpEventforSelf-Suspension(1980),EventforLateralSuspension(1978),SeasideSuspension:EventforWindandWaves(1981).
48Massumi,2002,p.
100.
49DonnaHaraway'sinfluentialcyborgtheoryseminallyinstigatedthisfieldofinquiry(1991).
50Massumi,2002,p.
126.
51Stelarc,interviewedbyPaoloAtzoriandKirkWoolfordin1998.
Accessedat.
16In2000,EduardoKacannouncedthebirthofAlba,ageneticallymodifiedrabbitthatistheworld'sfirsttransgenicartwork(fig.
1.
5).
Undernormalenvironmentallight,Albaisawhitealbinorabbitwithpinkeyes,butunderspecificlightingconditionssheglowsflourescentgreen.
52Whilegeneticengineeringisanotablydifferentfieldoftechnologyfromrobotics,itisinterestingtonoteKac'sspecificfocusontheabilityofanartworktoprovokedialogue.
KacidentifiesthreestagestotheGFPBunnyproject:Phase1:Alba'sBirthPhase2:Ongoingdebate(commencingwithpublicannouncement)Phase3:AlbagoeshometobecomeKac'shouseholdpetFig.
1.
5:EduardoKac,GFPBunny(2000).
Transgenicartwork.
Kacclearlylocatesthepublicdiscussionanddialogueaspartoftheartproject.
53GFPBunnyisapiecethathasbeenspecificallytailoredtobecriticalaboutthedeploymentoftechnology(theethicsofgeneticengineeringinthiscase).
LikeStelarc,Kacextendsabiologicalbodythroughtechnology.
UnlikeStelarc,however,Kacdirectlyaddressesthepoliticalandethicalimplicationsoftechnologicaldevelopment.
GPFBunnyachievesitscriticalitybyembracinganddeployingtheseverytechnologies–hisexperimentisfunctional/instrumentalasascientificproject,andyoucouldexpecttoseecounterpartexperimentsframedasappliedscience.
ThisiswhatmakesKac'sartisticprojectabastard.
Itisanillegitimatechildofascientificstrategy-deployingthatstrategyinanartcontextinordertocriticallyreflectuponit.
GPFBunnyisanopen-endedartwork,itallowstheaudiencetoreachtheirownconclusions,butitfacilitatestheairingofcriticalpositions.
Theantecedentscitedfromthefluxusmovement(HTNYandRobotK-456)alsodeployedtechnologiesthatwerecuttingedgeintheirowntime,buttheseearlierprojectswerearguablymoreplayfulintheirapproach.
Importantly-andunlikeKac'swork-these1960sprojectsaddressthedialecticbetweenlowandhightechnologybyembracingbothemergentandoutmodedtechnologicalmaterials.
Thesefluxusworksareakeypointofdepartureformyownpracticesincetheyintegratehigh-techtacticsandprocesseswithalow-techaestheticthatalsoembracesfound,recycledandrecontextualisedmaterials.
TheprojectsofStelarcandKacdeploytechnologiesdirectlyuponlivingbodies.
Iwillnowmovefromcoldhardrealitytoconstructedenvironmentsoffancy.
Thenotionofthegrotesqueinarthasaverylonghistory.
Thefirstartistgenerallyattributedtothegrotesqueartmovement(alsocalledthefantasticmovement)isHieronymousBosch,54butanexplicationoftheentirelineageofgrotesquepracticesfromBoschuptothepresentclearlyfallsfaroutsideofthescopeofthisresearch.
Incurrentcriticalthinking,thegrotesqueisgenerallydefinedbyfancifulscenesofeccentricity.
Ithasbeenadoptedbyasuccessionofartistsasawaytopushbeyondestablishedboundaries,toexplorealternatemodesofexperienceandexpression,andtochallengethestatusquo.
55Inhisrecentdoctoraldissertation,theNewZealand-basedAustralianartistDavidCrossdiscussesRobertStorr's2004curatorialprojectDisparatiesandDeformations:OurGrotesque,identifyingStorr'sworkaspivotalinforegroundingthenotionofthegrotesqueinculturalpractice.
56WhilstacknowledgingthevalueofStorr'sscholarlylegitimationofthegrotesque,CrossalsohighlightslimitsinthescopeofStorr'sresearch–emphasisingthattherearealmostnoperformanceworks,installationworksorvideoworksdiscussed.
Storr'semphasisongraphicandpainterlymodesofartpracticeisanimportantlimitation,becausehisresearchthuspriviledgesworkthatpresentsan"iconographyofthegrotesqueoverworkthathighlightsthegrotesqueasanoperationorprocess".
57Further,andperhapsmoreimportantlyforthisdiscussion,CrosscriticisesStorr'sformulationofthegrotesqueasprimarilycreatinga'proteanartificiality'–a"cartoongrotesque"thatistherealmofpurefantasy–itdoesnotdirectlyimplicatetherealandthusit"failstodisturbinanysignificantway".
5852When(andonlywhen)illuminatedwithbluelight(maximumexcitationat488nm),sheglowswithabrightgreenlight(maximumemissionat509nm).
53ThenotionofinterhumanexchangewillbediscussedinmoredepthinChapter2,inaninvestigationofNicholasBourriaud'sframeworkofrelationalaesthetics(1998).
54BoschwasaprolificDutchpainterofthe15thand16thcenturies.
55FrancesConnellyeditedaninterdisciplinarycollectionofessaysonthenarrativesofthegrotesquethathavetraditionallybeenmarginalisedbymodernism(2003).
Thisresourcewillprovideastartingpointforfurtherresearch.
56Cross,2006,p.
70.
57Ibid,p.
71.
Italicsauthor'sown.
58Ibid,p.
73.
17Crossconcludesthat"[f]orarttoactivateagrotesqueresponseinthespectator,ithastobegroundedinandagainstwidelyheldbeliefsthatareunderstoodtobe'real'.
Whenthisalignmentceasestobecarefullynegotiated,thegrotesquecollapsesintothealtogethersaferrealmofescapistfantasy.
"59TheNewYorkbasedartistTonyOurslerisakeycontemporarypractitionerengagingwiththegrotesque.
Oursler'sworksmoan,complain,threatenandlamenttotheviewer-andtheseutterancesareissuedfromdisembodiedheads,dummies,andamorphousforms.
InOursler'sJunk(1999,fig.
1.
6),forexample,theviewerisconfrontedbyabulbousformwithfourhugeeyesandapairoflips60thatcomplainincessantly.
Fig1.
6:TonyOursler,Junk(2003).
Mixedmedia.
InOursler'sJudy(1994,Fig1.
7),61theviewerfirstencountersafemalefiguretryingtohideunderatiltedcouch,anditiseasytorespondwithcompassion.
Theexperienceofthisworkshiftsdramatically,however,oncethefigurestartstoscream"fuckoff".
Oursler'sworkisfrequentlydescribedasgrotesque.
PracticessuchasOursler'sprovidetheperfectremedytocomplacenttaste,generatingadissonanceofcognitions-bothcaptivationandrevulsionsimultaneously.
ThecharactersandfiguresinOursler'sworkconveynarrativesaboutpsychologicaldisturbanceandunease.
Becauseofthesepsychologicalresonances,itisclearthatOursler'sworksdoinfactmanagetodisturbandthusimplicatethereal.
Fig1.
7:TonyOursler,Judy(2004).
Mixedmedia.
Oursler'sartworksaretechnologicallyenabled(usingvideoprojectionsandtimingcircuitry),butthetechnologyitselfisnotthenarrativefocusoftheworks.
Similarly,Cross'researchdiscussesanumberoftechnologicallyenabledworks(videoinstallationworkssuchasBruceNauman's),butthetechnologyissolelyformat-itisnotthedirectsubjectofinquiry.
Conversely,noneoftheartworkscitedearlierinthischapter(whichdodirectlyaddresstechnologyassubject)carrythedisquietingpsychologicalresonances(anddissonances)thatthestrategiesofthegrotesqueallow.
Technologyassubjectmattercertainlycarriesimplicationsforthereal.
Canthestrategiesofthegrotesque(constructingfancifulscenes)bedeployedtodirectlyscrutinisetheforwardmomentumoftechnology-thedialecticbetweenhighandlowtechnology-andvisavis'high'and'low'artFurther,canthecartoon-likequalitiesofescapistfancifulnarrativesbedeployedwithasenseofhumourtoactuallyheightenthesenseofdisquiet59Ibid,p.
74.
60WhileOurslerfrequentlyfilmsthefacialfeaturesofhiscollaborators,inthisinstancetheeyesandlipsaretheartist'sown.
61JudywasaworkinspiredbyOursler'sresearchintodissociativeidentitydisorder.
ThecriticDonaldKuspitdescribesJudyas"Oursler'smostlovable,disturbedcharacter"(Kuspit,2000).
18CodeMonkey1.
1Fig.
1.
8:DanielJames,CodeMonkey1.
1(2007).
Installation.
Thesettingisagalleryspace.
Thefaceofagrotesqueroboticmonkeycomesinandoutofviewinapixellatedvideoprojection.
Themonkey'sgibbers/gigglesechoaroundthespace.
Themonkeyitselfsitsbesideawall.
Itisextremelycreepy,butatthesametimeslightlycute.
Itisroughlyafoothigh,withawhiteskeletalplasticbody,largebrowneyes,anddishevelledclumpsofhairprotrudingfromitshead.
Itholdsasmallcamerainitshand.
Asitmovesthecameraabout,itisevidentthatthisisthesourceofthevideoprojection.
Aroboticmonkeyisaniconoclasticform–simultaneouslyevokingourDarwinianancestorsandourposthumandescendants.
Theterm'monkey'isalsosometimesusedasamildlyderogatorymodifier,tolinkaperson'svocationtothepredominantmediumthattheyuseintheirprofession.
A'greasemonkey'isalow-levelautomobilemechanic;a'powdermonkey'isanapprenticeseamanwhoisresponsibleforthelowlyanddangeroustaskofcarryinggunpowdertoacannon.
Theterm'codemonkey'referstoacomputerprogrammer,andthetermhasanumberofoverlappingbutdivergentmeanings:1–alowlevelcomputerprogrammer,thatis,someonewhoiscapableofwritingcode,butdoesnotanalysetheirworkfromwithinthebroadercontextofsystemarchitecture;2–aprogrammerwhowritescodebyappropriation;someonewhodoesnotunderstandthesyntaxofaprogramminglanguage–theymerelypiecetogethercodebytrialanderrortoseeiftheircombinationswillwork;or,3–ahighlevelprogrammerwhowishestoevaderesponsibilityfortheirwork,orsimplytorefertothemselvesinaself-deprecatinglyhumourousmanner.
OnewaytograpplewiththemeaningofCodeMonkey1.
1istofocusonthecoremechanismthatispresented–aclosedcircuitvideoloop.
Thisloopbetweencameraandprojectionenablesthemonkeytomanipulate/mediateit'sownrepresentation.
CodeMonkey1.
1isthebastardchildofthe'new-media'artwork-aparodyofthosewhoendlesslyandcyclicallyplaywitheachnewinvention,inordertonarcissisticallyestablishnewwaystorepresentthemselves.
Thepieceambivalentlycaricaturesthecanonised'high'artnotionofself-portraiture(andalloftheassociatedexistentialcrisestherein).
Therobotitselfisconstructedoutofahigh-techchildren'stoy,whichhasbeenreverseengineeredinbothform(thetoyhasbeencrudelyskinned)andinfunction(theelectronicshavebeenre-wired).
How,then,doesthisassemblageinformthedialecticbetweenhighandlowtechnology,andvisavishigh/lowartCodeMonkey1.
1createsanuncomfortabledissonanceofcognitions.
Theworkisbuiltusinghigh-technology,butitisambivalentabouthigh-techaesthetics-itiscriticaloftheverymechanismsthatbringitintobeing.
Init'soriginalformthechild'ssofttoyhasanarrow,singularpurpose–toprovidecreaturecomfort,entertainment,and(pseudo)interactivity/companyforthechildwhoplayswithit.
Init'sdetournedform,themonkeyisfarlessconvivial–itchallengestherelationshipbetweenmanufacturedtechnologyandconsumer.
Themodifiedmonkeyisnotinteractive–itambivalentlyignoresit'saudienceandobsessesoverit'sownimage.
Further,themodifiedobjectchallengesthecommodityvalueof'high-tech'and'cuteness'withdysfunctional,abjectandgrotesqueaesthetics.
Theclosed-circuitvideoloopisalsolow-tech,thecamerafeedisfuzzyandunclear.
19CodeMonkey1.
1isanartworkthathasanobviouslyplayfultone.
TheassemblagedeliberatelysidestepsthetechnologicalsophisticationofprojectssuchasStelarc'sandKac's,insteadofferingacritiqueoftheforwardmomentumoftechnologythroughitsambivalencetowardsahigh-techdesignstyle.
Thetechnologicalfunctionality/instrumentalitythatthepiecedoeshaveisunnervingpreciselybecausethepieceissoabject,withclumpsofhairprotrudingfromaconstructionofplasticwithexposedscrews,wiresandsolderedjoints.
Thepiecealsogeneratesadissonanceofcognitionsatanarrativelevel,bydeployingtacticsofthegrotesque.
WhereOursler'sworkutilisestechnologytorefertoothersubjects,inthispiecethetechnologyiscoresubjectmatter.
Therobotisapieceoftechnology,butitcanalsobeanthropomorphisised-interpretedthroughit'squasi-humancharacteristics.
Viewersarecommonlyrepulsedbytherobot(itisgrotesque,abject,creepy,anditbehavesnarcissistically),buttheyarealsoattractedtoit(afterspendingsometimewithit,manypeoplefinditcute,funnyandendearing).
Thisistheoperationofthegrotesqueatplay–thisgenerationofsimultaneousattractionandrepulsionlinkstherealtotheproteanartificial.
CodeMonkey1.
1scrutinisesthedialecticbetweenlowandhightechneintermsofprocessatatechnologicallevel,butitalsoaddressesthisissueatanartisticlevel-offeringmultiple,conflictingmeanings.
Atfacevalue,thepieceparodiesthetraditionofintrospectionandself-portraiture.
Thisworkdeliberatelymakesitambiguouswhetherthemonkeytrulyisalow-levelintelligence-narcissisticandincapableofanalysingit'splaceinbroadersociety,orwhetheritisactuallybeingself-deprecatinginasmartandhumourousway–inordertoemphasisetheverydynamicsofhegemonicpowerthatdictateit'ssubjectposition.
20Chapter2Power-knowledge:theparadoxofcomplicity21ProjectAssessmentStudentDanielJamesProgramme:PhDDueDate:July2010PaperTitle:HttpError406:NotAcceptableBastardisingTechnologyasaCriticalModeofCulturalPracticePaperCode:213.
900AssignmentTitle:SchoolofFineArtsAssessor:DanUntitledAssessmentWeighting:25%Lecturercomments:Daniel,Youhavegeneratedanumberoftestworksleadinguptoyourfinalpiece(SOFA),andthereisabuildingconfidencethattakesplaceinthesetestes.
Icanseeclearevidenceofacriticalandself-reflexiveawarenessofyourstrategies,leadingtoacompellingprojectoverall.
Havingsaidthat,thereisaconflictofinterestatplay-yourprojectdebunksyourveryownart-makingstrategies(anditalsocriticisestheinstitutionthateducatesyouandprovidesyouwithteachingemployment).
Youneedtobewaryofshootingyourselfinthefoot.
22Power-knowledge:theparadoxofcomplicityThenotionofsubjectivity–theconditionofbeingsubject(inallsensesoftheword)–iscentraltounderstandingtheinterrelationshipsbetweenhumansandtechnologicalmachines.
Technologycan,andfrequentlydoes,reinforcehegemonicpowerstructures(forexamplemilitarytechnologies),butitcanalsoenablevoicestobeheardwhichdissentfromthesesamepowerstructures(forexamplebloggingtechnology).
Thischapterfocusesontheintersectionbetweenpowerandknowledge.
Thekeyinterestishowartpracticecanbecriticalofpowerrelations,whilstoperatingfrominsidethosesamestructures–whatIcalltheparadoxofcomplicity.
(Thisveryresearchtakesplacefromwithinaneducationalinstitution–ahegemonicstructurethatexistsprimarilytoempowerpeoplebypropogatingknowledge.
)Inordertoexaminetheabilityarthastobecriticalaboutformationsofpowerandknowledge,wemustconsiderthatmultiple,conflictingpositionsexist.
Therearepeoplewhoaresituatedinadominantposition,peoplewhoaremarginalised/subjugatedbydomiantdiscourses,andnumerouspositionsinbetween.
Further,anyindividualoccupiesmultiplerolesinsociety,multiplesubjectpositions.
Theintellectualclimateofpostmodernityisriddledbythecollapseofanysenseofabsolutetruth–whatonepersonknowstobe'true'intheirownsociopolitical/culturalcontextmaynotbetrueforsomeoneelselivinginadifferentcontext.
FriedrichNietzsche'sTheGayScienceiscommonlycitedasaprecursortothisthinking-whilehedidnotsystematicallyanalysesubjectivityperse,hedidassertthatwecannolongerrelyuponasingularpositionofabsoluteauthority,throughhisfamousadagethat'Godisdead'.
Locatingtheseideasinaculturalcontext,itisimportanttoalsonoteRolandBarthes'conceptionofthedeathoftheauthor.
LikeNietzsche'srejectionofabsolutemoralauthority,Barthesrejectsthenotionthattheauthorofaculturalproducthasabsoluteauthorityoverit'smeaning.
MichelFoucault'sworkisseminalinpositingtheinseperabilityofpowerandknowledge,withhisneologismpower-knowledge.
Foucaulthighlightsthat,foreachformationofpowerandcontolinsociety,therearethosewhoaremarginalisedbythisformation(subjugated).
AlthoughthisnotionpervadesFoucault'sentireoeuvre,itisperhapsmostcommonlyexplicatedbyhisanalysisofJeremyBentham's'panopticon'designforamodernprison–inwhichacentraltowerenablesguardstosurveilprisonerswithoutthemknowingiftheyareactuallybeingwatched.
TocontextualiseFoucauldianideasinadiscussionoftechnology,IwillreviewthecommonlycitedparallelbetweenFoucault's'panopticon'andcontemporarymodesofsurveillancesuchasCCTVcameras.
Inordertounderstandtechnologicalformationsofpower-knowledgeinaculturalcontext,IwillalsoexamineMarshallMcLuhan'sseminalworkinmediastudies.
Whilsthighlyinfluential,McLuhan'smantrathat'themediumisthemessage'iscriticisedhereasproblematicduetoit'stechnologicaldeterminism-apositionwhichisincompatiblewithpoststucturalistthoughtwhichallowsformultiple(sometimesconflicting)meanings.
Toconcludethetheoreticalsectionofthischapter,IwillreturntotheFoucauldianframeworkof'power-knowledge',andcontrastitwithGillesDeleuzeandFelixGuattari'sframeworkofthe'machinic'-whichdescribestheinterrelationshipsbetweenbiologicalandtechnologicalmachinesasevolutiveandcollective.
Turningtopracticalcasestudies,Iwillnotinvestigatetechnologicallyenabledartworks.
Rather,Iwillinvestigatemodalitiesofartpracticewhichsharetheclusterofideologicalconcernshighlightedabove,andthencontextualisetheseideaswithanartworkinwhichtechnologyisthefocus.
Itakethisapproachbecausethereisachasmwherebythecanonisedartmovementswhichbestexemplifyascrutinyofhegemonicpowerrelationspredominantlyignoretheroleoftechnology;thecanonisedartpracticesinwhichtechnologyisthefocusarenotcommonlyframedtodirectlyscrutinisesubjectivity.
Iwishtolearnfromtwoartmovementswhichattemptedtosystematicallyanalysepowerrelations,butwhichfailedtoachievetheirideologicalgoals–tolearnfromthesefailuresandthenapplythisknowledgeinatechnologicalcontext.
FirstlyIwillinvestigatetheconceptualartmovementofthe1960s.
Thismovementwasseminalinit'scriticalityabouttheideologiesof'permanence'and'commodification',andtheinstitutionalpowerstructures(galleries,museums)thatpropogatetheseideologies.
Whilethemovementitselfdidnotexplicitlyaddresstheroleoftechnology,acriticalityaboutthesesameideologiesiskeytounderstandingthetrajectoryoftechnologicalprogress.
Inacapitalisteconomythedevelopmentofnewmachinesisclearlyunderpinnedbyideologiesaboutcommodification.
Thekeyreasonforinvestigatingtheconceptualartmovementisbecauseofit'sfailuretoactuallyachieveit'sideologicalgoals.
Whileconceptualartrejectedtheproductionofpermanentartworkswhichcanbecommodified,themovementiscommonlycriticisedbecausephotographicdocumentationoftheseartworksendedupbecominghighlycommodifiableobjectswhichwerecollectedbytheartinstitution(galleriesandmuseums).
AcomparisonisdrawnbetweentheideologicalfailureofconceptualartandthatofNicholasBourriaud'smorerecentframeworkofrelationalaesthetics.
Artistscontextualisedwithinthecanonofrelationalaestheticsdrawheavilyonthelineageofconceptualartthroughtheirownrejectionofartisticpermanence(arejectionwhichispredominantlyrealisedthroughmodalitiesofinstallationartpractice).
Therelationalaestheticsmovementreachedit'sheydayinthe1990s(anditstillenjoysconsiderablecurrency),butlikeconceptualart,relationalaestheticscanbecriticisedforit'sfailuretoachieveit'sideologicalgoals.
23AccordingtoBourriaud,theartworkisa'socialinterstice'–ameetingplacebetweendiscursiveformations,andtheseintersticescreateconvivialencounters.
Bourriaudclaimsthatrelationalartworksarecapableof"re-launchingthemodernemancipationplan"bycreatingsuchsituationsofconviviality.
62CriticssuchasHalFosterandClaireBishopchallengehisframeworkforessentiallyperpetuatingwhattheyseeasanelitism(read:hegemony)whichisincompatiblewiththeframework'sideologicalgoals.
Itisarguedherethattheideologiesinherenttorelationalaestheticsdonotcohesivelyworkinpractice-aswithanyutopianvision,someonewillalwaysbeleftout(subjugated).
Thesetwoartmovements–conceptualartandrelationalaesthetics-highlightwhatIcallthe'paradoxofcomplicity'.
Since'high'artisinseparablefromtheinstitutionalisedstructureswithinwhichitoperates,itisarguedthatcontemporarypracticemustabandonutopianideologicalgoalsandbereflexiveaboutitscomplicitywiththepowerstructuresatplay.
Whilsttheframeworkofrelationalaestheticsisproblematic,thereareartistscontextualisedwithinthatcanonwhodocohesivelyaddresshegemonicpowerstructures,butinamannerthatismoresubtleandnuancedthanthesimpleconvivialitiesofrelationalaestheticsallows.
ExamplesfromthepracticeofMaurizioCattelan(whowaslabelleda'relational'artistbyBourriaud)illustratehowself-reflexivityandhumourcanbedeployedtocreateartworkswhichacknowledgeaninescapablecomplicitywithhegemonicstructures,butwhichalsomaintainalevelofcriticalityaboutthesesamestructures.
Thepracticalcasestudiescitedinthischapterdonotpredominantlyfocusontheroleoftechnology,buttheydosharethesameclusterofideologicalconcernsthatunderpinformationsofpower-knowledgewhichareenabledbytechnology.
How,then,canself-reflexivityandhumourbedeployedtocreateanartworkwhichretainsatheoreticalfocusonsubjectivitybuthasapracticalfocusontechnologyThischaperconcludeswithSchoolofFineArts,aninstallationartworkwhichdeploysrobotics,audioandvideo.
InthischapteritisarguedthatSchoolofFineArtsisimplicitlyreflexiveaboutpower-knowledge.
Thepieceisdesignedtoparadoxicallyoperatewithinhegemonicstructures(theuniversity,theartschool,andthebroaderartinstutution)deployinghumourtoreflectuponthemechanismsofsubjectivityandsubjugation.
Power-knowledgeTheinterrelationshipbetweenpowerandknowledgeiscentraltocontemporarycriticalthought,andthisconceptisusuallyframedbythenotionof'subjectivity'.
Thenoun'subject'canbedefinedinnumerousways-amongstthesemeaningswecanthinkofasubjectasreferringtoatopic/theme,afiguretoberepresentedinart,butalsotoapersonwhoisunderanother'ssovereignrule(egsubjecttothequeen).
Intheadjectivalformthetermpredominantlyreferstothislattersenseofbeingundertheruleofanother(ie'itissubjectto.
.
').
Whencombinedwiththesuffix'-ity'(thestateorconditionof),thenoun'subjectivity'canencompassasenseof'topic/theme'or'representedfigure',butitalsoencompassesasenseofdominationorrule.
Subjectivity,broadlyspeaking,istheconditionofbeingsubject.
TheGayScience63isaseminaltextbytheGermanphilosopherFriedrichNietzsche.
Broadlyspeaking,thebookextollsajoyful,life-affirmingapproachtoscientificrigourandintellectualdiscipline–positingthatthisapproachleadstomentalfreedom.
Thetextexperimentswithnotionsofpower,butNietzschedoesnotofferanysystematicanalysisofsubjectivity.
TheGaySciencedoes,however,presentthefirstinstanceofNietzshe'sfamousformulationthat'Godisdead',64andthatthis'death'wouldeventuallyleadtothecollapseofanycoherentsenseofobjectivetruth.
Thisformulationisasentimentthatstronglyinfluencedlaterpoststructuralistthinkers.
Consideraskeleton:therigidframeworkthatsupportsthehumanbody.
Iflanguageprovidesthe'bones'thatsupportthought(the'body'),thenthefieldofstructuralism65describestheskeletonitself:thewaythatlanguageisorganisedasaframework.
Itprovidesascienceofsigns(semiology)66tounderstandhowlanguageisstructured:whatisasign,andwhichlawsgovernthesesigns.
Inthelatterpartoflastcentury,thinkingaroundlanguageshiftedinemphasis.
Thespacesbetweenbones-thejoints-becameapointofinspirationfor'poststructualist'thinkers.
Abodycannotmovefreelywithoutthesepointsofelasticity.
62Bourriaud,1998,p.
16.
63ThetitleofthisworkderivesfromaProvenalexpressionthatreferstothetechnicalskillrequiredforpoetrywriting.
Theterm'gay'doesnotrefertomodernassociationswithhomosexuality,butrathertotraditionalmeaningas'carefree','happy'and'joyous'.
Thetermdid,however,haveconnotationswithimmoralityasearlyas1637–andtheseconnotationsareaptforNietsche'swork.
InEcceHomo,forexample,hereferstooneofthepoemsinTheGayScience,writingthat'[t]heverylastpoemaboveall,"TotheMistral",[is]anexuberantdancingsonginwhich,ifImaysayso,onedancesrightovermorality,isaperfectProvenalism.
'64Thisexpressionfirstappearsinsection108:"Godisdead;butgiventhewaypeopleare,theremaystillformilleniabecavesinwhichtheyshowhisshadow.
—Andwe—wehavestilltoovercomehisshadow!
"(Nietzsche,1882,p.
109).
65Structuralismexplorestherelationshipsbetweenlanguage,literatureandotherfields,uponwhichhigherlevel'structuralnetworks'canbedrawn.
Accordingtostructuralistthought,meaningisproducedfromwithinaparticularpersonorculture.
66TheSwisslinguistFerdinanddeSaussureinfluentiallyarguedthatalanguageisnotalistofnamesandthings,butasystemofsignsconsistingofasignifier(animage)andasignified(aconcept).
AccordingtoSaussure,signsdonotdesignateanexternalreality,theyaremeaningfulonlybecauseofthesimilaritiesanddifferencesthatexistbetweenthem.
24OnedefiningchallengetostructuralismwasmademanifestinarevolutionarytextbyRolandBarthes,entitledTheDeathoftheAuthor.
67Barthesidentifiesthattheauthor'sintentionusuallytakescentre-stageinattemptstointerpretatext.
Theessenceofhisargumentwasthatthetextitself-andthereader'sunderstandingofit-shouldbetheprimarylociofinterpretation.
Theauthorhaddied-theirintentionwasnolongertheprimarysourceofmeaningforatext.
68Barthesfreelyassociatesauthorshipwithoppression69(notethat'authority'derivesfromthesamerootasauthor70).
WhenBartheswroteTheDeathoftheAuthor,hewasnotrejectingtheauthorasavalidsourceofmeaning–hewasrejectingtheoppressiveconditioninwhichtheauthor'sintentionwasseentobetheonlyvalidsourceofmeaning.
Nietzsche'searlierformulationthatGodhas'died'canbeunderstoodtomeanthatwecannotrelyonanomnipotent/omnipresentcreatorbeingwhowilldictateasingular,absolutemoralposition.
Similarly,inBarthes'conceptweseethattheauthor(creator)cannottakeanauthoritativepositionandclaimasingular,absolutemeaningforaculturalproduct.
TheFrenchpoststructuralistMichelFoucault,however,perhapsoffersthemostthoroughandsystematicanalysisoftheinterrelationshipbetweenpowerandknowledge.
Foucaultcoinedtheneologism'power-knowledge'71tohighlighttheinseparabilityofthetwoconcepts,andtoemphasisethefactthatpowerandknowledgearebothsystemic(structural)phenomena.
InDisciplineandPunish,FoucaultfamouslycomparesmodernsocietytoJeremyBentham's'Panopticon'designforaprison–inwhichacentraltowerenablesguardstosurveilprisonerswithoutthemeverknowingiftheyareactuallybeingwatched.
Thepanopticonemphasisesthefactthatinanycriminaljusticesystem,certainpeople(judges,prisonguards)areappointedbysocietytoassertpoweroverothers(prisoners),andtocontrolfactorsthatwillaffecttheimprisonedperson(lengthofimprisonment,behaviourswhilstincarcerated,andsoforth).
InFoucault'sownwords,DisciplineandPunishwasintendedas"acorrelativehistoryofthemodernsoulandofthepresentscientifico-legalcomplexfromwhichthepowertopunishderivesit'sbases,justificationsandrules,fromwhichitextendsitseffectsandbywhichitmasksitsexorbitantsingularity".
72WhenconsideredfromwithinthebroadercontextofFoucault'suvre,thepanopticonhighlightshisprimaryinterestinsubjectivity-that,foreachformationofpowerandcontrolinsociety,therearethosewhoaremarinalisedbythisformation(subjugated).
"Therewasofcoursenowayofknowingwhetheryouwerebeingwatchedatanygivenmoment.
Howoften,oronwhatsystem,theThoughtPolicepluggedinonanyindividualwirewasguesswork.
Itwasevenconceivablethattheywatchedeverybodyallthetime.
"GeorgeOrwell,NineteenEighty-Four73TheubiquityofClosedCircuitTelevision(CCTV)surveillanceinmoderntimeshasbeenwidelycomparedtoFoucault'sanalysisofthePanopticon.
Itisprescientforthisdiscussiontofirstrevisitthetechnologicalmediaintheirownright,andthentoanalysetheFoucauldianframeworkofpower-knowledgespecificallyinrelationtothedeploymentofthesemedia.
ThemediumisthemessageNothoroughanalysisofthefieldofcontemporarymediaartswouldbepossiblewithoutcitingtheworkoftherenownedcommunicationstheoristMarshallMcLuhan.
Writingintheearly1960s,McLuhanclaimedthatvisual(print)culturewouldsoonbedisplacedbyaural/oralculture,creatingan'electronicinterdependence'betweenmedia.
Hecoinedtheterm'globalvillage'todescribetheshiftfromindividualismandfragmentationtoacollectiveidentity.
McLuhan'sworkpredatedtheriseoftheinternetbyabout20years,andhishighlypropheticnotionoftheglobalvillagestillretainsconsiderablecurrencytoday.
McLuhanalsofamouslycoinedthephrase'themediumisthemessage',toassertthatmediaitself-ratherthanthecontentthatthesemediacarry–shouldbethecorefocusofstudy.
74InUnderstandingMedia,McLuhancontrasts'hot'and'cool'media.
Hotmediaengageandintensifyoneparticularsenseanddonotrequiremuchadditionalefforttofillinthegaps(forexample,filmsengagevision,andthereisnotmucheffortneededtomakesenseofthe67Barthes,1968.
68Bartheswritesspecificallyaboutthefieldofliterarycriticism,buthisargumentcanalsoencompassotherareasofcreativepractice:where'text'referstoanythingthatconveysmeaning.
69ThisinvitescomparisonswithMarx'scritiqueofcapitalism,butsuchcomparisonsareoutsideofthescopeofthisresearch.
70Latin:Auctor–authorityisinterrelatedwiththenotionofpower,butunderpinnedbyaclaimoflegitimacy.
71Inhislaterwork-particularlyathislecturesattheCollegedeFrance-Foucaultdevelopedonthisnotionofpower-knowledgebycoiningtherelatedterm'governmentality'.
Governmentalitydevelopsontheideabylinkingtheterms'government'(Fr:gouverner)and'mentality'(Fr:mentalitie)–highlightingtheinterrelationshipbetweengovernmentandmodesofthought.
Governmentisunderstoodinabroadersense,referringnotonlytopoliticalgovernment,butalsotomicro-government(suchastheassertionofrulewithinafamilyunit).
72Foucault,1975,p.
23.
73Orwell,1949,p.
9.
74McLuhan,1964.
25movingimageseen).
Hotmediaaresaidtobe'highdefinition',andcoolmediaaresaidtobe'lowdefinition'.
Cool(ordetached)mediaprovidelessinformationandmoreeffortisrequiredtoextractvalue.
Television,McLuhanclaims,isacoolermediumthanamovie–theinformationispresentedonasmallerscreenandthusdoesnotfilltheviewer'sfieldofvisionasmuch.
Thesenseofparticipationissaidtobeheightenedwithacoolermedium.
Thesenotionsofhotandcoolarenot,however,binary(mutuallyexclusive)categories–theyaretheextremitiesofacontinuum,anddifferentmediasitatdifferentpointsonthiscontinuum(acomicissaidtobeacoolermediumthantelevision,becauseitprovideslessvisualinformationagain,andrequiresyetmoreeffortagaintoextractvalue).
IfMcLuhanwerealivetoday,hewouldprobablyconsideraYouTubevideotobecool(lowdefinition,active,andparticipatory75),anda3Dmovietobehot(extremelyhighdefinition,encouragingpassiveengagement).
McLuhan'sworkadaptsthenotionof'figure'and'ground'fromthefieldofGestaltPsychology.
Themedium(figure)operatesthroughitscontext(ground)–neithercanbecompletelyunderstoodwithouttheother.
Thisframeworkforeground'sMcLuhan'scoreargumentthateachmediashouldbestudiedinthehistoricalcontextinwhichitgainedprominence,andinlightofthetechnologiesthatpreceededit.
McLuhan'sframeworkiscommonlyunderstoodasatypeoftechnologicaldeterminism.
76Thepresentenvironmentisshapedbythetechnologiesoftheage,andthisenvironmentgivesrisetofurthertechnologicaladvancesthatwillaffectpeopleandsocieties.
WhileitisdifficulttonegatethebroadinfluenceofMcLuhan'sframework,someoftheimplicationsofhistechnologicaldeterminismareproblematicforcontemporarymodesofculturalproduction.
Heclaimsthattechnologyisinherentlyneithergoodnorbad-itcanbedeployedtoeitherend.
Thispositiontendstomisrepresenttheroleofthehumanhandinshapingthesetechnologies.
Abomb,forexample,couldonlybeneutralifwedidnotknowwhatitwouldbeusedfor-andweknowverywellwhatbombsareusedfor.
Most(ifnotall)technologiesaredevelopedforaspecificpurpose–andthatpurposecouldhardlyeverbeconsideredentirelyneutral.
Eachnewtechnologythatariseshasaninherentsetofsociopoliticalforcesatplayinitsdevelopment-anditisawellknownadagethatthefastestscientificadvancementsoccurduringthesociopoliticalimperativesofwartime.
77Itiscrucialtoalignthisdiscussionwiththepoststructuralistframeworksoutlinedabove.
McLuhanwasadevoutCatholicandhisreligiousbeliefsclearlyledhimtoclingtoasingularnotionofabsolutetruth.
Whilehiswritingprovidesausefulpointofdeparture,McLuhan'stechnologicaldeterminismisincompatiblewiththepostmodernconditiondescribingmultiplesubjectivities.
Technologyiscertainlynotneutraloncethenotionofpowerentersintotheequation.
Technologiesaredevelopedunderparticularsocioeconomicconditions,andtheseconditionspropogatecertainvaluesandbeliefsystems;newtechnologiescanbe(andcommonlyare)developedanddeployedfortheexpresspurposeofsubjugationandmarginalisation.
Power-knowledgeandtechnologyThepotentialfortechnologiestosubjugateleadsmetoreturntoaFoucauldianconceptionofpower-knowledgeinthedeploymentoftechnologies.
Asnotedabove,theubiquityofCCTVcertainlyhighlightsthewayinwhichthestatecanassertitspowerovertheindividual.
Consider,however,aninversionofthisphenomenon.
Inrecenttimestherehasbeenadrasticincreaseintheaccessibilityofvideoasamedium.
Thismeansthatpeoplecanactuallydeploythesetechnologiestoasserttheirownpower-holdingaccountablethosewhoassumeapositionofauthority.
Itiscommonplace,forexample,toseepeoplefilmingthepoliceontheircellphonesiftheirconductseemstobequestionable-andthesevideoscaneasilybesharedwiththeworldonvideosharingsitessuchasYouTube.
Police,likeanybodyelse,behavedifferentlywhentheyknowthattheyarebeingwatched.
Thislevelofaccessibilityofvideo(andinternet)technologyenablesaplethoraofnewformationsofpower-knowledgetotakeplace.
Therearenumerouswaysinwhichmediatechnologycanbedeployedtoassertpower.
Intheaboveexample,releasingdocumentaryfootagetothepublicdomainisatechnologicallyenabledformofsurveillance-andanincreaseinaccessibilityofmedianowmeansthatthosewhooccupysubjugatedpositionscannowalsosurveilwithease.
Technologycan,insomeinstances,enablethesharing(andthusthedemocratisation)ofpower-knowledge.
Another-albeitmorecomplex-approachistochallengepre-existingformationsnotsimplybysharingtruthfully,butbymodifying-samplingtexts(video,sound,websitetext/code)fromthosewhoholdapositionofpower,andrecontextualisingthismaterialtoconveyalternatenarratives.
ThistacticshallbeexaminedinmoredetailinChapter4.
75Videosthatappearonthevideo-sharingsiteYouTubeareparticipatoryinitiallythroughtheprocessofsearchingbytagwordstoselecttheviewingmaterial,andthenthroughthefacilityforviewercomments,ratingoftheviewingmatter,andtheabilitytolink'videoresponses'.
76Inshort,determinismisthephilosophicalbeliefthateverythingiscausedbysomething,andthatthereisnofreewill.
AccordingtoonedefinitionintheMerriam-Websterdictionary,determinismholdsthat"actsofthewill,occurrencesinnature,orsocialorpsychologicalphenomenaarecausallydeterminedbyprecedingeventsornaturallaws"(accessedat).
77Note,however,thefactthatoncenewtechnologieshavebeeninvented,theycanbeusedforalternatepurposes.
Consider,forexample,wartimetechnologiessuchasthepublicaddresssystemandtaperecorder(inventedforpropogandaandspyingpurposesrespectivelyattheheightofGermanfascism),andthesubsequentimpactthattheseinventionshavehaduponthecourseofpopularmusic.
26ThemachinicTheworkofGillesDeleuzeandFelixGuattarioffersonewaytorethinktheinterrelationshipbetweenhumansandtechnology–andtheculturalproductsthatensue.
Inordertodothat,itisnecessarytorevisitthenuancesofthetermtechne.
FelixGuattari'sessayMachinicHeterogenesis78expandsandconsolidatesideasandterminologyfirstarticulatedinAnti-OedipuswithGillesDeleuze.
Tobeabletoanalysethesecomplexconcepts,itisusefultofirstunderstandtheintellectualenvorinmentwithinwhichGuattari'sideasarepresented.
GuattariwasarebelliousstudentofthepsychiatristJacquesLacan.
79Guattaritookabroad-mindedapproachtopsychiatricpracticeinFrance,utilisingdisciplinessuchasphilosophy,ethnology,linguisticsandarchitecture.
Centrally,hisconcernsliewiththequestionofsubjectivity:howtoproduce,collect,enrichandreinventsubjectivityinordertomakeitcompatiblewithuniversesofvalue.
WithGillesDeleuze,Guattaridescribeddesireaslinkedtoprocessing,nottorepressionasFreudbelieved.
WritingonhisowninMachinicHeterogenesis,Guattaridefinesdifferenttypesofprocessingmachines,framingthediscussionwithquestionsaboutwhatitmeanstothinkandcreatenewuniverses.
Inhisexplorationofdifferenttypesofmachines,Guattarialsoanalysestechne.
Hereferstohistoricalanalysesoftheterm,andagreeswithHeideggerthattechneinvolvesrevealing,buthequestionsthescopeofthisinterpretation.
Asarguedinchapter1,IhighlightedalevelofduplicitytoHeidegger'sanalysis,andnotedthesociopoliticalimplicationstherein.
Incontrast,Guattariwriteswithafarmorebalancedfocusonsubjectivitythatisnottaintedbyhisownwilltosociopoliticalpower.
Guattarialsoanalysestheneurophenomenologist80FranciscoVarela'sdistinctionbetweentwotypesofmachines:allopoieticmachines,which'producesomethingbesidesthemselves'andautopoieticmachines,which'continuallyengenderandspecifytheirownorganisationandlimits'.
81WhileVarelareservesautopoiesisforthebiologicaldomain,Guattariquestionsthis,notingthat"autopoiesisneedstoberethoughtinrelationtoentitiesthatareevolutiveandcollective".
82Guattari's'machinicheterogenesis'providesamodeofbeingandproducing,atermtodescribethewaysinwhichthemachinesthatpopulatetheuniverseconnectwitheachother,mutuallyaffectoneanother,andcombinetocreatenewmachines.
Morebroadly,DeleuzeandGuattariconceiveofhumansasincrediblycomplexprocessualmachines(nometaphor).
83Machinesformassemblagesandrelationswithothermachines,andevolvetocreatenewforms.
InGuattari'ssummaryofthemechanisticposition,machinesamounttonomorethanthesumoftheirparts(partesextrapartes:machinesexistexternally,independentofeachother,thatis,withoutanyinterdependence).
Incontrast,Guattaripositsavitalisticunderstanding,wheremachinesaresimilartobiologicallylivingbeings:theycanbemuchmorethanthesumoftheirpartsthroughtheirabilitytocreateanddevelopinterdependenceononeanother.
84Thenotionofinterdependenceiskey.
IfIconcurwithGuattari'svitalisticunderstandingofmachines-thatbothtechnologicalandbiologicalmachinesevolveandmutuallyaffectoneanother-thenMcLuhan'sideasbecomeproblematic.
McLuhanaimstoisolateandstudytheformationsoftechnologicalmediaasalineofinquiryinit'sownright.
McLuhandoesmaintainthattechnologiesshouldbestudiedinthesociopoliticalcontext('ground')inwhichtheyform,butGuattaritakesthediscussionastepfurther.
Hepositsthattechnologicalmachinesareactuallyinseperablefromtheirbiologicalcounterparts,andthattechnologicalformationsneedtobeconsideredtogetherwithsociopoliticalformations,holistically.
ItisworthnotingthatthemetaphilosophicalmethodologiesofDeleuzeandGuattariarefrequentlycriticisedasinsurmountable;85thatis,criticsclaimthatitisimpossibletodisagreewithaphilosophicalpositionwhichallows78Guattari,1993.
79WhileLacanbelievedthatlanguagecreatesthesubject,GuattariisverycriticaloftheLacanian'Signifier',believingthatitisimpossibletoestablishtermsofreferencethatallowordering(1993,p.
47).
Forexample,Heideggerhadwrittenofacommercialairlinersittingonarunwayasbeinga'standingreserve'ofpotential(fortransportation),notjustanobject.
Afterbreakingdowntheideaofpotential,providingtheimageofahammerwiththeheadremovedasanexample,GuattariturnstodiscussingthegroundedConcordeaircraft(Ibid,pp.
46-47).
Guattariasksifthisstandingreserveisreallyaneternaltruth,giventhattheConcordeultimatelybecameeconomicallyunviable.
80Varelacoinedtheterm'neurophenomenology'torefertohisownfieldofstudy,whichseekstoovercomethephenomenologicaldilemmasthatplaguetheWesterncognitivesciences.
81Guattari,1993,p.
41.
82Ibid,p.
42.
83DeleuzeandGuattari,1983.
84Guattari,1993,p.
38.
85Forexample,inTheDeclineandFallofFrenchNietzscheo-Structuralism(1994),PascalEngelmakesaglobalcondemnationofDeleuze'sthought.
AccordingtoEngel,Deleuze'smetaphilosophicalapproachmakesitimpossibletoreasonablydisagreewithaphilosophicalsystem,andsodestroysmeaning,truth,andphilosophyitself.
EngelsummarizesDeleuze'smetaphilosophythus:"Whenfacedwithabeautifulphilosophicalconcept…youshouldjustsitbackandadmireit.
Youshouldnotquestionit"(Engel,1994,p.
34).
27multiple,non-hierarchicalinterpretations.
Irrespectiveofwhetherthislineofcriticismisphilosophicallysound,86itdoesnotmakesenseinthecontextofcriticalityaboutart.
Multiple,non-heirarchicalinterpretationsandmeaningsareexperientiallypossiblewhenencounteringanartwork.
Torejectaphilosophicalframeworkasinsurmountableduetoit'schallengestoheirarchyandsingularityistantamounttorejectinganartworkbecauseitcanhavemultipleandnon-heirarchicalmeanings.
WhetherornotonefindsDeleuzeandGuattari'smetaphilosophicalmethodologiesinsurmountableintheory,itisextremelydifficulttoavoidthesemultiplicitiesandinterrelationshipsinpractice.
Inshort,themediumisonlypartofthemessage;emergentmediaevolveinseparablyfromthevaryingmanifestationsofsocietalpower.
ItwillsufficetopartiallyconcurwithMcLuhan–acknowledgingthatmedia(emergenttechnologies)doindeeddeterminethesociopoliticalenvironmenttoadegree-buttodivergefromhisfirmtechnologicaldeterminism.
McLuhan'sfocus(baseduponthepremisethattechnologyisneutral)deniesthepossibilityformultiplicityandparadox-possibilitieswhichareespeciallyimportantsinceweareframingthisdiscussionaccordingtoformationsofpower-knowledge.
Ihavehighlightedhowtheoreticalframeworksneedtoallowformultiplicityinordertoberelevanttoacriticaldiscussionofart.
Similarly,inculturalpractice,artworkscannotcohesivelyoperatewhentheytrytoadvancesingularideologies.
IshallbrieflyrevisittheideologicalfailuresoftheConceptualArtmovement,andcomparethisfailuretoNicholasBourriaud'smorerecentframeworkof'relationalaesthetics'.
Theideologicalfailuresinherenttotheseartmovements(whichdonotfocusontheroleoftechnologyinformationsofsubjectivity)areanalysedinordertoinformthestrategiesofmyownpractice(whichdoesdirectlyaddresstechnology).
ConceptualartThe1960'sconceptualartmovementiskey,becausethemovementishighlycriticalaboutthestructuresofpower-knowledgethatunderpincontemporaryartpractice.
Thisdiscursiveartmovementwasseminalforit'scritiqueoftheideologiesof'permanence'and'commodification',andtheinstitutionalpowerstructures(galleries,museums)thatpropogatetheseideologies.
Themovement'srejectionof'permanence'and'commodification'wasproblematic,duetothefactthatthestrategiesofconceptualartreliedheavilyupontheverysameinstituationalstructuresthattheywerecriticalof.
87Inspiteofthesefailures,conceptualartstillprovidedaclearinfluenceuponlatermodalitiesofartpracticesuchasrelationalaesthetics.
Theideologicalfailureofconceptualartiscrucialtorevisithere,becauseitisaseminalexampleofhowculturalpracticeisinseperablyboundtohegemonicformationsofpower-knowledge.
Thisfailurehighlightstheproblemsassociatedwithcriticisingpower-knowledgeformationsfromwithin,whilstremainingalevelofcomplicitywiththeseverysamestructures.
Theconceptofthe'dematerialisationoftheartobject'datesbacktotheearlydaysoftheconceptualartmovement.
Thisconceptwasfirstarticulatedin1968byLucyLippardandJohnChandler,anditcharacterisedartintwoways:'artasideaandartasaction'.
88Dematerialisationaimstodeemphasisethematerialaspectsofart,anditsprevailingorthodoxiesof'uniqueness,permanence,anddecorativeattractiveness'intoan'anti-form'or'processart'.
89LippardquotesSolLewitt'sstatementthatcomesacrossasasloganforgenerativeart:'Theideabecomesamachinethatmakestheart'.
90Lewitt'sstatement(thatLippardcites)isthefirstpublisheddefinitionofconceptualart.
Thefullquotationexplainsthat"[i]nconceptualarttheideaorconceptisthemostimportantaspectofthework.
Whenanartistusesaconceptualformofart,itmeansthatalloftheplanninganddecisionsaremadebeforehandandtheexecutionisaperfunctoryaffair.
Theideabecomesamachinethatmakestheart".
91Inconceptualart,theideaandplanningisprimary,andtheexecutionoftheideaintoanaestheticisedformtakesasecondaryrole.
Further,thisdeemphasisonmaterialityreactedagainstthecommodificationofart;attemptingasubversionofthegalleryormuseumasthelocationanddeterminerofart,andreactingagainsttheartmarketastheprimaryowneranddistributorofart.
86IdonotfinditphilosophicallysoundtorejectDeleuzeandGuattari'sthinkingasinsurmountable.
CondemnationssuchasEngel'sareagrossoversimplificationofthestrategiesofmetaphilosophy–thescrutinyofaestheticsisconflatedwithsittingbackinuncriticaladmirationatthebeautyofaconcept.
Itisoutsideofthescopeofthisresearch,however,tothoroughlyarguethatpointhere.
87Photographicdocumentationofconceptualworksbecamehighlycommodifiablematerialobjects,andtheartistsneededtohavetheirworkrepresentedingalleriesandmuseumsinordertobeabletomakealivingoutoftheirpractices.
88Lippard,1997,p.
43.
89Ibid,p.
5.
90Ibid,p.
xiv.
91Lewitt,1969.
28AkeyexampleistheworkoftheAmericanconceptualistDennisOppenheim.
Oppenheimproducedaseriesoflandartworksinthe1960sandearly1970sthatwereinfluentialintheirradicalrejectionofthegalleryspace,bylocatinghisworksinthe'realworld'oftheurbanorrurallandscape.
InGalleryTransplant(1969),forexample,Oppenheimmarkedouttheexactdimensionsofagalleryinthesnow,whichthendisappearedwiththearrivalofspring.
Hisinterestshiftedintheearly1970sfromthemacrocosmtothemicrocosm,fromlandtothebody.
Oppenheimsawthebodyasameansofaccessingthemind,andhisownbodybecamethesitefortheseworks.
Inhisbodyworks,Oppenheimexploredboundariesofpersonalrisk,transformation,andcommunicationthroughritualisticperformanceactionsandinteractions.
InReadingPositionforSecondDegreeBurn(1970,fig.
2.
1)Oppenheimsunbathedforfivehours,bare-chested,withanopenbooklyingonhischest.
Hedescribedthisworkasrootedinthenotionofcolourchange,describinghisskinaspigmentusedinaprocessthatwasanalogoustopainting.
92Fig.
2.
1:DennisOppenheim,ReadingPositionforSecondDegreeBurn(1970).
Photograph.
Likemanyoftheotherearlyconceptualists,Oppenheimcanbecriticisedforthefactthatdocumentationoftheseworks(suchasthephotographinFig.
2.
1)stillendedupingalleriesandmuseums.
Whileconceptualpractices(suchasOppenheim's)purportedtosubverttheprevailingorthodoxiesofpermanence(andthusthecommodificationoftheartobject),theworksultimatelyfailedtoofferaresolvedandsustainablealternativetothecommodificationofart.
93Thisfailurehighlightsthenotionofcomplicity,thatOppenheimandhisfellowconceptualistswerecriticalofthepowerrelationsinherenttotheinstitutionalisedstructuresoftheartworld(galleriesandmuseums),buttheywerealsoinescapablycomplicitwiththeoperationsofthesesamestructures.
TheAnglo-AustralianartistIanBurniswellknownforhisinvolvementintheNewYorkbranchofArtandLanguage-aconceptualartcollectivethatflourishedintheearly1970s.
Burneventuallyresignshimselftoasimilarcritiqueoftheconceptualartmovement,despitehisearlyaffiliationwithit:"[t]hemostsignificantthingthatcanbesaidtothecreditofConceptualArtisthatitfailed…tofulfilcertaininitialexpectationsandideals,anditsgoalswereinmanywaysunattainable.
"94Burnarticulateswhathasbecomeacentralcriticismofconceptualpractices:theidealsofdematerialisationcannotbeattainedintherealworld.
95Inspiteoftheideologicalfailuresinherentinconceptualpractice,themovementprovidesaclearantecedenttolatermodalitiesofartpractice.
RelationalaestheticsTheFrenchcuratorandcriticNicolasBourriaudpositsatheoreticalframeworkforunderstandingcurrentmodesofculturalproductionwhichareheavilyindebtedtotheconceptualartmovementofthe1960s.
Bourriaud'sconceptionofrelationalpracticecitesartistssuchasRirkritTiravanija,MaurizioCattelan,VanessaBeecroftandFelixGonzalesTorres,andhefirstproposedhisconceptof'relationalaesthetics'in1998.
Bourriaud'sbookRelationalAestheticscommenceswithadescriptionofartisticactivityas"agame,whoseforms,patternsandfunctionsdevelopandevolveaccordingtoperiodsandsocialcontexts;itisnotanimmutableessence".
96Hegoesontodescribetheartist,then,asthefacilitatorofaseriesofrelationsbetweencontexts.
RelationalAestheticsdescribesthosepracticesforwhichsocialcontextandhumaninteractionareprimarypointsofdeparture.
Theartistprescribesthenatureofparticipation,andthisoftenoccurswithinacontextwhichsimulatestheeveryday.
Relationalprojectssuchasthosecharacterisingworkinthebiennalesofthelate1990sprovidetemporaryservices,orsitesofassembly,toprimarily'artworld'audiences.
97Echoingthestrategiesoftheconceptualartmovement,inrelationalpracticetheideaorprocessagaintakesprecedenceoverthematerialpresenceofanobject.
92Oppenheim,1971,p.
188.
93LucySoutterarticulatesasimilarcriticism,specificallydismissingtheclaimthatthedocumentaryphotographsoftheearlyconceptualistsarenon-essentialtotheworkitself.
Soutterclaimsthatthesephotographsparadoxicallytakeonalifeoftheirownasself-criticaldocuments(1999).
94Burn,1991,pp.
115,119.
95Iwillreturntoadiscussionofthelimitationsinherentinthenotionof'dematerialisation'inchapter3.
96Bourriaud,1998,p.
11.
97Bourriaud,1998.
29Theartwork,accordingtoBourriaud,isconsideredtobea'socialinterstice',ameetingplacebetweendiscursiveformations.
Theterm'interstice'isborrowedfromnoneotherthanKarlMarx,andBourriaudpositsthatthismeetingplaceoperatesmoreorlessharmoniouslywithintheoveralleconomicsystem,andthattheintersticecreatesopportunitiesforconvivialhumaninteractions.
98AfrequentlycitedexampleofthistypeofpracticeistheworkofRirkritTiravanija,especiallyasuiteofworksinwhichtheartistvariouslycooksmeals(padthai,vegetablecurryandcupo'noodles)forgallerygoersasartworks(seeFig.
2.
2).
AccordingtoBourriaud,"[i]faworkofartissuccessful,itwillinvariablysetitssightsbeyonditsmerepresenceinspace:itwillbeopentodialogue,discussion,andthatformofinter-humannegotiationthatMarcelDuchampcalled'thecoefficientofart',whichisatemporalprocess,beingplayedouthereandnow".
99Fig.
2.
2:RirkritTiravanija,PadThai(1991-1996).
Mixedmedia.
TheconvivialitythatBourriauddescribesiswidelyconsideredtobeahappyinteraction,asmall,localisedandattainableversionoftheutopia,whichhedenoteswiththeterm'microtopia'.
Thecentralideadescribedisthatinaneraofincreasingurbanisationanddisplacement,relationalpractitionerscancreatemicrotopiasintheirimmediateenvironment.
Ifenoughofthesearecreated,itwill"re-launchthemodernemancipationplan",100andprovideacounterstrikeagainsttheunattainabilityoftheutopia.
Thisconceptionofthe'microtopia',however,ledcriticssuchasHalFostertodismissBourriaud'sframeworkandthepracticesitendorsesasan'artyparty',101thatis,anexclusivein-groupofartelite.
Thislineofcriticismexplicatesthefactthatthemicrotopiaisvulnerabletothesamecriticalblowthattheutopiasuffered:someonewillalwaysbeleftout.
Neitherartnorlifenecessarilyequatetohappiness.
TheBritishcriticClaireBishopcriticisesrelationalaestheticsonthegroundsthattheconvivialityBourriauddescribesdoesnotallowroomforother,antagonistic,formsofinteraction.
ControversialartistssuchasSantiagoSierraandThomasHirschornapplyasimilarmethodologytotherelationalartistsusuallyassociatedwiththecanon,buttheydosoinordertoprovoketheaudience,makingthemuncomfortablewiththeirpositioninthesocialandeconomicsystem.
102EduardoKac'sGFPBunnyoffersacompellingcounterpointtoBourriaud.
InPhase2ofthe'Alba'project,Kacclearlylocatesthepublicdiscussionanddialogueaspartoftheartproject.
Onemustpresumethatthedialoguethatthisworkfacilitates(abouttheethicsofgeneticengineering)isfarfromtheconvivialitythatBourriauddescribes.
TheMexico-basedSpanishartistSantiagoSierrahascausednumerouscontoversiesinhisreflectionsuponcapitalism,labourandexploitation.
Acommontacticofhisworkistopayunemployedand/ormarginalisedpeopleanexploitativelylowfeetoconductademeaningormeaninglesstaskasanartwork.
In160cmLineTattoedon4People(2000,fig.
2.
3),forexample,theartistpaidfourdrug-addictedprostitutesafeethatequatedtothepriceofafixofheroin,inexchangeforhavinga160cmlinetattooedacrosstheirback.
Inotherartworks,Sierrapaidillegalimmigrantstositsilentlyinsidecardboardboxesinagallery;103agroupofunemployedmentomoveextremelyheavyconcreteblocksbackwardsandforwardsacrossagallery;104andhehiredAfrican,AsianandEastEuropeanimmigrantstohavetheirblackhairbleached.
105Fig2.
3:SantiagoSierra,160cmLineTattooedon4People(2000).
Intervention.
InSierra'swork,weseepowerrelationslaidoutbareforalltosee.
Theartistdeliberatelyexploits/subjugatespeoplewhooccupymarginalisedpositionsinsociety,andhedoesthisinordertoexposetheverymechanismsofexploitation.
Theethicalimplicationsofhisstrategiesarehighlycontroversial,becauseSierraisclearlycomplicit98Ibid,p.
16.
99Ibid,p.
26.
100Ibid,p.
16.
101Foster,2003.
102Bishop,2004.
103SixPeoplewhoareNotAllowedtobePaidforSittinginCardboardBoxes(2000).
10424ConcreteBlocksMovedContinuouslyduringOneWorkingPeriodbyTenRemuneratedWorkers(1999).
105PersonsPaidtoHavetheirHaidDyedBlonde(2001).
30withtheverypowermechanismsthatheisbeingantagonistictowards.
Whetherornotoneagreeswiththeethicsofhisstrategies,itisclearthatSierra'sartpracticeisresolutelynotconvivialtowardsthesociopoliticalenvironmentwithinwhichitoperates.
Bishop'scriticismofBourriaudconcludesthat"relationalantagonismwouldbepredicatednotonsocialharmony,butonexposingthatwhichisrepressedinsustainingthesemblanceofthisharmony.
Itwouldthereforeprovideamoreconcreteandpolemicalgroundsforrethinkingourrelationshiptotheworldandoneanother".
106Theterm'conviviality'itself,literallytranslatedfromtheLatin,ismoreaccuratelydescribedasalivelyinteraction(convivotranslatesas'withlife'),butthisclearlyrunscontrarytotheterm'sidiomaticusage.
Itwouldbeconfusingtomostreaderstoproposeredefining'conviviality'todenotealllivelyinteractions-whetheramicableorantagonistic.
Theproblemisbiggerthanthenuancesofthetermanyway.
Whiletheframeworkofrelationalaestheticsstillenjoysconsiderablecurrency,itfailstoachieveit'sideologicalgoals.
Liketheframeworkunderpinningtheearlierconceptualartmovement,relationalaestheticsishauntedbyanunderlyingproblematic-thattheconceptsmightoperatecohesivelyintheory,butthepractitionersareinseperablyboundtotheverystructuresofpower-knowledgethattheyarecriticalof.
Also,someofthepracticesBourriauddescribesarefarmoresubtleandnuancedthanhistheoryallows.
107Admittedly,Bourriaudlaterpositedanancillaryframeworkof'postproduction'todiscussthepracticesofthesameclusterofartists(aframeworkwhichIshalldiscussinchapter4),butthepointhereistohighlightthelimitationsofhisearlierthinking.
NotethatthisisnotanoutrightdismissalofallartpracticescontextualisedbyBourriaud'sframework,butratheranattempttohighlightthelimitationsofrelationalaestheticsasatheoreticalframework.
Some(butnotall)oftheartworksBourriaudwritesaboutdoindeedcreateuniqueandinterestingresonancesthroughtheidiosynchraticpassagesofexperiencethattheyoffer.
Inpracticethen,itisnotpossibleforartiststosurmounttheproblematicsofpower-knowledge-toaddresstheissuethat'high'artisinseperablyboundtobroader(andheavilyinstitutionalised)hegemonicstructures.
Thecontemporarymodalitiesofpracticethatinterestmemostdonoteventrytoachievethis.
Twodifferentmovementsinartpractice(conceptualartandrelationalaesthetics)demonstratethatanyattemptstolocateartpracticewithanoverarchingideologywillinevitablyfail,stillnaivelyclutchingtotheirimplicitutopianvision.
The'relational'artistswhodoachieveinterestingresults(suchasMaurizioCattelanandVanessaBeecroft108)dosobecausetheresonancesarenotstraightforwardconvivialmicrotopias;theartworksarenotasclear-cutasthetheoryposits.
Thesociopoliticalimpactofanartworkcannotbecontrolled/contrivedbyanartist.
Anartexperiencecertainlycantransformlivedreality,but–asBarthes'notionofthedeathoftheauthorclearlydemonstrates-thisisuptotheaudience,itisnotaplannedemancipationthatisdeliberatelyorchestratedbytheartist.
TheItalianartistMaurizioCattelan'sworkhasbeencontextualisedbyBourriaudasexemplaryofrelationalpractice,109buthispracticeisnotstraighforwardabouttheemancipationthatisplanned.
CattelaninfamouslypresentedarealisticlifesizewaxworksculptureofPopeJohnPaulIIinfullregaliaflattenedbyafallenmeteorite.
110HepresentedawaxworksculptureofAdolphHitlerkneelinginprayerinacathedral.
111Thenuanceddynamicsofsociopoliticalpowerarecoretothemusingsofthe'courtjester'oftheartworld.
112106Ibid,p.
78.
107IwillshortlyinvestigatecasestudiesofMaurizioCattelan'swork,whichBourriaudcontextualisesas'Relational'.
WhileCattelan'sworkislessconfrontationalthanSierra'swork,hispracticeisstilldemonstrablylessthanconvivialtowardsthepowermechanismsoftheartworldthanBourriaud'sframeworkallows.
108AdiscussionofVanessaBeecroft'sworkisoutsideofthescopeofthisdiscussion,butinshort,hertableauxvivantscreateanuneasytensionbetweenmodelsandaudienceduetotheextendeddurationofherpieces.
Itissimplynotaccuratetodescribetheencountersfacilitatedbyherworkasentirely'convivial'.
InherrecentworkVB65(2009),shegoesevenfurther.
EchoingtheartisticstrategiesofSantiagoSierra,shepresentingatableauxofAfricanimmigrants(legalandillegal),eatingchickenwithoutcutlery.
109Bourriaud,2002,forexamplep.
8andp.
33.
110LaNonaOra(TheNinthHour)(1999).
111ItisHardertoFeelSympathyforHim(2001).
112Morton,2005.
31Cattelan'sattentionisalsodirectedtowardshowpowerrelationsoperatewithintheartworlditself.
In1999,hesuspendedhisMilanartdealerMassimoDeCarlotothewallofhisgallerywithheavydutyducttapeasanartwork(fig.
2.
4).
113In2000,Cattelancontractedhis(purportedlypromiscuous)ParisartdealerEmmanuelPerrotintospendamonthdressedasagiantpinkphallus/rabbit.
114InordertorepresenttheartofMaurizioCattelan,youmustdenyanytendencyyoumayhavetotakeyourselftooseriously.
Theseworkselegantlydeployhumourtoscrutinisethecommercialdealingsoftheartworld,whistobviouslyremainingcomplicittothesesameoperations.
Theseinstallation/performancepiecesarenotsaleableartworks,buttheyarecontextualisedfromwithinthedealergallerycircuit.
Thenarrativecomponenttotheseworksisclearlyautobiographical:Cattelaninvertsthepowerdynamicsoftheartworldbysubjecting(punintended)hisownartdealerstotheseordeals-pokingfunatthecommercialandcontractualrealityofhavingadealerrepresentyourwork.
Fig2.
4:MaurizioCattelan,APerfectDay(1999).
Performance.
Cattelanalsoassumestheauthoritativepositionofcuratortofurtherhisinvestigationofartworldpowerdynamics.
Togetherwiththereknownedartwriters(turnedcurators)MassimilianoGioniandAliSubotnick,CattelanlaunchedTheWrongGalleryinNewYork(fig.
2.
5).
Peeringthroughthewindowofthisexpensivelookingdoor,youmightbegreetedbyasignthatread"FuckOff,We'reClosed".
115Thatdoor,infact,neveropenedtothepublic.
Withtwoandahalffeetoffloorspace,TheWrongGallerywasthesmallestexhibitionspaceinNewYork.
Duringthecourseofit's3yearexistence,thegalleryexhibitedtheworkofover40internationallyacclaimedartists.
116The'closed'signwasactuallyanartworktoo-bytheBritishartistAdamMcEwen.
117Inanotherartwork,PawelAlthamerhiredtwoPolishillegalimmigrantstosmashinthedoorwithabaseballbateverySaturday-"Ithinkwehadtochangefourorfivedoorsintotal,"Cattelanrecalls,"agoodwaytokeepthewindowcleaned!
"118TheWrongGallerycurators(Cattelan,GioniandSubotnick)statethat"TheWrongGalleryisthebackdoortocontemporaryart,andit'salwayslocked".
119Uponevictionfromtheoriginallocation,this'backdoortocontemporaryart'relocatedtothethirdflooroftheTateModerngalleryinLondon–aknowinglyproblematicenterprise.
Fig2.
5:MaurizioCattelan,MassimilianoGioniandAliSubotnick,TheWrongGallery(2002-2005).
Curatorialproject.
ItisclearthatCattelan'sprojectsarecomplicitwiththeverysamepowerstructuresthathispracticeparadoxicallysubverts.
AttheoriginallocationinChelsea,TheWrongGalleryutilisedthebasementoftheAndrewKrepsGallery-facingoutontheoppositeblock.
Theyaddeda'1/2'toKreps'mailingaddress(516A1/2)anduseditastheirown,theyusedthegallery'sstationary,tools,telephoneline,andtheydrankKrep'scoffee.
ThisparasiticrelationshipcontinuesintheirnewlocationattheTateModern,wheretheycontinuetocurateexhibitionsbi-monthly.
120TheWrongGallery'swebsiteissimilarlyparasitic-ifyounavigatetotheirdomain(www.
wronggallery.
com)youreceiveasetofGooglesearchresults-presumablyforthenameoftheircurrentexhibitingartist.
Thedomainremainsinthenavigationbarforthesearchresultspage,andalsoforallsubsequentpagesvisited.
Thesearchpage,and(aslongasyoudonottypeoverthedomaininthenavigationbar)anywhereelseyousubsequentlynavigateto,isframedwiththeheader"THEWRONGGALLERYPRESENTS:GETYOURPIXEL!
".
113Thistableauxvivantwasplannedforadurationofthreehours,butthepiecewasstoppedshortbecauseDeCarlowashavingtroublebreathingandneededtoberushedtohospital.
114EmmanuelPerrotininaRabbit-PenisSuit(2000).
115Turner,2005.
116TheWrongGallerywasinoperationfrom2002to2005.
Duringthattime,otherartistsfeaturedinthespaceincludeTommaAbts,PhilCollins,MartinCreed,SamDurant,MarkHandsforth,CameronJamie,PaulMcCarthy&JasonRhoades,ElizabethPeyton,PaolaPivi,TinoSehgal,ShiranaShahbazi,andmore.
(DetailsaccessedfromapressreleaseontheTateModerngallery'sofficialwebsite).
117Turner,2005.
118Ibid.
119CitedinTateModerngallerypressrelease,seeabove.
120Ibid.
32Butthenagain,this(veryseamless)hackjustmightbeacommissionedartworktoo.
AtthetimeIvisited,thesearchlistedresultsforthenet-artwriterMollyvonHacker-itwouldbeconsistentwiththeaspirationsofthe'neen'121movement(withwhichsheisaffiliated)toturnGoogleitselfintoone'sownartwork.
Creatingthissenseofbefuddlement(accessingthegallery'ssiteIcanonlymakeeducatedguessesaboutwhotheartistisandwhattheirworkis)exemplifiesCattelan'ssenseofhumourandhiscriticalartisticstrategy.
Underpinningthishumour,though,isaparadoxicalsensethatCattelaniscriticalofthepowerstructuresofinstitutionalisedart,butthatthereisanunderlyingcomplicitywiththeseverysamestructures.
TheWrongGalleryis,afterall,currentlyunderwrittenbytheTateModern.
Sierra'sworkexposestheparadoxofcomplicitythroughshocktactics(predominantlyartworksinvolvingexploitativelabourconditions).
Cattelan'sworkexposestheparadoxwithaknowingsenseofhumour.
Thepracticalcasestudiescitedinthischapterdonotpredominantlyfocusontheroleoftechnology,buttheydosharethesameclusterofideologicalconcernsthatunderpinbastardmediaartworkswhicharecriticaloftechnology.
How,then,canself-reflexivityandhumourbedeployedtocreateanartworkwhichretainsatheoreticalfocusonsubjectivitybuthasapracticalfocusontechnology121In2000theartistMiltosManetascommissionedtheCaliforniabrandingcompanyLexicontocreateanameforthefirstartmovementofthe21stcentury.
Fromtheirshortlistof100words,'Telic'and'Neen'wereselected.
While'telic'referstotheaccepted(serious)usesoftechnology,'neen'referstoartworksthatusetechnologyinnewandunexpectedways,especiallyreconfiguringcheap/accessibletechnologiestocreateseamlessandtechnicallysophisticatednewoutcomes.
Neenpredominantlyreferstonetartandotherpurelydigitalwork,andwasintroducedataperformance/pressconferenceattheGagosianGalleryinNewYorkin2000.
DetailsaccessedfromManetas'website:.
33SchoolofFineArtsFig2.
6:DanielJames,SchoolofFineArts(2010).
Fig.
2.
7:DanielJames,SchoolofFineArts(2010).
Installation(detail:headofrobot).
Installation(detail:gaffertape).
Thesettingisaclaustrophobicandwindowlessstudy/officespace.
Ahumanoidrobotsitsatadesk,staringatacomputerscreen.
Therobotismadefromallmannerofrecycledmaterials–includingpartsfromanoldCCTVsurveillancesystem.
Onthescreenthereisavideoloopfromthe1933filmTarzantheFearless.
Therobot'srovingeyewatchesonasthefilm'sprotagonist-theselfproclaimed'KingoftheJungle'-repeatedlypunishesamonkey.
Astherobotwatchesthescreen,italsoerraticallytapsit'sfingeronthebuttonofaremotecontroldevice.
Besidetherobot'schairthereisasmallrubbishbin,containingaballofgaffertape.
Eachtimetherobottapstheremotecontroldevice,theballofgaffertapeshufflesinsidetherubbishbin.
Thisisanoddclusterofimages:anrobot,avideoloopfromanearlyfilm,andamechanisedballofgaffertape-assembledtogetherinanenvironmentreminiscentofastudy/office.
Thetitleofthispiece-SchoolofFineArts–providesapreliminarycueforhowtointerpretthisartwork.
Thetitlelocatestheartworkasinseperablefromtheheavilyinstitutionalisedcontextswithinwhichitoperates,invokingthehegemonicstructuresoftheuniversity,andalsothoseofthebroaderartworld.
Expandingonthis,onecoulddeducethattherobotisaselfportrait.
Therobotisconstructedoutofaccumulated(mostlytechnological)debris.
DuringmytimestudyingatMasseyUniversitySchoolofFineArts,Iaccumulatedalargeamountofbrokentechnologicalequipmentandotherdetritus-materialsthatcouldhavejustaseasilyendedupinalandfill.
Therobotwasconstuctedusingasmuchofthatmaterialaspossible.
Thisprocessualdetailissomewhatperiphery,buttheimportantpointisthatIamportrayingmyselfasanaccumulationofexistingproducts.
Theoutcomeisnot,asMcLuhanwouldargue,predeterminedbythemediaIamusing.
Theaccumulationisnotpassive-Iactivelysoughtoutthesematerials,andtheyareactivelyrecontextualisedandreconfigured.
Theartisticactivityofrecyclingproductsisanassertionofmyownpower-knowledge-arisingoutoftheprocessofparticipatinginaneducationalinstitution.
Arobotstudiesavideolooponacomputerscreen–footagefromanearlyfilm,inwhichTarzanpunishesamonkey.
InCodeMonkey1.
1,amonkeyisthecreator(butalsonarcissisticallythesubject)ofvideofootage.
Here,amonkeyissubject–subjecttotheking(ofthejungle),asubjectofthevideo,andalsoasubjectofsurveillanceandscrutinybytherobot,andbytheartwork'saudience.
Themonkeyissubjugatedbyformationsofpower-knowledge.
Inotherwords-takinganothercuefromthetitleoftheartwork-themonkeyisasubjecttolearnabout.
Byseekingtounderstandthemonkeywesubjectittoourpointofview,frameitbydiscursiveformations.
Someaudiencemembersmightfeelempathetictowardsit(asamarginalisedcreature).
SomemightsidewithTarzan's(unclear)motivationsbehinddiscipliningit.
Eitherway,themonkeyisframedandbecomessubject.
Itisclearattheoutsetthatthisartworkdoesnotpresentasingularpositiononthesubject.
Asdemonstratedbytwomovementsinartpractice(ConceptualArtandRelationalAesthetics),utopiangoalsalwayssetthemselvesupforfailure.
SchoolofFineArtsisnotaspecificcriticismleveledattheideologiesofaneducationalinstitution-itisareflectionupontheconditionofbeingsubjectinabroadersense.
I(theauthorofSchoolofFineArts)amobviouslycomplicitinthehegemonicstructuresofuniversityeducation,andthusIimplicatemyselfinanyconcernsImightraisetowardsthosestructures.
Butmyintentionisalsodead.
AsperGuattari'smachinicheterogenesis,bothhumansandmachinesareevolutive,mutuallyaffectingeachother-andassuchtheymustbetreatedholistically.
34Fig2.
8:DanielJames,SchoolofFineArts(2010).
Installation(videostill).
Q.
WhatistherobotwatchingA.
Aloopedsamplefromanearlyblackandwhitemovie.
B.
The'kingofthejungle'assertinghisauthority.
C.
Tarzanspankingamonkey.
D.
Alloftheabove.
AsampleofTarzan'spankingthemonkey'isafairlylow-browvisualdouble-entendretoofferasseriousacademicresearch.
DoestheartworkreallyaimtoderideartseducationasaninstututionalisedprocessofreflectionuponmasturbationItisnotreallythatsimple.
TarzantheFearlesswasmadein1933-onecansafelyassumethat,atthetimeofthefilm'screation,thephrasedidnotholdthesameconnotationsitdoesnow.
Aswithanyculturalproduct,thefilmwouldhaveheldaparticularclusterofmeaningsforaudiencesinit'sowntime,butinadifferenttimeandplacenewmeaningsarise.
Theauthor'sintentioninthecreationofTarzantheFearlessisunknown(butasBarthesclaims,thisintentionisnottheprimarysourceofmeaninganyway).
Theseshiftsinmeaningarehighlightedbythefactthatthefootagecanberecontextualisedandframeddifferently(makingeditingdecisions,samplingandlooping).
Perhapstherobotisbeingeducatedinthefundamentalsofcriticalthought:tobereflexive-toremaincogniscantofthefactthatmeaningisnotsingular.
AudiencesatthetimeofthereleaseofTarzantheFearlesswouldprobablyhaveonlyseenmeaningB.
The'kingofthejungle'assertinghisauthority.
Therobotiswatchinganassertionofpower-everyculturalproductisinfactanassertionofpower-knowledge.
Therobotrecievesit'seducationbywatching,butalsobyparticipating-bydoing.
Itpressesabuttonandcontrolssomething.
Q.
WhatistherobotcontrollingA.
Aballofgaffertape(neverperformwithoutit).
35Chapter3Lowperformance:theglitchandperformativity36MedicalPractitionersaccusedoverDeathofSiameseTwinTroubledMedicalPractitioners:AnaesthesiaAssociatesAnaesthesiaAssociates,aNewZealandbasedduoofmedicalpractitioners,madeafatalerrorduringauniqueoperation,theGeneralMedicalCouncilhasheard.
AnaesthesiaAssociates-Dr.
DanielUntitledandDr.
PaulRockwell-wereperformingmedicalprocedureswhichweretobeaworldfirst:separatingasiamesetwinwhosharedthesameheart-onepartylivedinWellingtonandonepartylivedincyberspace.
Bothpatientstragicallydiedduringsurgery,andreportsclaimmalpracticebyAnaesthesiaAssociates.
AnaesthesiaAssociatesreachedinternationalacclaimafterperforminganumberofmedicalprocedurestogetherwhilstingeographicallyseparatelocations,usingthelatestininternettechnologytosuccessfullyperformopenheartsurgery.
Reunitedinthesametheatreaseachotheragain,theirfirstoperationcametoatragicend.
DrDanielUntitledhasdeniedseriousprofessionalmisconduct.
TheGMCishearingthecaseinNewZealandbecausethedoctorsareonitsmedicalregisterandarelicensedtopracticethere.
UniqueoperationTheGMC'sprofessionalconductcommitteeheardhowthesiamesetwin-knownas'PatientAandPatientB'-wereadmittedtothe'UpStage'theatre,theonlyoperatingtheatrewithanonlinefacility-on08Aug2008foranoperationtobeseparated.
AnaesthesiaAssociateswereenlistedtoconductacomplexprocedureinwhichthepatientswereanaesthetised,andthencomplexaudiovisualstimuliwereadministeredtoseparatethetwins.
ReportsclaimthatDr.
Untitled,whowaseducatedinNewZealand,usedacontraversialanaestheticthathadnotbeenthoroughlytestedindrugtrials.
ThecommitteeheardthatAnaesthesiaAssociateswerefullyawareoftherisksofadministeringuntestedanaestheticsduringthecourseofsuchacomplexoperation.
CounselfortheGMCHelenVarleyJamiesonsaidthedecisionwasindefensible.
"Itfallsbelowthestandardsofcompetentmedicalpractitioners,"shesaid.
Dr.
Untitled,speakingonbehalfofAnaesthesiaAssociates,acknowledgedthatthedecisioncausedthedeathofthepatients.
HetoldtheGMCcommittee:"Hadtheynothadthisanaesthetic,thepatientswouldstillhavebeenalive.
"Butheadded:"Ihavehadgreatdifficultiesduringacriminaltrialandduringthishearingintryingtogetacrossthefactthatlargedosesarenotonlypermittedbutrequiredwhenexperimentingwithsuchuniqueprocedures.
"EvidenceAnaesthesiaAssociatesareaccusedofillegallyobtainingthecontroversialdrug,andadministeringitwithoutpatientconsent.
AnaesthesiaAssociatesalsoaccusedofgivingthepatientanexcessiveamountofmorphineandfailingtokeepadequateanaestheticrecords.
MsJamiesontoldthedisciplinarycommittee:"Neitherofthesehealthypatientsshouldhavedied.
Theirdeathswerepreventable.
""Theywerecausedbyculpablefailuressetoutinthecharges.
"Thecasecontinues.
"Neitherofthesehealthypatientsshouldhavedied"HelenVarleyJamieson,GMCCouncil37Lowperformance:theglitchandperformativityThischapterinvestigatesthenotionoftheglitch,andhowitrelatestoideasaboutperformance.
Tounderstandthetechnologicalglitch,weneedtounderstandthephysicalityofrecordedmedia-thatdataisencodedontoaphysicalsurface(egthesurfaceofaCD,theharddiskofacomputer),andthatthechangestothatphysicalsurfacewillcausechangesintheplaybackofthemedia.
Theglitchisidentifiedasaslippage–itisaconcreteexampleofwhatDeleuzeandGuttarirefertoas'deterritorialisation'.
IwillalsoinvestigateJonMcKenzie'sexpandedframeworkfor'performance',whichencompassestheterminaculturalsense,atechnologicalsense,andanorganisationalsense.
Inatechnologicalsenseoftheterm,wespeakofhowwellamachine'performs'thetaskitisdesignedfor(forexampleahigh-performancecar).
Inaculturalsenseof'performance'(forexampleatheatricalperformance),itencompassesasenseofenactment–ofoccupyingarole,andplayingoutthatroletoanaudience.
Inanorganisationalsense(forexamplethe'keyperformanceindicators'ofabusiness),thetermencompassestheabilityofanorganisationtoachieveit'sgoals.
'Performance',inanexpandedsenseoftheterm,isaboutsuccessandfailure,dominanceandsubjugation.
Assuch,McKenziedescribesperformanceasastratumoftheFoucauldiannotionofpower-knowledge,andheclaimsthat,inanexpandedsense,'performance'willdisplacetheFoucauldiannotionof'discipline'.
122Usingtechnologyinanartcontextintegratesideasaboutperformanceinculturalandtechnologicalsensesoftheterm.
Amachinethatglitchesislowperformanceinatechnologicalsense,butitcanbehighperformanceinaculturalsense.
Turningtopracticalcasestudies,Iwilltraceatrajectoryofartistswhodeploytheglitchasatactictomaketheirwork-casestudiesaredrawnfromexperimentalfilm,videoartandelectronicmusic.
Whilecommonunderstandingsoftheglitchusuallyrefertoaccidental/unintendedoutcomes,thesecasestudiesleadmetoidentifythattheglitchcanbeadesired/intendedoutcome-tocreatesimulacraofmalfunction.
Thisleadsustoredefinetheglitchasanyslippage-eitherintentionalorunintentional.
Theseslippagescanbepurelyformal(suchasslippagesintheaural/visualqualitiesofaudio/video),buttheycanalsobesemantic-changesinmeaningoccurwhentheseslippagestakeplace.
Theperformancearttraditionofexploringthephysicallimitsofone'sownbodyhasobviousparallelstotheexplorationoftechnologicallimitsthroughtheglitch.
Thevisceralperformanceartworksofthe1960sand1970s-andmorerecenttechnologicallymediatedvisceralworkssuchasStelarc'sPingBody-emphasiselive,bodilyexperience.
Despitetheseparallels,thistraditionandit'sstrategiesarenotthefocusofthisresearch.
Thecentralconcernofthisinvestigationismodesofperformancethatexplores'enactment'ratherthanphysicallimits.
Thesepracticesemphasisetheatricalityandmediatisationasthecentralconcern.
RobertRauschenberg'sperformancepracticewillbehighlighted,sincehishybridofperformanceartandtheatre(aswellasdanceandotherdisciplines)providesaclearexampleofcreatingintertextualslippagesofmeaningbylayeringtogetherseeminglyincongruousimages.
Inothermorerecentperformancepractices,glitchesareaestheticisedandhighlightedinamannerthatdirectlyintegratesslippagesofbothformalqualitiesandmeaning.
Onekeyrecentcasestudyisprovidedhere–AvatarBodyCollision'sTriptheLightFantastic(2006)-acyberformanceartwork/project.
Thispiecehighlightsthesubterfugeofmediatisedperformancethroughliveonlinetheatre.
Inthisprojecttheaudienceexperiences(andevenbecomescomplicitin)theperformativeprocessesofdeterritorialisation,andthenreterritorialisation.
Howcantechnologicallyenabledculturalperformanceembodyanoscillatingtensionbetweenhighandlowperformance(inasensethatintegratesbothculturalandtechnologicalmeaningsoftheterm)Further,isitpossibletoachievethisinamannerthatscrutinisesmediatisedrepresentationsofidentitymoreclosely,inrelationtomainstreammediainapop-culturalcontextThischapterconcludeswithAnaesthesiaAssociates,anaudiovisualperformanceduo.
IperformtogetherwithmycollaboratorPaulBradley,creatinglivemashups123integratingaudioandvideomaterialthatissampledpredominantlyfrompopculturalsources-film,televisionandonlinevideos;pop,rock,hiphopanddancemusics.
InthischapterIwilldemonstratehowAnaesthesiaAssociatesperformstheglitch,creatingslippagesinboththeformalqualitiesandthethematiccontentofliveaudiovisualperformance.
TheglitchThetermglitchiscommonlyusedinatechnicalsense,torefertoanyunintendedandmomentaryoccurrencethatfallsoutsideofthenormalfunctioningofamachine.
Thetermisalsooccasionallyusedtorefertoamomentarylapseintheperformanceofalmostanyentity(person,organisation,etcetera).
Thisresearchisconcernedwiththerelevanceoftheterminculturalpractice.
'Glitch'hasabroaderscopeinthecontextofculturalproductionthanwhenitsimplyreferstotechnicalfailure.
122McKenzie,2001,p.
18.
123Inthesenseititusedhere,amashupisamixoftwoormoreaudio/videorecordingstocreateanewproduct.
IwilldiscussmashupsindepthinChapter4.
38TheeditorofTheWiremagazine(UK)RobYoungfurtherdiscussestheuseofmachinemalfunctionasacreativetool.
Youngidentifiesthetechnologicalglitchasaslippage(theGermanwordglitschenmeanstoglide,slideorslip),aswellasitscommonusageasdenotingamechanicalirregularityormalfunction.
124Writinginthecontextofamagazinedevotedtoavant-gardemusic,thearticlespecificallyemphasisescurrentapproachestodigitalsoundcomposition.
Young'sarticulationoftheglitchasacompositionaltool,however,overlapssignificantlywiththepracticesofartistsworkinginotherdisciplines.
Hewritesthattheterm"suggestssimultaneouslyaslippageofgearsorwheels–afailuretoengage–andascratch,asmallnickinasmoothsurfacethatrecallsGillesDeleuze'sstatementthatthesmootherthesurface,theeasieritistodeterritorialise".
125Whereafunctionalequilibriumgiveswaytochange,thereiswhatDeleuzeandGuattaricalladecodingor'deterritorialisation'.
DeleuzeandGuattarihighlightthemouth,tongueandteethasanillustrativeexample;themouth,tongueandteethfindtheirprimitiveterritoriality(theirprimarypurpose)intheconsumptionoffood,buttheyaredeterritorialisedinthearticulationofsound(afunctionthatisunrelatedtotheconsumptionoffood),andtheythenfindreterritorialisation(theirnewpurpose)inthearticulationofmeaning.
126Withrecordedorbroadcastmedia,whentheencodingofanobjectisbroken,whenarecordneedleskipsoratelevisionremotechangeschannelmid-syllable,thereisaglitch,aslippage,andthesoundorimageisdeterritorialised.
Themediumofvinylaudiorecordingprovidesaparticularlyaccessibleexample.
Thestylusisatafunctionalequilibriumwhenitisfollowingthegrooveofarecordsmoothly.
Iftheneedleskips,thestylusisdeterritorialised,findinganewterritoryeitherinadifferentsectionoftheaudio,orinthestutteringloopofrepeatedaudiothatresultsifitgetsstuck.
Notethatthephysicalityofencodedmediaisveryimportanthere,arecordingisanobjectwithphysicalpropertiesthatcanbedisrupted.
However,theprevailingorthodoxyfordiscussingdigitalmediaactuallyemphasisestheopposite:thede-materialisationoftheartobject.
Recallingtheetymologyoftheterm'glitch',theideaofanickonasurfacedrawsattentiontothematerialityembeddedintheterm.
Digitalmediapracticespivotuponthefactthatephemeraleventscanbeencodedontophysicalsurfaces(thesurfaceofaCD,theharddiskofaserver127computer,andsoforth),andthatthesesurfacescanbemanipulatedandfragmentedbothphysicallyanddigitally.
IthereforepositionthetermglitchunderthebannerofDeleuzeandGuattari'snotionofdeterritorialisation:aglitchdis-placesencodeddatathatwaspreviouslyoperatingatanequilibrium.
Whiletheterm'glitch'isnormallyassociatedwithaccidental,unintendedoutcomes,weknowthatthesedecodingsarecommonlyconsideredtobedesirableandintendedoutcomesinculturalproduction.
Sinceevenfailuresormistakesaresubsequentlyreappropriated,Ialsopositthataworkingdefinitionoftheglitchmustbebroadenoughtoincludethedeliberatedecodingofinformation.
Theintentionalremixingofculturalproductsandunintentionalmachinefailurebothenablethedeterritorialisationofencodeddata,encouragingthegenerationofnewmeanings–meaningsthatdivergefromtheinitialencoding.
Whilecommonunderstandingsofthetechnologicalglitchdefineitintermsofanunintentionalslippage,intheculturalsenseofthetermwehaveseenthattheterm'glitch'canbedefinedasanyslippage(intentionalorotherwise)-anytactictoupsettheequilibriumthatencodedinformationattains.
Thisformulationofthetechnologicalglitchoverlapsconsiderablywiththenotionofperformance.
Asnotedabove,glitchesareassociatedwithfailureintheperformanceofatechnologicalmachine.
Oncetheglitchisredefinedtoincorporatedeliberateslippages,theconceptoverlapsconsiderablywithothersensesoftheterm'performance'.
PerformanceandperformativityAsathinkerwithahistoryofbothhacktivism128andperformancescholarship,theculturaltheoristJonMcKenzieiswellequippedtointroducethenotionofperformanceasitintersectswithtechnologyinculturalpractice.
McKenziediscussesanunusualrelationshipbetweentheterm'performance'asitisusedincultural,organisational,andtechnologicalcontexts.
Thewords'perform'and'performance'canbeusedtorefertotheactionsofanartistcreatingwork,totheabilityofabusinessororganisationtoachieveit'sdesiredgoals,ortotheabilityofatechnologicalmachinetobehaveinthewaythatitwasdesignedto.
129McKenzieresearchestherelationshipsbetweenthesethreesensesoftheword,anddiscoversthattheyoverlapconsiderably.
124Young,1999,p.
48.
125Ibid.
126DeleuzeandGuattari,1975.
127Aserverisacomputersystemthatprovidesservicestoothercomputingsystems-calledclients-overacomputernetwork.
Whenconnectingtotheinternettoviewawebpage,theserveristhecomputerthatstorestheinformation,andservesthatinformationtoitsaudience.
128Ahactivist,orpoliticallymotivatedhacker,issomeonewhogainsunauthorisedentryintocomputersystemsthatareownedbyanotherpersonororganisationforpoliticalreasons.
129McKenzie,2001.
39AnexaminationoftheworkofJudithButleriscentraltoanydiscussionofculturalperformance.
Butlerfamouslytheorisesgender,sex,andsexualityasperformative.
Shedescribesthegenderdistinctionsofmaleandfemaleasnotessentiallyandnaturallydefined,butratherthesedistinctionsaredictatedbysocietalconstructions.
130ToachievethisButlerborrowsfromtheworkoftheFrenchpoststructuralistthinkerMichelFoucault.
The'regulativediscourses'131thatFoucaultdescribesaresociallyconstructed,andButlergoesontoarguethatweperformgenderasarole.
Butler'sseminalworkinthefieldofgenderstudieshashadanimmenseimpactuponthefieldof(cultural)performancestudies.
Herworkimpliesthebroaderideathatelementsofouridentity(suchasgender)arenotfixed,butratherperformed–anditfollowsthattheseelementswillbeperformeddifferentlyaccordingtoshiftsincontext.
JonMcKenzie'sreadingofthenotionofperformancetakesitsleadfromButler'swork.
McKenzie'sframeworkinvestigateshowperformanceisastratumofpower-knowledge,andhowtheparadigmsofperformancemanagement(organisationalperformance),performancestudies(culturalperformance),andtechno-performance(technologicalperformance)canbeboundtogethertoformblocksofknowledge.
Hesituatesthemovementofperformancewithinamatrixofsocio-technicalandonto-historicalforces,whichallowsdeviationintoidiosyncraticpassagesofexperience,butthemovementofperformancealsosimultaneouslycreatesnewparadigmsofknowledge.
132'Performance',inanorganisationalsenseoftheterm,referstohowwellanorganisation(corporation,non-profitorganisation,governmentagency,etcetera)achievesit'sgoals.
Inaculturalsenseoftheterm,'performance'refersfundamentallytoexpressionssuchastheatre,dance,music,'performanceart',andamyriadofmorerecentforms.
Inatechnologicalsenseoftheterm,werefertohowwellamachineperformsthetaskitisdesignedfor-the'performancespecifications'ofthetechnologicalobject.
BothButlerandMcKenzieareheavilyindebtedtoFoucault.
McKenzieevenmakestheboldforecastthat"performancewillbetothetwentiethandtwenty-firstcenturieswhatdisciplinewastotheeighteenthandnineteenth,thatis,anonto-hostoricalformationofpowerandknowledge".
133'Performance',inanexpandedsenseoftheterm,isaboutsuccessandfailure,dominanceandsubjugation.
Ifhegemonicpowerisconstructedbyhighperformance(inallthreesensesoftheword),thenwhataboutit'ssubjugatedother-lowperformance,orthefailuretoperform.
WhatdoesthisfailurelooklikeinartpracticeIwillinvestigatetechnologicalperformancethroughastudyoftheglitchinartpractice,focussingonculturalproductioninmusicandinvideo/film.
Iwillalsolookatfailureinculturalperformance,throughaninvestigationofvisceralperformanceart,andit'strajectorytowardsmediatisationandtheatricality.
TheglitchinculturalpracticeFig.
3.
1:DavidHall,ThisisaTelevisionReceiver(1976).
Video(stills).
DavidHall'sseminalvideoworkThisisaTelevisionReceiver(1976,fig.
3.
1)isanartworkcommissionedbytheBBCastheopeningcreditsintheirArenaVideoArtprogramme.
Inthispiece,130Butler,1990.
131AccordingtoFoucault,peopledonothavea'real'identitywithinthemselves,butratherdiscoursesareconstructedtoenablecommunicationabouttheself.
An'identity'iscommunicatedtoothersbyinteractionswiththem,butthisisnotafixedthingwithinaperson.
Itisashifting,temporaryconstruction.
InthefirstvolumeofTheHistoryofSexuality,entitledTheWilltoKnowledge,Foucaultdisagreeswiththe"repressivehypothesis"thatthelastthreehundredyearshavebeencharacterisedbyatendencytorepressoursexualdesires,andmoreimportantly,thetendencytorepressdiscourseaboutthem(1978).
Foucault'spositionassertsthatdiscoursessurroundingsexualityhaveonlyintensifiedinthelastthreecenturies,andthattheregulationofthesediscoursesisasocialconstruction.
132McKenzie,2001.
133Ibid,p.
18.
40"RichardBaker[thewellknownnewsreader]describestheessentialparadoxesoftherealandimaginedfunctionsoftheTVsetonwhichheappears.
Thesecondshotistakenopticallyoffamonitor,thethirdcopiedfromthesecond,andsoon,untilthereisacompletedegenerationofbothsoundandimage,removingthenewsreaderfromhispositionofauthority.
.
.
".
134Comparethispiecetoarecentartworkbyanotherseminalvideoartist.
InBillViola'sTheMessenger(1996),alargevideoprojectiondepictsaripplingshimmeroflightagainstablue/blackbackground.
Thisshimmerslowlyexpandsintoafigure-amanslowlyrisingtowardsthesurfaceofadeepbodyofwater,whoeventuallysurfacestotakeabreath.
Bothartworksshareaformaldevice:acentralfigureisdistortedbythepropertiesofanexternalmedium.
InViola'sartwork,wateractsasamediumtorefractlightanddistortthecentralfigure.
InHall'sartwork,atechnologicalmechanism(opticallycopyingavideorecording)isexploitedtoasimilarend.
Theskippingandstuttering'glitches'oftechnologydisruptthenormaloperationofmachines.
AsinDavidHall'sseminalworkinthe1970s,aseachnewtechnologyisdeveloped,artistswillinevitablyfindprocessesthatexploitthelimitsofthemechanism.
Themethodologyofabusingfilm/videotechnologydidnotoriginateinthe1960s,however.
TheNewZealandartistLenLye'spracticespansphotography,sculpture,filmandbatik,buthisimmenselyinfluentialearlyfilmworkisespeciallypivotalasareferencepointinanydiscussionoftheglitch.
Lye'searlyfilmworkwasespeciallynotableforhistacticsof"scratching,paintingandprintingdirectlyontofilmplates"(seefig.
3.
2),disposingoftheneedforexpensivecameraequipment.
135Deployingthesetechniquesasearlyas1935,136hispracticeofabusingtheavailabletechnologiesofthetimeclearlyforeshadowedlateranalogueanddigitalpracticesbothinNewZealandandabroad.
137Fig:3.
2:LenLye,AColourBox(1935).
Filmstills.
Overthedecades,theindeterminacy138ofmachinemalfunctionhasincreasinglybecomeadesiredanddeliberateoutcome.
Thefrailtyofdigitalmediaisfrequentlycelebratedasaconvergenceofformatandaesthetic.
The'glitches'ofdigitalmediatechnologydisruptthenormaloperationofrecordedmedia,buttheyalsocontributetotheproductionofnewandunexpectedmeanings.
Forexample,composerKimCasconeiswellknownforhis"microsound"compositions,exploringthetexturaldetailsofdigitalsound.
Hereferstotheprecariousnessofthedigitalsignal,andproposesan'stheticsoffailure',celebratingthesoniceffectsofglitches,bugs,anderrors.
Heusestheterm"post-digital",examiningthedetritusproducedbythefailureofelectronicequipment.
139Cascone'speerOvalisalsonotedforreappropriatingdigitalglitchestoproducehisaudio(deliberatelyscratchingthephysicalsurfacesofCDsandsoforth).
CasconeandOvalwereleadingfiguresoftheglitchmusicmovement,andsincethismovementgainedmomentuminthe1990s,theappropriationofmachineerrorhasbecomecommonplace.
Lowperformanceinatechnologicalsensecanbeaestheticisedashighperformanceinaculturalsense.
Somuchso,thatthetermglitchisalsonowassociatedwithsimulacraofmalfunction.
Thisisevidencedbythedevelopmentofsoftwarethatisdesignedtoprocessdatainamannerthatsimulatesthesound(orlook)ofdigitalfailure.
140Performance(art)Artworkthatscrutinisestechnologicallimitshasaclearparallelinanothermodeofpractice–artthatinvestigatesthelimitsofbiologicalbodies.
WhileIwillgiveabriefoverviewofthefieldofvisceralperformancetoprovidesomecontext,myfocusisondifferentiatingitfromthespecificfieldofperformancethatismediatedbytechnology.
Iamespeciallyinterestedinslippagesofmeaning,anditisprescienttoinitiatethispartofthediscussionwithanartistwho'sstrategiesinperformancepracticeareseminalforthatreason.
134Krikorian,1984,p.
22.
135Clifford,2008,p.
114.
136AColourBox–anadvertisementforparcelpost-wasthefirst'directfilm'tobescreenedtoageneralaudiencein1935.
137TheCanadiananimatorNormanMcLarenwasa'directfilm'peer/collaboratorofLye's.
LaterStanBrakhagealsouseddirectfilmtactics(egMothlight,1963),andmanymorerecentartistshavefollowedsuit,SomerecentexamplesincludePierreHebert(MemoriesofWar,1982),CathyJoritz(NegativeMan,1985)andStevenWoloshen(DittyDotComma,2001).
Speakingmorebroadly,thetacticsofdrawing/scratching/paintingonfilmslidesforeshadowotherlaterprocessesformakingrecordedmedia'malfunction',byinterveningdirectlyontotheanalogueordigitalmedia.
138Thenotionofindeterminacy(employingchanceprocesses)asacompositionalstrategyinmusicdatesbacktotwolecturesdeliveredbyJohnCagein1958and1959respectively(andhesubsequentlypublishedtheseideasin1961).
Cagedifferentiatesbetween'indeterminacyofcomposition'and'indeterminacyofperformance'.
TheglitchmovementinmusicisheavilyindebtedtoCage'sideas.
139Cascone,2000.
140SomepopularaudiosoftwarepackagesthatIhavepersonallyusedincludeReaktor,AbletonLive,Max/MSP,andReason,buttherearenumerousothersoftware/pluginsthatsimulatetheeffectofglitchesinvariouswaysforaudioandvideo.
41Inadditiontohiswell-knownoeuvreofpainting,sculpture,drawing,printmakingandphotography,theartistRobertRauschenberghasmadesubstantialandgroundbreakingcontributionstothedevelopmentofdance,theatreandperformanceartsincethe1950s.
141"Atit'scoreandinmanyofit'sforms,Rauschenberg'sartisperformative:itexistsliterallyintimeorbearsthelayeredtracesofit'sproduction;itpresentsthebodyinmotionorreactstothemotionofit'saudiencemembers;and,aboveall,itseekstoinvokesensesbeyondthepurelyvisual.
"142Rauschenberghassustainedacareer-longengagementwiththeatre,danceandperformance,143hybridisingthemwithothervisualartsdisciplines.
Thereisaclearoverlapbetweenhisstrategiesinperformance/choreographyandthoseofhispainting/printmakingwork.
Rauschenberglayersimagesgleanedfrompopculturalsources(predominantlyreferencingstereotypicalAmericaniconography),massingtheseimagestogetherinsuchawaythattheycancoexistwithoutnecessarilyevokingasenseofcauseandeffect.
144InSpringTraining(1965),forexample,"awatermelonwrappedinasmallcarpetbearingtheimageofJohnF.
Kennedywascarriedaroundthestagebydancerwearingaportablescreenontowhichslidesofcannedfood,thecityskyline,andtheEmpireStateBuilding,amongotherthings,wereprojected.
"145Rauschenbergusesmultipleimageswhichwouldhavealreadybeenfamiliartotheaudienceasiconicmediaandadvertisingimages,butbylayeringtheseimagesheconteststhelinearityandcongruitywithwhichthesefamiliarimagesarenormallyexperienced.
WhilstthestrategiesofRauschenberg'searlydance/theatreprojects(layeringupiconographicimages)cannotbeconsideredastechnologicalfailures,theyareclearexamplesofhowIhavedefinedtheglitchinaculturalsense–asslippagesofmeaningwhichupsetthefunctionalequilibriumtogeneratenewmeanings.
InRauschenberg'sperformanceworkthisoccursthroughthelayeringofprojectedimages(asdescribedwithSpringTraining),butalsothroughpropsandsetdesignelements(forexampleanoversizeAmericanflagthatisunfurledinLinoleum,1966),andcostumeelements(suchastheautomobiletyresattachedtothelegsofdancerStevePaxtoninMapRoomII,1965).
ItisimportanttoconsiderRauschenberg'sstrategiesinthecontextofotherartisticactivityatthetime.
"Idon'tcallmytheatrepiecesHappenings",Rauschenbergexplainsina1965interview,".
.
.
becausemyunderstandingofHappeningsisthattheycameoutofadesirepaintershadwhowereworkingwithobjects,orobjectsweretheircontent,theirsubject,adesiretoanimatethosematerials.
"146SinceRauschenberg'sworksubstantiallyblursthedisciplinesof'theatre'and'performanceart'-andhisprojectspreceedtheriseof'performanceart'asamovement-itiscrucialtodifferentiatebetweenwhatismeantbytheseoverlappingterms.
Theterm'performative'(theadjectivalformof'performance'),ascoinedbythephilosopherJ.
L.
Austinin1955,"referstoaclassofexpressionsthatarenotdescriptive,andhavenotruthvalue,butratherintheirveryutterancedosomething(Ibet.
.
.
,Ipromise.
.
.
).
147'Theatre',conversely,isusuallyunderstoodtorefertoexpressionsthataredescriptive-inatheatricalworkasetofcharactersareenactedinordertodescribeanarrative.
Intheatre,then,thebodiesofperformersenterroleswhichareoutsideoftheirowninherentsubjectivity-whileperforminginatheatricalsense,actorsembodythewords,sensationsandactionsofthecharacterswithsubjectivitiesthatare'other'totheirownexperience.
Theterm'performanceart'cametotheforeinthelate1960's,148whereartistssuchasJosephBeuys,YokoOno,HermanNitsch,ChrisBurden,MarinaAbramovicandnumerousothersbeganincorporatingtheirownbodiesintotheirartworks,forthespecificpurposeofscrutinisingtheirownsubjectivity.
"Itwasasthougheverymakerofartatthattime.
.
.
hadenrolledinanexperimentallaboratory,whereeachingredientintheentireart-makingprocesswouldbescrutinisedunderapowerfulmicroscopeandentirelyreconfigured:thewaytheeyessee,thewaythebodyfeels,thewaythemindordersconnectionsbetweensight,sound,words,andsensations.
"149ChrisBurden'snotoriousShoot(1971)isaniconicexampleofearlyperformanceartpractice.
Inthispiece,theartistcommissionedanassistanttoliterallyshoothiminthearminfrontofagalleryaudience,andtheactionwasalsocommittedtofilm.
Inthispiece,andinBurden'sotherworkoftheperiod,weseeavisceralscrutinyoftheartist'sownbodyandsubjectivity.
141Hopps,1997,p.
20.
142Spector,1997,p.
228.
143Rauschenberghas"manifoldaccomplishmentsasaset,costumeandlightingdesigner,choreographerandperformer[which]dovetailwithhisinnovationsinpainting,sculptureandprintmaking"(ibid,p.
229).
144Spector,1997,p.
236.
145Ibid.
146CitedinSpector,1997,p.
240.
147Theconceptwasfirstarticulatedinaseriesoflecturesin1955,andpublishedsubsequentlyin1975(Austin,1975,p.
241).
148Theperformanceartmovementiscommonlyunderstoodtohavegainedculturalcurrencyinthe1960s,butthenotionofperformanceinfineartiscommonlytracedbacktoantecedentsinDada(egTristanTzara,RichardHuelsenbeck)andItalianandRussianFuturism(egFilippoTommasoMarinetti,DavidBurliuk).
149Goldberg,2004,p.
178.
42Thelimitsoftechnologicalmachineshavebeenafocusforsomeartistsoverthedecades,andsimilarly,thelimitsoftheartist'sownphysicalbodyandsubjectivityhasbeenakeyfocusforperformanceartpractice.
Scrutinisingsubjectivitythroughavisceralinvestigationofthelimitsofone'sownbody,however,isnotthefocusofthisresearch.
Updatinghersubstantiveoeuvrewhichtracesthegenealogyofperformanceart,150RoseLeeGoldbergidentifiesaneverpresent'figuration'inperformancepractice.
Thebody-thefigureinperformance–iscentraltopracticessuchasBurden's,whichviscerallyhighlighttheartist'sownphysicalityandsubjectivity.
Shegoesontoarguethat"[w]hetherinfilmorinstallation,photographyandevenpainting,actionsaretiedtoobjects,toaudiencesandtoexhibitionspacesinwaysthatincorporateearlierperformanceartstrategies,andco-opttheirinstructionstomakeartfromdirect,unmediatedexperience.
"151Goldberg'spositionprivilegesonlyonefacetofcurrentperformanceart.
Thevisceral,live,152empathetically'felt'experiencecertianlyretainscurrencyinsomefacetsofcontemporaryperformancepractice,butcertainsub-stratumofperformanceactuallyhighlightthemediation153ofthefigure.
Themediatisedfigurehasgainedculturalcurrencyasanendinitselfinperformancepractice.
Thefigure,asexpressedinperformancethatintegratestechnology,canalsobetreatedinamannerthatrendersthemediatisationexplicit.
Goldbergdoesconcedethatthedistinctionsbetweenperformanceartandother'newmedia'havebecomequiteblurred,butthemajorityofherthinkingstillfavoursthe'real',lived,andunmediatedexperience.
154Stelarc'sPingBodyisaclearexampleofavisceralperformancepiecewhichisbothliveandmediatedbytechnology-theartist'sownbodyiscontrolledbytheebbandflowofnetworkeddata.
AsInotedinchapter1,technologyquiteliterallyextendsofthebiologicalbody.
Stelarc'spiececanbeseenasaperformanceoftheglitchtoo.
Dataisrepurposed(deterritorialised)fromitsoriginalcontextinordertocontroltheartist'smuscularmovement.
Thiscertainlycreatesaslippageinformalterms,andalsowithrespecttothemeaningoftheencodeddata.
Stelarc'swork,howeverisacelebrationoftechnologicalmediation.
Iammoreinterestedintheopposite-ascrutinyofthewaysinwhichtechnologymediatesmeaning.
Theverynatureofmediation/mediatisationhasbecomeafocusforinvestigationinsomecurrentperformancepractice,deployingglitches(inmyexpandedviewoftheterm-slippagesofbothformalqualitiesandmeaning)toactuallyhighlightthesubterfugeofthemediatingtechnologies.
AvatarBodyCollisionandcyberformance"Shespenthoursatthecomputerscreenlookingatalive-streamingvideofeedfromtheedgeofatwolaneroadinacityinFinland.
ItwasthemiddleofthenightinKotka,inFinland,andshewatchedthescreen.
Itwasinterestingtoherbecauseitwashappeningnow,asshesathere,andbecauseithappenedtwenty-fourhoursaday,facelessly,carsenteringandleavingKotka,orjusttheemptyroadinthedeadtimes.
Thedeadtimeswerethebest.
Shesatandlookedatthescreen.
Itwascompellingtoher,realenoughtowithstandthecircumstanceofnothinggoingon.
"DonDeLillo,TheBodyArtist155Thetermcyberformancedescribesemergentculturalpracticeswhereliveperformerscometogetherinreal-timeovertheinternettocreateperformanceworks.
156Usingtheinternetasaplatform,thegloballydispersedcyberformancetroupeAvatarBodyCollision157approachthechallengethatthisdispersedsimultaneityposesforcontemporarylivetheatre.
ThefourmembersofthetroupeareHelenVarleyJamieson(Brisbane),VickiSmith(Harihari),LeenaSaarinen(Helsinki),150Forexample,seeGoldberg,1979andGoldberg,1988.
151Goldberg,2004,p.
178.
152PhilipAuslander'sbookLiveness(1999)investigatesthenotionthatmediatechnologyhasencroachedonliveeventssuchastheatre,rockmusic,sport,andcourtroomtestimony,reachingapointwherethe'live'elementstotheseeventsarehardlypresent.
Auslanderdescribesapatternwherethemediatisedformwashistoricallymodelledontheliveform,butgoesontooutlinehowthemediatisedformeventuallydisplacestheliveform'spositionintheculturaleconomy.
153Theterm'mediation'wasfirstusedinalegalsense-twopartiesthatcannotcommunicatedirectlywithoneanotherrequireamediator.
Theterm'mediation',andincreasinglytheterm'mediatised',areusedtodescribethewaysthattechnologycanbeusedtoshiftcontext,andthereforetoshiftmeaning.
154Goldberghasrecentlychangedtack,arguingforthere-creationofperformanceartworks,andforthevalueofdocumentationofperformanceworks.
Shestatesthat"[t]houghthevalueofaccesstothe"realthing"inmuseumsshouldneverbeunderestimated,[…]theartworkthatleavesnothingorlittlebehind[lacks]thekindofshorthandtakenforgrantedindiscussionsofthe"solidarts.
"Wemayevenbeusingtheproblemsofreproducibilityasanexcuseforthisignorance"(Goldberg,2004).
155DeLillo,2001,p.
48.
156Seeformoreinformation.
Duringthecourseofthisdoctoralresearch,Ihaveundertakenanumberofcuratorialprojectsaddressingcyberformancepractice.
MycuratorialprojectsIntimacyandIn.
yer.
face(2006),SéanceforNamJunePaik(2008)andthe080808and090909UpStageFestivals(2008and2009respectively,co-curatedwithHelenVarleyJamiesonandVickiSmith)allhadliveinternetperformancecomponents.
Whiletheseprojectshavebeenasignificantpartofmycreativeprocess,adetaileddiscussionofcyberformancepracticeandthesecuratorialprojectsisoutsidethescopeofthisresearch–toproperlysurveycyberformancepracticewouldbeanewendeavourinitsownright.
Thecasestudyhereisprovidedasanantecedenttomyworkasaperformer,notmyworkinthecapacityofcurator.
157Theitalicsontheword'collision'arepartofthenameoftheperformancetroupe.
43andKarlaPtacek(London).
Theirpracticethematicallyexplorestherelationshipofthebodytothemachine,andwhatitmeanstobehumaninaworldofintelligentmachines.
TheirprojectTriptheLightFantastic(2006)originatedinaproposedartist'sresidencyatSolarCircuitAotearoaNewZealand(hereafterSCANZ)inNewPlymouth,NewZealand.
Someofthemembersofthetroupehaveneveractuallymeteachotherfacetoface(althoughtheyhavebeenperformingtogetheronlineforaround5years):thisresidencywastobethefirsttimethatthefourmembersofthetroupewouldallbeinthesameplaceatthesametime.
Unfortunately,somefundingfellthrough,meaningthatthetwoEurope-basedmembersofthetroupe(KarlaandLeena)couldnottraveltoNewZealand.
AvatarBodyCollisionrosetotheoccasion.
Theydecidedtoproceedwiththeresidencyasthoughallfourwomenwerethere.
AccomodationwasbookedforKarlaandLeena,andduringtheresidencyHelenandVickicarriedontalkingtoeverybodyconcernedasthoughtheothertwowereactuallythere.
Allfourwomencontributedtoafictionalblog,158photoshopping159eachotherintophotographs(seefig.
3.
3-notethedeliberateslippagesintheformalqualitiesoftheimageaswellasthesubterfugeofmeaning),andtellingstoriesaboutthemischiefthattheyweregettingupto.
KarlaandLeenawereperpetuallygettingintotrouble:gettingstuckinthesnow,runningawayfornightsonthetown,andsoon.
That'swhynobodyeversawthemintheflesh.
Buttheywerethere…Fig.
3.
3:AvatarBodyCollision,TriptheLightFantastic(2006).
Cyberformance(photoshoppedimagefromblog).
"Finallywereareallhereandworkingtogetherasagroup.
Wearehuggingalottomakeupallthoseyearswhencouldn'tbutvirtually")kiss"&")pop".
"160ThetwoweekresidencyculminatedinaperformanceattheGovettBrewsterGalleryinNewPlymouth.
Infrontofanonsiteaudience,HelenandVickiplayedontheirUpStage161platform,whiletheywaited(andwaited)fortheothertwotoshowupatthevenue.
Eventually,HelenstartedgettingtextmessagesfromLeena:shewasinAuckland,shehadbeenarrestedforbreakingintothezoo…ButitwasOKthough,shehadbribedtheprisonguardwithabottleofherhighqualityFinnishdutyfree,andshecouldturnuponlineonawebcam.
Andsotheperformanceprogressed.
Attheend,toaroomfullofshockedfaces,itwasannouncedthatKarlahadbeeninLondonandLeenahadbeeninHelsinkithewholetime.
Hereweseeaperformanceprojectthatcertainlydoesnotoperatewithinaconfinednotionofspace.
Theartistsperformfromgloballydispersedlocations,andthetheatricalstageisexpanded-toencompassablog,andalsothephysicalspaceoftheSCANZresidencyaccomodationinNewPlymouth-theperformancetookplaceovertheentiretwoweekdurationoftheresidency,itwasnotconfinedtohalfanhouronastageinatheatreattheGovettBrewsterGallery.
The'audience'evenbecomecomplicit'actors'-duringthecourseoftheresdencysomeoftheartists/visitorsdidbecomeawareofthedeceptionaboutKarlaandLeena'spresenceinNewPlymouth,butafterreachingthisrealisation,withoutfaileachpersondecidedtopropogatethestoriesthemselvestoo.
162Inthisperformanceprojectweseehowdivergentsubjectivitiescanbestitchedbacktogetherthroughtheprocessofmediatisation.
Theartistsexploitthetheatricalspectacleofmediatisedperformancetoexposeit'sverymechanisms.
Theaudienceexperiences(andevenbecomescomplicitin)theperformativeprocessesofdeterritorialisation,andthenreterritorialisation.
Howmighttechnologicallyenabledculturalperformanceembodyanoscillatingtensionbetweenhighandlowperformance(inasensethatintegratesbothculturalandtechnologicalmeaningsoftheterm)Further,isitpossibletoachievethisinamannerthatscrutinisesmediatisedrepresentationsofidentitymoreclosely,inrelationtomainstreammediainapop-culturalcontext158Insmallprint,theheadingfortheblogread'thisisajournalofagreatmeetingthatneverhappened'.
Thisblogcanbeaccessedat.
159Theterm'photoshopped'describesimagesthathavebeendigitallymanipulatedusingthesoftwareAdobePhotoshop(or,idiomatically,anyotherimagemanipulationsoftware).
Initsidiomaticusage,thetermcommonlyhasundertonesofdeliberate'falsification'.
160Fromhttp://bodycollision.
blogspot.
com>161See.
UpStageisanopen-sourcepieceofsoftwarethatisusedintheperformancesofAvatarBodyCollision.
MembersofthecyberformancetroupeareontheUpStageprojectteam,butUpStageisalsousedbyagrowinglistofothercyberformersaroundtheglobeaswell.
162Iknowthistobeafactfrompersonalcommunicationwiththeartists(whoarefriendsandlongtermcollaboratorsofmine)andalsothroughinteractionswithnumerousothersattendingtheresidency.
44AnaesthesiaAssociatesFig.
3.
4:AnaesthesiaAssociates,IMissYou,GreattoSeeYouAgain(2007).
Performance(videostill:Intimacyconference,GoldsmithsCollege,UniversityofLondon).
Thesettingisaparty.
Twomen,dressedasdoctorandnurse,standbehindabankofelectronicequipment,performingalivemixofaudioandprojectedvideo.
Theaudiohasapoundingfour-to-the-floorelectrorhythm.
Thevideoisquick-cut.
"Ajazzdoublebassplayerinblackandwhite,peopleinareastauranttoasting,dancersinanightclub(IsthatJackBlackWhatmovie'sthatfrom),oh,thatOutkast'HappyValentinesDay'song,SarahJessicaParker,scratchingandchoppingupSexandtheCitycharacters,blackandwhiteviolinist,hahait'stheSpiceGirls,isthatMuriel'sWedding,therifffrom'SweetChildofMine',wasthatabitfromNineInchNails"TheperformancesofAnaesthesiaAssociatesarehighenergy(electro/dancemusicwithfast-cutvideo)andhighlytheatrical(weassumevariousarchetypalperformancecharacters:1980'srockheroes,doctorandnurse,andothers).
Performancestakeplaceacrossanumberofcontexts:wehaveperformednumerousgigsatbars,clubsandmusicfestivals;wehaveperformedtogalleryaudiences;andwehavepresented'cyberformances'toonlineaudiencesand/orproximal(onsite)audiences.
163IntheperformancesofAnaesthesiaAssociates(especiallythoseperformancessituatedinatraditionalartcontext:galleries,conferences),atheatricaltensionexistsbetweenhighandlowart.
Theworkdeploysaudiovisualsamplesfrompopular(andfrequentlylow-brow)mainstreammedia,buttheresultingperformanceisframedashighart.
Thistensionisdeliberate.
Glitches(slippagesofmeaning)deterritorialisetheaudiovisualsubjectmattertocreateirreverentandiconoclasticnewmeanings.
Theperformances,forexample,invokegenderpoliticsheavily.
Numerousinstancesofhowgenderidentityis'performed'inmainstreammedia(romanticcomedies,lovesongs)aresplicedtogetherinquicksuccession.
Juxtapositionsensurethattheviewerisnotpresentedwithasingularviewofgender.
Instead,theyarepresentedwithrecontextualisedinformationfromvaryingpointsalongacontinuumofmainstreammediarepresentationsofmalenessandfemaleness.
Thethemeofgenderalsoimplicatesourownbodiesasperformers.
Whilewemix/manipulatesamplesofothersperformingtheirgenderroles,wealsoenactgender-archetypalrolesthroughcostumechangesand/oravatars:doctorandnurse;campglamrockheroes.
163InTheBestAirGuitarAlbumintheWorld,Ever,Vol.
II(2007),forexample,weperformedtoanonsiteaudienceattheFilmArchiveGalleryinWellington,andtheperformancewasalsosimultaneouslyexperiencedbyanonlineaudience.
Conversely,inIMissYou,GreattoSeeYouAgain(2008),IperformedonsitetoaproximalaudienceatGoldsmithsUniversityinLondon,whilePaulperformedonlineinrealtimefromNewZealand.
Therewasnoonlineaudienceforthatpiece.
45Fig.
3.
5:AnaesthesiaAssociates,TheBestAirGuitarAlbumintheWorld,Ever,Vol.
II(2007).
Performance(photograph:070707UpStageFestival,NZFilmArchive,Wellington).
Thegenderundercurrentispairedwithimagesofperformanceitself.
Theaspirationtoperform-thedesireforattentionandadoration-isencapsulated/exaggeratedinsamplesofairguitarists,whicharejuxtaposedwith'real'musicians,samplesofmainstreamhitmusic,samplesofdancers,dancinganddancelessons,andsamplesoffilmandtelevisionactorsplayingtheirroles.
Thetensionbetweenhigh-andlow-performanceinaculturalsenseoperatesinparalleltoatensioninatechnologicalsenseof'performance'-betweenhighandlowtechnology.
Hightechnologyequipmentisusedtocreateslippagesthatsubverttheproductionvaluesofthemainstreammediaintheiroriginalform.
Some(butnotall)samplesarelowquality:videoissampleddirectlyfromcompressedonlinesourceseventhoughthesourcematerialwasoriginallyproducedatbroadcastquality;audioissampledfrommp3sratherthanfullresolutionaudiofileseventhoughthemusicthathasbeensampledwasinitiallyprofessionallyrecorded.
Additionalfiltersandeffectsexaggeratethedegreeofdegradationfromthesource.
Thistheis'glitch'asdeliberatetechnologicalslippage,asimulacraofmalfunction.
SimilartoAvatarBodyCollision'sTriptheLightFantastic,AnaesthesiaAssociates'performancesareheavilyself-referential-itisperformanceabouttechnologicalmediation/mediatisation,performanceaboutperformance.
Ourperformances,however,focusmoredirectlyuponthemediatisinginfluenceofmainstreammediasuchastelevisionandradio.
Wecreateatheatreofslippage–slippagesofmeaningwhichupsetthefunctionalequilibriumtogeneratenewmeanings:slippagesinmediatisedrepresentationsofidentity,slippagesinourownidentitiesasperformers,andthesimulacraoftechnologicalslippage.
46Anaesthesiaisthenounforinsensibilitytopainorothersensation.
Anaestheticisthedrugthatperformsthetask.
An:without.
Thesamplesweselectare"basedonareactionofvisualindifferencewithatthesametimeatotalabsenceofgoodorbadtaste.
.
.
infactacompleteanaesthesia.
"164TheiconoclasticaudiovisualperformancesofAnaesthesiaAssociatesencompassanoscillatingtensionbetweenhigh-andlow-performance:inatechnologicalsense(howtechnologyperforms);inaculturalsense(how/whatweperformasartists);andtoalesserdegreeinanorganisationalsense(wearecalledAnaesthesiaAssociatesafterall,itisourbusinesstooperateinthistheatre).
Ishallreiteratethefirsttwomeanings.
AnaesthesiaAssociatesisahigh-techperformance.
Wemixaudioandvideoinrealtime,variouslyusingarangeofequipment:computers,DVJs,turntables,synthesisers,ahardwaresampler,amidicontroller,anaudiomixer,avideomixer,andsometimesanonlineperformanceplatform,amicrophone,acameraortwo,andanelectricbass.
Theaestheticisedglitches(pixellation,badvideocompression,lowbit-rateaudiocompression)aretightlycontrolled,andthey(usually)behaveexactlyastheyaresupposedto.
Theglitchisanaestheticdevice,andthatslippageisadesiredoutcomewhichistightlycontrolledbytechnology.
Aswellasbeingaformalaestheticdevice,however,theglitchalsodenotesslippageofmeaning.
AnaesthesiaAssociatesisahigh-artperformance.
Wetakehegemonicrepresentationsofidentity(predominantlygenderandsexuality)fromtheiroriginalcontextinmainstreammedia,andrecontextualisethesamplesbyeditingandjuxtaposingthem.
Wealsoeditandrecontextualiseourownidentitesinperformance,creatingmixed,slipperyandmultiplerepresentationsaboutourownsubjectivities.
Wemustbehighart–weperformatgalleriessometimes.
Wehaveperformedataninternationallypeer-reviewed'performanceart'conferenceinLondon.
WehavebeenpublishedaboutinabookcalledTheAotearoaDigitalArtsReader.
Nah,we'reprettylow-browreally.
Wesamplefromcheesyromanticcomediesandfamouslovesongs.
Weplaydress-ups-doctorsandnurses,glamrockgods.
Andwedoittoathumpingfour-to-the-floorelectrobeat.
Actuallyspeakingofrockgods,inthatbookImentioned,therewasanimageofmyavatar-myfacewasphotoshoppedontoAxlRose'sbody,andIwassaying"Makesomefuckin'noise.
.
"164Inourperformances,alistofreferencesisnotprovidedtocontextualisethesamplesused.
Similarly,ifyourecognisethisfootnotedphrase,that'sfantastic,goodforyou!
Ifyoudonotrecallencounteringthephraseanywhereelseprior,thenyouarelimitedtointerpretingitfromitsnewcontextalone.
Sorryaboutthat.
47Chapter4Informationaldelirium:thenormativedimensiontothemashup48***PRESSRELEASE–FORIMMEDIATERELEASE***CopycatCrimereleasestwobrilliantnewalbumssimultaneously.
CopycatCrimehasmadetheraremoveofreleasingtwofull-lengthalbumssimultaneously:CopycatCrime'sUltimatePartymixAlbum,andCopycatCrime'sPenultimatePartymixAlbum.
Thesetwoalbumsareattractingrapidcriticalacclaim–farexceedingtheexpectationsthatareinherentinCopycatCrime'sgregariousdualclaimtoultimacyandpenultimacy.
CopycatCrime'sUltimatePartymixAlbumfeaturesmashupremixesofnumerouspartyhitspastandpresent.
Thealbumnimblytraversesandreconcilesmegahitsofpopularmusic,tocreateaseamlessflowthattrulyisfarmorethanthesumofit'sparts.
Samplingpredominantlyfromrock,pop,hiphop,house/electroandelectronica,thisalbumdeftlymixestogetherartistssuchasDireStraits,Eminem,50Cent,Nena,JayZ,TheBeastieBoys,BangersandCash,BrittanySpears,RobbieWilliams,TwistedSister,Queen,JoanJett,RobbieWilliams,Outkast,DefLeppard,Dr.
Dre,RootsManuva,DeltheFunkyHomosapien,VillagePeople,MissyElliott,DaftPunk,Kiss,BennyBenassi,PublicEnemy,RageAgainsttheMachine,Madonna,Technotronic,Akon,TupacShakurandTheEagles.
CopycatCrime'sPenultimatePartymixAlbumisamoreleft-of-fieldoffering.
Thisalbumcertainlyoffershealthydosesofmegahitsbychart-toppingartistssuchas50Cent,DireStraits,Timbaland,AC/DC,TheBangles,BeastieBoys,RightSaidFred,NewOrder,Outkast,VanHalen,HouseofPain,PointerSisters,EMF,BonJovi,MichaelJackson,INXS,TheChemicalBrothers,PublicEnemy,Guns'n'Roses,BennyBenassi,BasementJaxx,QueenandSnoopDogg,buttherearealsoafewtracksfromslightlyleftoffield-suchasBeck,AphexTwin,Peaches,ThePixies,LyricsBorn,MIA,DJVadimandKraftwerk.
FanshaveeagerlyanticipatedanalbumlengthreleaseeversinceCopycatCrime'srunawayhitMaterialBeat(mixingtogetherMadonna'sMaterialGirlwithMichaelJackson'sBeatIt)appearedonYouTube.
ThisvideowasuploadedshortlyafterthetragicdeathoftheKingOfPop,anditattractedanastonishinglylow112viewsduringit'sfirsttwomonthsonline.
ThetrackalsofeaturedonthecomilationMyLifeWithMadonna(includedwithissue34ofthezineIncrediblyHotSexwithHideousPeople).
CopycatCrimeisapseudonymfortheWellington(NZ)basedDJ/producerDanUntitled.
ThesetwoexclusivealbumsareavailableasCDRcopiesorasmp3sifyoumanagetomakefriendswiththeartistataparty.
***ENDRELEASE***49InformationalDelirium:TheNormativeDimensiontotheMashupThischapterfocusesontheculturalphenomenonandcriticalpossibilitiesofthemashup.
Generallyspeaking,amashupisacombinationofmaterialfromtwoormoresourcestocreateanewproduct.
Inawebdesigncontext,thetermreferstoasitewhichcombinesinformation(aggregatescontent)fromtwoormoreexistingwebsitestocreateanewwebsite.
165Theterm'mashup'isalsocommonlyused,however,inaculturalcontexttorefertothecombinationofpreexistingculturalproducts(music,filmandvideo)tocreatenewculturalproducts.
Intheculturalsphere,digitalproductscanbeeasilycopiedandrecontextualised–juxtaposedwithotherdigitalproductstocreatenew(andoftenunexpected)culturalresonances.
Firstly,tolocatethisculturalphenomenontheoretically,Ishallinvestigatethenotionofthesimulacrum–acopywhichissofarremovedfromit'soriginalthatitcanhardlybeconsideredtobeacopyatall.
JeanBaudrillardfamouslyarguedthatacopydoesnotactuallyrefertothethereal,butthatitbecomesanewrealinit'sownrightwhichismorerealthantheoriginal–ahyperreal.
Further,Baudillairdpositedthat'nothingexistsoutsideofthesimulacrum'-thatweliveinaworldofendlesslyreplicatingsignswhichpointtooneanother.
Baudrillard'sviewisproblematisedbyMassumi'sinterpretationofDeleuzeandGuattari'swork–thatthesimulacrumactuallyconstitutesaspacebetweentherealandthecopy.
Massumi'sworkiscriticalaboutBaudrillard'sbleaknihlisticposition–whichframesthesimulacrumasencompassingonlyexternal,superficial(subjective)relationsbetweensigns,anddoesnotallowforanyobjectivity.
ReadingDeleuzeandGuattari,Massumireconfiguresthesimulacratoencompassallrelations–bothobjectiveandsubjective.
Redefiningthesimulacratoencompassallrelations,however,makesthetermfartoovaguetobeofanyuse.
Evenifthesimulacrum,asBaudrillarddescribesit,isaproblematicconcept,itisstillmoreusefultohaveatermwhichhasaclearlydefinedscope.
Further,eventhoughasingular,absoluteviewofrealityisnave,therealmofartpertainstocreatingpassagesofexperience–signspointtophenomenainlifewhichareexperientiallyreal.
Thesubjectivityofartneedstobeunderpinnedtoacertaindegreebyasenseofsomethingtangible.
Ipositthatthisspacebetweentherealandit'scopyisacontinuum,andthatIneedtoreorientmyselfsomewherealongthatcontinuum(thatis,inrelationtobothconcepts).
Shiftingthefocustotheexperientialimplicationsoflivinginaworldofendlesslyreplicatingsigns,Iturntoatheoreticalframeworkforunderstandingdisplacement.
Foucault'snotionoftheheterotopiaisreviewed-theheterotopiaisaspacewhichissimultaneouslymythicandreal,andwhichchallengesalinearunderstandingoftime.
Asopposedtothe'fundmentallyunreal'utopia–theheterotopiaisdescribedasarealspace,whichexistsprimarilytocontestotherrealspaces.
Foucault'sideasareespeciallyapplicablewherehedescribestheheterotopiaascapableofjustaposingseveralrealsitesthatare,inandofthemselves,incompatible(givingthelibraryasanexample)-anotionwhichclearlyframestheculturalphenomenonofthemashup.
Thestateoftransitionwhereweexperiencethesedisplacementscanbedescribedasliminal–astatewhichischaracterisedbyambiguity,opennessandindeterminacy.
Aproblemarisesinthatweliveinahyperrealculturalclimateinwhich,asJonMcKenzienotes,liminalityisthenorm.
166Iftheliminalstateisnowthenorm,itbegsthequestionofwhetherheterotopiasstillactuallyfunctiontocontestestablished'reals'.
UnlikeMcKenzie,however,Idonotbelievethatthisnormativedimensiontoliminalityisafault.
Thecoreissueisactuallyoneofassimilation–thatartistswillalwaystrytocontestestablishednorms(ofculturalpractice),buttheseliminalstrategieswillalsobesubjecttoacontinualprocessofassimilationintoacanonofacceptedpractice.
Thecurrentculturalclimateisonewhichisproliferatedbyculturalproductswhichreconfigureotherculturalproducts.
Inthisclimateliminalculturalpracticesareperpetuallyassimilated.
Inthisclimate,signsrefertoarealitywhichisnotabsolute,butourexperienceofitistangibleandexperientiallyreal.
Thisclimateisdescribedas'informationaldelirium'.
Turningtopracticalcasestudies,Iwillinvestigatethehistoryofappropriation,samplingandremix/mashuppractices,focussingpredominantlyuponthistraditionwithinmusic.
Itisnotathoroughhistory,butratheritdenotesafewkeymarkersinatrajectorytowardsthecurrentculturalclimate-inwhichthesetacticshavebecomethenorm.
Thestrategiesofappropriationinvisualartspracticearecomparedtothoseofmusicalworkswhichdeploysampling,inordertoestablishhowmashup/samplingstrategiescanoperateinanartcontext.
NicholasBourriaud'sframeworkof'postproduction'isoutlinedandcriticisedhereforformulatingwell-establishedtraditionswithinmusic(andinvisualarts)as'newtrends'inthefieldoffinearts.
Ratherthanattemptingtolocatemashupproductionasnewandoriginal,thenormativedimensiontothesepracticesishighlighted.
Themashupistreatedasa'given'–anestablishedculturalstrategywhichcanitselfbedeconstructedandrecontextualised.
Mashupsareemblematicoftheculturalclimateofinformationaldeliriumfortwokeyreasons:firstlybecausetheyaredisorientatingandheterotopicintheirownright,andsecondlybecausemashupsarenotall165Forexample,datafromgooglemapscouldbecombinedwithdatafromasitethatlistsrestaurantsinanarea–tocreateanewsitewhichgeneratesmapsofwheretofindlocalrestaurants.
Althoughwebmashupsaresometimesusedforartisticpurposes,theyarefarmorecommonlyappliedforpractical/businesspurposes.
OneexampleofawebsitemashupdoneasanartprojectistheNewZealanderJoshOn'sTheyRule(2004,).
Thisprojectaggregates2004datafromweb-baseddirectoriesofthoseholdingpowerfulpositionsinthetopcompaniesintheU.
S.
A.
,inordertounveilandmapprofessionalinterrelationshipsbetweenthesepeople.
JoshOnisamemberofFuturefarmers,agroupofartpractitionersbasedinSanFrancisco.
166McKenzie,2001.
50thatnew,andtheyhavebeenassimilatedintomainstreampop-culturalpractices.
How,then,canthestrategiesandimplicationsofmashupproductionberecontextualisedinaninstallationartworkthatreflectsuponthenuancesofinformationaldeliriumThischapterconcludeswithBrokenWineGlasses2.
0-aninstallationartworkwhichdeploysthemashupmusicofCopycatCrime(whichisoneofmyperformancepseudonyms).
Asaninstallation,BrokenWineGlasses2.
0recontextualisestheaudiomashupsofCopycatCrimeintoanenvironmentreminiscentofthedysfunctionalaftermathofaparty.
BrokenWineGlasses2.
0conteststheconvivialityofCopycatCrime-treatingtheinformationaldeliriumofmashupproduction/performanceasaculturalgiven,andframingtheverystrategiesofthisproductionasthesubjectofinvestigation.
Iwilldemonstratehowdisplacingthismusicfromit'sinsitucontext(parties,mashupvideoswhicharepostedonline,mp3swhicharedisseminatedamongstfriends)highlightsthenormativedimensiontothesetactics,andcreatesadissonantcombinationofhumourandpathos.
ThesimulacrumIndexicality-thevariationofmeaningaccordingtocontext-characterisesdigitalmediapractice.
Weareboundbycyclesofdecodedandencodedinformation,byanendlessprocessofremixingandreexamining.
InWalterBenjamin'sseminalessayTheWorkofArtintheAgeofMechanicalReproduction,theideathatartworkshave'aura'wasinitiated,alongwiththepropositionthattheprocessofmechanicalreproductiondestroysthisaura.
Benjamin'sfrequentlycitedframeworkpositsthat"[t]hepresenceoftheoriginalistheprerequisitetotheconceptofauthenticity".
167Mechanicalreproductionnowfacesthechallengesofanewageofdigitalreproduction.
Whilemechanicallyormanuallyreproducedobjectshaveimplicitlimitstotheiravailability/accessibility,digitalobjectsdonothavealimitofthistype.
Inprinciple,aninfinitenumberofanysingledigitalworkcouldbeproducedwithoutachangeorloss,orevendeviationbetweenanyoftheworks.
Conversely,thereproducibilityofdigitalmediaalsoenablesaninfinitenumberofnewvariantworkstobemade,worksknownvariouslyas'cut-up','mashup','remix','collage','montage',and'database-drivenwork'.
Theterm'simulacrum'iscentraltoanunderstandingofthesetypesofculturalproduction.
ThetermoriginatesfromtheLatinwordsimulcra,meaningsimilarityorlikeness,andcomingfromthesamerootwordassimul(tosimulate).
Itwashistoricallyunderstoodtodenotesomethingthattakestheappearanceofanother,suchasacultimagerepresentingadeity.
FredricJamesoncitesphotorealistpaintingasanexample:thepaintingisnotacopyofreality,butratheracopyofaphotograph,whichisalreadyacopyoftheoriginal.
168Inpostmodernthinking,simulacraarecommonlydefinedasdenotingcopiesofcopies,whichhavebeensofarremovedfromtheiroriginalsthattheycannolongerbeconsideredcopiesatall.
TheFrenchsocialtheoristJeanBaudrillardfamouslydeployedthisconceptinasemioticcontext,alongwiththeconceptofsimulation,toanalysethephenomenonofmassreproductionandreproducibilitythatcharacteriseselectronicmediaculture.
SpeculatinguponphenomenonrangingfromDisneylandtothehologram,Baudrillarddescribesanendlessandcyclicalinterplayofsigns.
169BaudrillardevenproposesGodtobeasimulacrum,duetotheculturalandsocialreproductionandmanipulationofsignsthatpointtothedeity.
Thecopiesultimatelyreplacetheoriginal.
Baudrillardconcludesbyproclaiminghimselfanihilist,asonewhoobserves,acceptsandassumes"…theimmenseprocessofthedestructionofappearances(andoftheseductionofappearances)intheserviceofmeaning(representation,history,criticism,etc.
)thatisfundamentalfactofthenineteenthcentury".
170TheBaudrillardianworldviewhasbeencommonlycriticisedasbleakanduntenable,171butanin-depthanalysisofthislineofcriticismisnotthefocusofthisresearch.
ThesalientissueisthatBaudrillardviewssimulacraasnegativephenomena–anecessaryevil.
Incontrast,Deleuzetakesamorepositiveview,seeingsimulacraascapableofcontestingandoverturningestablishedideals.
Deleuzedefinessimulacraas"thosesystemsinwhichdifferentrelatestodifferentbymeansofdifferenceitself.
Whatisessentialisthatwefindinthesesystemsnoprioridentity,nointernalresemblance".
172167Benjamin,1936,p.
24.
WhileBenjamin'sframeworkisfrequently(erroneously)associatedwithnostalgiaforalostaurawhichisinherentinoldermodalitiesofartpractice,itisworthnotingthatBenjaminfirmlysituatedhimselfwithinacampthatbelievedintheprogressiveabilityoftechnologytoenhanceart'sabilitytoberadical.
168Jameson,1984,p.
75.
169Baudrillard,1994.
170Ibid,1994,p.
160.
171AkeyexampleofcriticismthataddressesthepurporteduntenabilityoftheBaudrillardianworldviewisChristopherNorris'book-lengthcritique,entitledUncriticalTheory:Postmodernism,IntellectualsandtheGulfWar(1992).
172Deleuze,1968,p.
299.
51ThesocialtheoristBrianMassumi'sexpandsuponDeleuze's(andalsoGuattari's)ideasaboutthesimulacra.
173AccordingtoMassumi,DeleuzeandGuattari'sideasopenupamethodologythatdoesnotlaunchusdeeperintoaBaudrillardianhypercynicism,butneitherdoesitsuggestareturntonaverealism.
Athirdwayofunderstandingtheculturalconditionunderlatecapitalism,asMassumireadsDeleuzeandGuattari,istounderstandthesimulacrumasunderminingtheverydistinctionbetweencopyandoriginal.
174InMassumi'sownwords,"[t]hetermscopyandmodelbindustotheworldofrepresentationandobjective(re)production.
Acopy,nomatterhowmanytimesremoved,authenticorfake,isdefinedbythepresenceorabsenceofinternal,essentialrelationsofresemblancetoamodel.
Thesimulacrum,ontheotherhand,bearsonlyanexternalanddeceptiveresemblancetoaputativemodel".
175Ifweusetheterm'copy',itimpliesthatthereisasingularobjective'original'fromwhichthecopyderives.
Conversely,ifwewetakeableakBaudrillardianviewofthesimulacra–anendless,cyclicalinterplayofsigns–thenthereisnoobjectivity,onlysubjectivity.
WhatMassumiseemstoimplyhereisthattheBaudrillardiansimulacrumdoesnotallowforinternalrelations,onlyexternal,superficialsignswhichpointtooneanother.
InMassumi'sreadingofDeleuzeandGuattari,then,thesimulacrummustencompassbothinternalandexternalrelations;bothobjectivityandsubjectivity.
IagreethatMassumihasaccuratelyanalyed/interpretedDeleuzeandGuattari'snotionofthesimulacrum,butIdonotagreewithwhatitimplies.
Ifweconcedetothisre-definition,thesimulacrumbecomestoovaguetobeofanyusewhatsoever.
Ifitisreconfiguredtoencompassallrelations–objectiveandsubjective-thenthetermlosesallofthespecificitiesthatactuallymakeituseful.
TheBaudrillardiandefinitionofthesimulacrumretainsacertaincriticalclaritybecauseitdoesnotevenclaimtoapplytothe'real'.
Itdoesnotnecessarilyfollow,however,thatweshouldshareBaudrillard'sbleaknihlisticworldview.
Massumiaskswhether"wereallyhavenootherchoicethanbeinganaverealistorbeingasponge"176Yes,Idohaveachoice.
Ononehand,Imustacknowledgetheshortfallsinherenttotheworldofrepresentation.
Ontheotherhand,Ialsoneedtoacknowledgethelimitationsofthesimulacraasaterm.
Ineedtoorientmyselfsomewhereonacontinuumbetweenthesetwoextremities(realityandsimulation)–bothendsofthespectrumareuntenablebythemseves.
Aworldviewinwhichallcopiespointbacktoobjective,verifiablerealityisnave.
TheBaudrillardianworldview-thatnothingexistsoutsideofthesimulacra-isequallyuntenable,partlybecauseitisbleakandnihlistic,butperhapsmoreimportantlybecauseitdoesnotaccuratelydescribemostpeople'slivedexperience.
Evenifapure,absolutenotionoftherealisanuntenablenavety-ifallfacetsoflifearepartlysimulated–mostpeoplewouldstillholdontotheideaoftheirownexperientialreality.
Itwouldbenavetoclaimitasabsolutereality,butitisstillthe'reality'thattheyexperiencefromtheirownuniquesubjectposition.
Itdoesnothelp,however,totakecriticalterminologyfromoneendofthespectrum(simulation),andtrytoforceitrefertoaspaceinthemiddle(asDeleuzeandGuattarido).
Thesimulacrumismostusefulasatermwhichclearlydenotesoneendofthiscontinuum-eveniftherearecriticallimitationstothatposition,itisusefultohaveawordforit.
RedefiningthesimulacruminthemannerthatDeleuzeandGuattari'sworkimpliesisconfusing,sinceitdivergesfromanestablishedtraditionaboutwhatthetermrefersto.
Wedonotneedtoredefinethetermitself,weneedtore-orientourselvesinrelationtoit.
RecallthatinDeleuze'searlierwriting,177hepositedthatthesimulacraarepositive,becausetheyarecapableofcontestingestablishedidealsandpriviledgedpositions.
Identifyingthismotivationclearlygroundsthediscussioninthetheoreticalterrainofsubjectivity,anditimpliesanunderlyingfocusuponpowerrelations.
Inmyview-concurringwithDeleuze'smotivationbehindhisinvestigation(butnothisconclusionwithGuattariofprovidinganewdefinitionforanoldterm)-simulationisinterestingpreciselybecausecopyingaculturalproductimplicitlycritiquesthepower-knowledgeformationsthatareembeddedinthatproduct.
Sinceredefiningtheterm'simulacrum'itselfisproblematic,however,itisperhapsclearertoinvestigateanotheroptionfordescribingthedisplacementsthatoccurwhenculturalproductsarecopied,pasted,andmanipulated.
PerhapsFoucault–whosustainsamoredirectfocusonpower-knowledgeformations–willofferaclearerframeworkforunderstandingculturaldisplacement.
TheheterotopiaandtheliminalnormTheterm'heterotopia'hasaninformativeetymology:itwasfirstusedinmedicinetorefertothedisplacementofanorganorpartofanorganfromit'snormalposition,andalsotorefertothepsychologicalconditionofjumblingsoundsinwords.
ItderivesfromclassicalGreek:heterotranslatesas'different'or'other',-topiaderivesfromtoposwhich173BrianMassumiwritesfromthevantagepointofhavingworkedcloselywiththeFrenchthinkerstotranslateAThousandPlateaus:CapitalismandSchizophrenia(1987)intoEnglish.
174Massumi,1987175Ibid,p.
90.
176Massumi,1987,p.
90.
177DifferenceandRepetitionwaswrittenin1968,wellbeforeDeleuzebegancollaboratingwithGuattari.
52translatesas'place'.
Alludingtothemedicalsenseoftheterm,Foucaultcoinedanovelusageof'heterotopia'todescribearealspacethatis'other',simultaneouslymythicandreal.
178Foucaultdefinesheterotopiasasconsistingofadispersednetworkofinterconnectingpointsthatcontestalinearunderstandingoftimeandspacethroughtheirtransitoryandtemporalnature.
Compareheterotopiawiththefamiliarterm'utopia'.
ThetermutopiawasfirstcoinedtosuggesttwoGreekconceptssimultaneously:ou-topia'withoutplace,nowhere',andalsopunningoneu-topia:theprefix-eudenoteshappinessorwellness.
Foucaultcontrastsheterotopiaswiththe'fundamentallyunreal'spacesthataretheutopias.
Foucault'sconceptionoftheheterotopiaprovidesaframeworkforunderstandingthein-between,liminalplacesthatappearineveryculture.
Importantly,hedescribestheseheterotopicspacesasrealsiteswhichrepresent,contestandinvertotherrealsites.
Usingthemirrorasametaphor,heproposesthatthesespacesreflectlargerculturalpatternsandsocialorders.
Inhisthirdprinciple,hepositsthattheheterotopiaiscapableofjuxtaposingseveralrealspacesthatareinandofthemselvesincompatible,givingthelibraryasanexample.
179Thenotionoftheliminalhasbeenwidelywrittenabout,butitisalsoworthprovidingabriefdefinitionofthistermhere.
Theliminalstate(derivedfromtheLatinwordlmen,meaning"athreshold")ischaracterizedbyambiguity,openness,andindeterminacy.
Liminalityisaperiodoftransition,duringwhichnormallimitstothought,self-understanding,andbehaviourarerelaxed,openingthewaytosomethingnew.
ThetermiswidelyusedbyarttheoristsalthoughitwascoinedbytheanthropologistArnoldvanGeneppin1909andusedheavilybyVictorTurnerandotherstorefertoatransitionalstageinritesofpassage.
180Thequintessentialaestheticfeaturesofliminalityarehybridisation,indeterminacy,alackofaura,andthecollapseofthehierarchicaldistinctionbetweenhighandpopularculture.
Quasi-generictraitsaregivenasexperimentation,heterogeneity,innovation,marginalityandanemphasisontheintersemiotic.
181Artistshavearguablyalwaysbeeninterestedintheliminal.
TheheterotopicstatethatFoucaultwroteaboutinthelate1960sisnowthenorm.
Ontheinternet,informationisconstantlyhyperlinkedtoandthusrecontextualised.
AsIshallshortlydemonstratethroughpracticalcasestudies,culturalproducersubiquitouslyrecontextualiseeachother'sculturalproducts.
Ifpower-knowledgerelationsareinaconstantstateofheterotopia,itraisesthequestionofwhethertheheterotopiastillfunctionstorepresent,contestandinvertotherrealsites.
DoestheideaofdisplacementembeddedinthemedicaloriginsofthetermstillapplyifthisliminalityisthenormJonMcKenzieraisesthisissueofthe"liminal-norm"inPerformorElse,highlightingthenormativedimensiontocurrentunderstandingsofliminalityinperformancepractice.
McKenziewritesfromwithinabroaderproject,searchingforageneralisedtheoryoftheterm'performance'thatincorporatescultural,organisational,andtechnologicalunderstandingsoftheterm.
Withinthiscontextheidentifiesthatscholarsofperformancestudies(culturalperformance)activelyresistorrejectdefinitionsthatfirmlylocatetheparadigm.
McKenziesuggeststhatinmaintainingastateof'inter-'orin-between,theliminalandtransgressivebecomesthenorm,andthattherejectionofliminalitybecomesatransgressiveactforaperformancestudiesscholar.
182AlthoughMcKenziewritesspecificallyaboutliminalityinperformancestudies,hisconceptarguablyappliesequallytotechno-liminality,tothetransgressionofthresholdslimitinghowtechnologyissupposedtoperform.
WhilelargelyconcurringwithMcKenzie'sastuteresearch,unlikehim,Idonotconsiderthisnormativedimensionof(cultural)liminalitytobeafault.
Theveryfactthatartistscontinuetoinvestigatethelimitsoftheirmediaunderscorestheimportanceofthisprocess.
ArguablyMcKenzie'spositionvergesontautology;liminalityisthenorminartpreciselybecauseitistheroleoftheartisttotestlimits.
Ifthisnormativedimensiontoliminalityisnotactuallyafault,thentheheterotopiastilldoesfunctiontocontestrealsites.
Itisperhapsmostusefultoconsidertheprocessasacyclicalpattern.
Artistsinherentlytestlimits(well,goodartists).
Familiarconceptsandimages,comfortablepolitics,establishedmodesofproducing-thesearecontestedtimeandtimeagainwhenartiststakeustonewliminalspaces.
ThekeyfacetthatMcKenziehighlightsisthenormativedimensiontothisactivity–theprocessofassimilation.
AlthoughIcriticisedDeleuzeandGuattari'sredefinitionofthesimulacrumastoovague,thiscycleofliminalityandassimilationechoesanotherideaoftheirs–thenotionofdeterritorialisationandreterritorialisationthatwasdescribedinChapter3.
Artistscreateworksthatdeterritorialise,buttheirpracticesalwaysfindnewterritorialities-thenormativedimensiontoliminalityisactuallyasimpleprocess:beingassimilatedintoacanonofacceptedpractice.
Thefactthatthesepracticesareeventuallyassimilateddoesnot,however,underminetheirabilityto178Foucault,1967.
179Ibid,p.
4.
180LiminalityisthequalityofthesecondstageofaritualintheanthropologicaltheoriesofArnoldvanGennep(1909),VictorTurner(1967),andothers.
Inthesetheories,aritual,especiallyariteofpassage,accomplisheschangebyseparatingparticipantsfromtherestoftheirsocialgroup(thefirst,orpreliminarystage:separation);aperiodduringwhichoneis'betwixtandbetween',neitheronestatusnortheother(theliminalstage);andaperiodduringwhichone'snewsocialstatusisconfirmed(thefinal,orpostliminalstage:reincorporation).
181Broadhurst,1999,pp.
11-13.
Broadhurstalsodescribestheutilisationofthelatestdevelopmentsinmediaanddigitaltechnologyasaquasi-generictraitofliminality,butthisisnotentirelyaccurate:practicesthatdonotutilisenewtechnologiesarealsocommonlydescribedasliminal.
182McKenzie,2001,p.
50.
53contestestablishedpositionsattheoutset.
Forthesakeofclarity,Ishalltakeamomenttosummarisemycriticalposition.
WhilesomepeoplecriticiseBaudrillard'sviewofthesimulacraasbleak,nihlisticanduntenable,Iquestionhispositionfordifferentreasons.
Simulacra,Baudrillardclaims,donotpointtoareal-theyonlypointtoothersimulacra.
Iarguedthat,althoughtheotherendofthecontinuum(asingular,absoluteviewofreality)isnave,therealmofculturalpracticepertainstocreatinguniquepassagesofexperience,anditisthesesubjective,experientialrealitiesthatwecreatesignstopointto.
Massumi'sinterpretationofDeleuzeandGuattaritrystoredefinethesimulacraasencompassingbothsubjectivityandobjectivity,butthisideaistoovague.
Thesimulacrumismoreusefulasatermthathasaclearscope(howeverproblematic),ratherthanasavaguetermthatencompassesboththerealandthesimulated.
Inordertoframethedisplacingeffectofculturalproductswhicharederivedfromcopiesofotherculturalproducts,Foucault'snotionoftheheterotopiawasintroduced.
Thenormativedimensionofliminality,aspositedbyMcKenzieisdismissedasvergingontautology,becauseartistsinherentlytestlimits.
Ifthatisthecase,thentheheterotopiastilldoesfunctiontocontestrealsites,butweneedtobeawareoftheconstantprocessesofassimilationatplay–inwhichstrategieswhichareliminaleventuallyfindtheirwayintothecanonofacceptedpractice.
Ishallrefertothisclusterofideas-thisfusionofDeleuzianandFoucauldianthought-as'informationaldelirium'.
Informationaldeliriumdenotestheliminal/heteroptopicculturalclimateinwhichartistscannotconcedetoanaveandabsolutevisionofasingular'reality'.
Neither,though,cantheyconcedetoableakhyperrealworldofsimulationandignorelivedexperiencecompletely-especiallyiftheyareinterestedinnotionsofsubjectivityandpower-knowledgeformations.
Further,theculturalclimateofinformationaldeliriumacknowledgesthatartistsareconstantlytryingtochallengeestablishedformationsofpower-knowledge,buttheyarethemselvessubjecttotheprocessesofassimilationintopositionswithinthehegemonyofacceptedculturalpractice.
183How,thendoesthiscyclicalprocessunderpinningthenotionofinformationaldeliriumoperateinpracticeIwillstartwithaninvestigationintothehistoryofsampling/appropriationinmusic,andthenormativedimensiontothishistory.
Keycasestudiesofsamplingpracticeinmusic"For[RichardWagner]believedthatsignificantartisticcreationscouldonlyarisefromactsofdaringsimilartohisownappropriationandcompletionofBeethoven[.
.
.
]Yethewasclearlyconfidentthatnobodywoulddarefindhisownworkincompleteorneedtoproposeafutureforhismusicdramas.
"184Theappropriationofmotifs,formsandstructuresfrompreexistingcompositionspervadesthehistoryofmusic.
Itiswelldocumented,forexample,thatmusicfromthelateRomanticperiod(1850–1900)ischaracterisedbytheappropriationofmotifsfromlocalfolkmusic.
Samplingistheactofcopyingaportionofmusicfromanexistingrecording,andreusingitinanewcontext.
Samplingpracticemarriesthe(broad)methodologyofappropriationwiththe(specific,technologicallyenabled)abilitytocopyandreplicatepreexistingrecordings.
Samplinghadalonghistoryinavantgardepracticebeforeitgainedmainstreamculturalcurrency.
Inordertounderstandthenormativedimensiontothesestrategies,itisimportanttoprefacethediscussionwithabriefhistoryofthesemusicalstrategies,highlightinghoweachculturalshiftalongthishistorycanbeunderstoodasliminalatthetimethattheartist(s)madetheirdevelopments.
Aswithmanyartisticdevelopments,samplingcouldonlybecamepossibleoncetheenablingtechnologyhadbeeninvented.
In1877,ThomasEdisoninventedthe'talkingandsoundwritingmachine'–thefirstofmanydevicestorecordandplaybacksound.
Recordingandplaybackdevicestookanumberofdifferentincarnations,andeventuallythefirstphonographsbecamecommerciallyavailableintheearlydecadesofthe20thcentury.
185Anumberofyearslater(1939),thecomposerJohnCagecreatedImaginaryLandscapeNo.
1.
InthispiecetwoturntablesplayedRCAtesttonesandothersounds,andthespeed(pitch,timbre)ofthesesoundswasmanipulated.
Increatingthispiece,Cageinitiatedtheideathatpre-recordedsoundscouldbe'played'inamusicalmanner-likethenotesonanyotherinstrumentcouldbe.
186Ayearlater,theFrenchsoundengineerPierreSchaefferdiscoveredatechniquefor'looping'recordedsoundsbycreating'lockedgrooves',187andMusiqueConcretewasborn.
Schaefferenvisagedamusictobeperformedonmultipleturntablesbymanipulatingthespeedofthesesounds,andhewentontocreateaseriesofetudeswhichherecordedin1948.
183Notethatthisfacetofinformationaldeliriumechoesthe'paradoxofcomplicity'whichIdiscussedinchapter2.
184Glauert,1999,p.
5.
185Edison's'talkingandsoundwritingmachine'wassupercededbyAlexanderGrahamBell'sgraphophoneandthenEmileBerliner'sgramophone.
Subsequentdevelopmentswereindebtedtoadvancementsmadeintheradioandtelecommunicationsindustries.
ShortlyafterthetelecommunicationscompanyWesternElectriclaboratorieshadintroducedelectricalamplificationtechnologyin1925,Belllaboratoriesmadeimprovementsinthefidelityofaudiorecordings.
Theysoldthelicencetoanumberofcompanies,includingTheVictorTalkingMachineCompany–whobecametheleadingproducerofphonographsandphonographrecords.
186Cage'sideasreliedupontheenablingtechnology,buttheyalsoexpandeduponthemusicologicalgroundworklaidbytheItalianfuturistLuigiRussolo'sintonamori(noisemakingmachines)–andtheideascontainedinhismanifestoTheArtofNoises(1913),whichassertedtheideathateachandeverysoundhasitsownmusicality.
Russolomadehisintonamoritoemulatenoisesfromindustrialisedsociety,andthenorchestratedthesesoundsinperformancesasearlyas1914-15.
187Onanormalrecord,thestylustravelsalongagroovewhichspiralsfromtheedgetothecentre.
Witha'lockedgroove'thestylustravelsinacircle,thusplayingaloopofaudio.
54Thepracticeofmanipulatingpre-recordedsoundsformusicalperformanceremainedfirmlyavantgardeuntilWorldWarII,afterwhichitspreadthroughoutEuropeinthe1950s.
Duetotheprohibitivecostofsendinglivebandstoperformfortroops,DJswereassignedtheduty–armedwithturntables,anamplifier,andacollectionofrecords.
188ItwasatthispointthatDJingbegantobecomeanacceptedmodeofmusicalperformance,butinmainstreamopiniontherewasstillacleardelineationbetweentheDJ(whosimplyplayedrecords)andthemusician(whoplayedaninstrument).
Duringthesameperiod,however,dancehalls189inJamaicafeaturedDJspromotingthelatestAmericanreleases.
ItwasnotlongbeforeelectronicsengineerKingTubby(OsborneRuddock,fig.
4.
1)begancreatinghisowninstrumentalmixesofpopularAmericantracks.
Hepressedthese'versions'ontoacetatetolimitavailability,andheintroducedliveeffects(delay,reverb,equalisation,flange,phaseandmore)tosethisownperformances(withHomeTownHi-FiSystem)apartfromthecompetition.
190Dubmusicwasborn,andtheideaofmusicalperformancethroughthehands-onmanipulationofprerecordedmaterialbegantogainculturalimpetus.
Fig.
4.
1:KingTubbyinhisstudio.
By1969,theJamaicanDJKoolHerchadrelocatedtoNewYorkandwasgettingregularbookings.
Herchadnoticedthatthedrumbreakdownonagiventrackkeptpeopledancing,andusingtwocopiesofthesamerecord,heextendedthatsectionadinfinitum–introducingtheworldtothe'breakbeat'.
DrawinguponJamaicansoundsystemculturehealsointroducedMCsintothemix,andtheblueprintforhiphopwasborn.
Hiphopremainedasub-culturalphenomenonforalmostadecade–itwasnotuntilthelate1970s/early1980sthathiphopwouldstarttoachievemainstreamculturalrecognition.
TheAdventuresofGrandmasterFlashontheWheelsofSteel191iswidelyconsideredtobeamilestoneinthehistoryofwhatwouldlaterbecalled'turntablism'.
192Theimportanceofthistrackisdifficulttooverstate.
Firtly,GrandmasterFlash's(fig4.
2)sheertechnicalvirtuosityisastoundingforthetime(combining'scratches','stabs',mixing,'beatlooping'and'backtobacking'193inasevenminuteopus).
Thehistoryofthetechnicaldevelopmentofturntablism(thatis,whoinventedwhichtechnique)iswelldocumentedelsewhere,194thekeyfocushereisontheculturalresonancesofthepracticesofsamplingandappropriation.
Fig.
4.
2:GrandmasterFlash.
Film(still).
195Asidefromthetrack'stechnicalvirtuosity,TheAdventuresisalsonotableasoneofthefirst'megamix'196recordings(certainlythemostfamousoftheseearlyrecordings)tobecommittedtovinyl.
ThetrackcombinesclearlyrecognisableexcerptsofBlondie'sRapture(1981),Queen'sAnotherOneBitestheDust(1980),Chic'sGoodTimes(1979),samplesfromthemovieFlashGordon(1980),andanumberofotherexcerptsincludingothertracksbyGrandmasterFlashandtheSugarhillGang.
197Capturingtheattentionofhisaudienceswithhistechnicalvirtuosity,Flashaddedimpetustotheexplicitappropriationandrecontextualisationofotherpeople'smusicalforms.
TheAdventuresbecameaclearinspirationforlatermegamixreleasessuchasDoubleDeeandSteinski'sLessonseriesofrecordings,andnumerousotherstofollow.
ThehiphopproducersDoubleDeeandSteinskiusedtapeloopsratherthanvinyltoproducetheirinfluentialmegamixes,andtheirmethodpre-datedtheadventofaffordablesamplingtechnologybyafewyears.
198Thefirstof188DJMarkski,2002,p.
5.
189Dancehallisacommonlyusedtermindubmusic(andalsothenameofamusicalsub-genre),butitisabitofamisnomer–thevastmajorityoftheseconcerts/partiesoccurredinoutdoorsettings.
190Toop,2006,p.
356;DJMarkski,2002,p.
6.
191GrandmasterFlash,1981.
192Theoriginsoftheterm'turntablism'aredisputed.
ThedocumentaryScratch(Pray,2001),forexample,interviewsDJBabu(BeatJunkies,DilatedPeoples),whoclaimstohavecoinedtheterm.
DJDisk(RockSteadyCrew,InvisiblSkratchPiklz)alsoclaimstohaveinventedtheterm(inthebiographyonhisofficialwebsite,).
YetanotherclaimisthatDJSupreme(DJforLaurynHill)coinedtheterm(accessedat.
193Ascratchiscreatedbymovingarecordbackandforth(whilstmanipulatingthecrossfaderonaDJmixer)tocreatearubbingsound;a'stab'isolatesaparticularsoundonarecord(suchasanoteonatrumpet)withoutmovingtherecord;'beatlooping'isatechniquepioneeredbyDJKoolHerc,inwhichtwoidendticalrecordsareusedtoloopamusical/rhythmicphrase;'backtobacking'isanextensionofthebeatloopingtechniquewhereonerecordplaysthebasicphrase,andtheotherrecordisusedtoisolateadditionalnotesorbeatsandaddcomplexitytothephrase.
194Markski(2002),forexample,providesaninsightfuloverviewofwhoinventedanumberoftheseDjingtechniques.
195ThisstillimageisfromGrandmasterFlash'sguestappearanceinthefilmWildStyle(Fab5FreddyandAhearn,1983).
196Amegamixisarecordedworkthatcombinedpreexistingrecordedpiecestocreateanewcomposition.
197Tabrizi,2002.
198ThefirstcommerciallyavailablesamplerwastheComputerMusicMelodian(whichbecameavailablein1976),butearlysamplerssuchasthiswereprohibitivelypricedandcouldonlybepurchasedbyrecordingstudiosandusedbytrainedengineers.
TheE-MuSP-1200(releasedin1987)andtheAkaiMPCseries(theMPC-60wasreleasedin1988)werepricedinabracketthatartistscouldafford,pavingthewayfordigitalsamplingpracticestogainpopularity.
55DoubleDandSteinski'srecordingswasLesson1–ThePayoffMix(1983),montagingnumeroustrackstoproduceamusicalpiecethattoldthemusicalhistoryunderpinninghiphopmusicthroughsampling.
Oncedigitalsamplersbecameavailableandaffordable,artistsbegantoexperimentmorewidelywiththeiruse.
AswiththeDJ'suseoftheturntable,thehiphopproducer'suseofthedigitalsamplerwasadeviationfromit'sintendedusage.
TriciaRose,inherexcellent(predominantlyethnomusicological)studyofhiphopBlackNoise,identifiesthatdigitalsamplerswereinitiallyinventedtocorrectnotes/phraseswhichwererecordedbymusiciansliveinthestudio.
"Priortorapmusic'sredefinitionoftherolesamplersplayinmusicalcreativity,samplerswereusedalmostexclusivelyastimeandmoneysavingdevicesforproducers,engineersandcomposers[…]Forthemostpartsampleswereusedto'fleshout'oraccentamusicalpiece,nottobuildanewone"199Hiphopproducers,however,foundthatthistechnologyenableda"meansbywhichtheprocessofrepetitionandrecontextualisation[could]behighlightedandprivileged.
"200Turntablism,samplingandremixinghavenowbecomeextremelymainstreampractices,andtheinfluenceoftheseinnovationscanobviouslybefoundfarbeyondhiphop/rapmusicintoday'sculturalclimate.
Infact,alloftheinnovationsIhavecitedsofarhavebeensubsequentlyassimilatedasacceptedmodesofmusicalpractice.
WagnerheavilyinfluencedthecanonofWesternclassicalmusic.
JohnCagebecameoneofthekeyfiguresofthepost-warAmericanavantgarde(musicallyandalsointhevisualarts,notablyinhisaffiliationwiththeFluxusmovement).
Dubmusic'sstrategies('versioning'existingsongs)andit'ssignaturesounds(accentuatedbasslinesandrhythmsections,delaysandotherfilters)-pioneeredbyKingTubby-pervadethespectrumofcontemporarydancemusic(albeitdigitalequivalentsofprocessesthatwereinitiallyanalogue).
Hiphopisnowahighlymainstreammusicalgenre(anditisamulti-billiondollarbusinessinthemusicindustry).
Samplingand/orturntablismcanbeheardinprettymucheverythirdsongonmainstreamradio.
Thereisaclearprocessofassimilationatplaywithallofthesemusicalinnovations.
Iwillshortlylookspecificallyattheculturalphenomenonofmashups(andthenormativedimensiontothisphenomenon).
Theartworkwhichispresentedattheendofthischapterusesmashups,butitisaninstallation-framedas'fineart'-anditisthususefultofirstinvestigatetheparallelsbetweensamplingandvisualartspracticeswherestrategiesofappropriationaredeployed.
Appropriationstrategiesinvisualartspracticeandinmusic"[T]hereadymadeissimultaneouslytheoperationthatreducestheworkofarttoit'senunciativefunctionandthe'result'ofthisoperation,aworkofartreducedtothestatement'thisisart'.
"201"Appropriationimpliesthatnewassociationsareproducedbyplacingelementsfromaworkalreadyknownwithinanewframework.
Hencewhilethereadymadepresupposesafactualtransferofcontext-fromthebathroomtotheartgallery–theactofappropriationpresupposesamorediffusecontextualtransfer[…]Ratherthanaskthequestion'whatisart',appropriationimpliesaquestioningoftherelationbetweenthenewworkandthe'original'"202FromtheDuchampianreadymadeanddada/surrealistcollagesthroughtopop,1960'sfilm,the'appropriationart'movementoriginatinginthe1970s,andonwardstowardsnumerousrecentmodalitiesofpractice–appropriationhasalongandcanonisedhistoryinvisualartspractice.
Iwillnoteafewkeymarkersinthishistoryhereinordertocomparetheeffectsofthestrategiesofappropriationinvisualartwithappropriationinmusic.
TheartistJeffKoonsisacommonlycitedprovocateurwhoseworkcontinuestoblurtheboundarybetween'fineart'andkitschpopculture.
HisBanalityseriesculminatedin1988withaseriesofthreelifesizesculpturesofthesingerMichaelJacksonholdinghispetchimpanzeeBubbles.
Thisseriesofthreesculpturesweremadeoutofporceleinwithgoldleafplating,and-likeallofKoon'swork-theyweremanufacturedbyassistants,notbytheartisthimself.
Inaninterviewgivenafterthesinger'sdeath,203Koonsstatesthat"IwantedtoshowMichaelasacontemporaryChristfigure:Iwantedtogivetheviewerasenseofaspiritualauthority",andthatitwasawayof"payinghomagetohisgreatness".
204This'homage',however,isdecidedlykitsch–approximatelyayearbeforethesinger'sdeath,theartcriticChristopherKnightdubbedit"arguablytheWorld'sLargestKnickknack".
205Identifyingthisartworkasan'homage'doesnotappeartobedisingenuous–itishighlylikelythatKoonsdidindeedadmirethesinger-butiteuphemisticallymasksKoons'corereasonsforadmiringhim.
Koons'artworkdoesindeedpayhomagetoJackson'sgreatness,butitfocussesonhisstatusaspop-culturalicon206ratherthanhisspecificachievementsasanentertainer.
199Rose,1994,p.
73.
200Ibid.
201DeDuve,1988,p.
389.
202stbySther,2007,p.
51203MichaelJacksonpassedawayinJune2009.
204KoonsinterviewedbyFarahNayeri,2009.
Accessedat.
205Knight,2008.
206Arguablytheworkimplicitlyhighlightsoneparticularfacetofthesinger'spopculturalcurrency–thecontroversialaccusationsofpaedophilia(andtheensuingout-of-courtsettlements)thatweredirectedatMichaelJackson.
Seeninthislight,thechimpanzeeBubblesstandsinasallegoricalofasmallchild.
56Theworkclearlyreflectshisbroaderinterestintheseductionsofcommodifiedconsumerobjects,andthusthesingerisdepersonalisedbythework-itemphasisesthefactthathebecamea(highly)commercialproduct–afatewhichKoons'artworkitselfshared.
207Assuch,MichaelJacksonandBubblestakesonalifeofit'sownasa'fineart'icon,becomingasimulacrathatnolongerdirectlyrepresentsMichaelJackson(therecentlydeceasedperson),butratheritpointstoothersignsthatindexthesinger.
InterpretingKoons'MichaelJacksonandBubblesasasimulacrapureandsimple(inaBaudrillardiansense),however,isproblematisedbythesinger'sstatusasarealhumanbeing.
Therewouldhavebeenaclearpop-culturalbacklashagainstKoonsifhedidnottreadlightlyaroundthisissuewhilsttheworldatlargemournedJackson'spassing.
TheAmericanphotographicartistSherrieLevineisperhapsbestknowforher1980seriesAfterWalkerEvans,inwhichshere-photographedimagesdirectlyfromacatalogueoficonicWalkerEvansphotographs.
Evan'sphotographsarewidelyconsideredtobequintessentialimagesoftheAmericanpoorduringthegreatdepression.
Byre-photographingtheseimages-andrecontextualisingthemwithoutanyfurthermanipulation-Levineraisesissuesaboutclass,identity,thepoliticalusesofimagery,thenatureofcreativityitself,andthewaysinwhichcontextaffectstheviewingexperienceofanimage.
Levinealsoexplicitlyreferencesthehistoryofappropriationincontemporaryart,bydirectlyappropriatingnoneotherthanthefirstreadymade–Duchamp's1917Fountain.
208Inher1991workFountain,Levinepresentsagold-platedsculputrewhichisadirectreplicaofDuchamps'artwork-butshedoesnotfollowDuchamp'sstrategiesofthereadymade(selectingandtitlingcommericallymanufactureditems).
Sheespeciallymanufacturedherartobjectasaone-off,butaselectionofsortsstilltookplace-sheselectedtheculturalassociationswhichthesemblanceofDuchamp'siconicartworkevokes.
Noteherethatinthelexiconofdancemusic,theDJiscommonlyreferredtoasthe'selector'–thepersonwhochoosesthemusictoplayforagivensetting/context.
Arguably,agoodDJchoosesmusicwithasimilardegreeofmeta-understandingthatagoodvisualartistemploys–eachpieceofmusichasit'sownculturalcurrency,existingasanewpieceinit'sownright,butalsooperatingasanindextoestablishedhistoriesofmusic(apointtowhichIshallreturnshortly).
LikeKoons'MichaelJacksonandBubbles,Levine'sFountaincouldbeseenasasimulacra-pointingtoaniconographicstatusratherthanarealentity(inthiscaseasculpturalobject).
Levine'sFountainindexesDuchamp's'original'artwork,butemphasisestheensuing(gold-plated)traditionsof'naming'and'framing'thatarosefromthereadymadeandbecameestablishedmodalitiesofculturalpractice.
OthervisualartistsalsorehearsetherootsoftheirpracticesintheDuchampianreadymade.
Speakingabouthisartwork24HourPsycho(1993),inwhichtheclassicAlfredHitchcockfilmPsycho(1960)issloweddowntoplayovera24hourperiod,DouglasGordonstatesthat:"Inappropriatingextractsfromfilmsandmusic,wecouldsay,actually,thatwearecreatingtimereadymades,nolongeroutofdailyobjectsbutoutoftimeobjectsthatareapartofourculture.
"209"Whathewaswatchingseemedpurefilm,puretime.
Thebroadhorroroftheoldgothicmovieseemedsubsumedintime.
Howlongwouldhehavetostandhere,howmanyweeksormonths,beforethefilm'stimeschemeabsorbedhisown,orhadthisalreadybeguntohappen"DonDeLillo,PointOmega(fictionalpassagedescribingacharacterencounteringGordon's24HourPsycho)210NicholasBourriaud211comparesGordon'sinterventiontotheDJ'suseofthepitchcontrol,varyingthespeedofarecord.
212ThiscomparisonisoneofmanythatBourriaudmakesbetweentheculturalactivitiesfoundinDJcultureandtheactivitiesofvisualartspractitioners.
213BychangingthespeedofHitchcock'sfilm,theclassicscenesoftensionandhorrorarerecontextualised,andGordondrawstheviewer'sattention(inanextremelyslow,meditativemanner)totheconstructionofthefilmitself.
Similarly,audiosamplescandrawattentiontotheconstructionofarecording.
Moreimportantly,sampledsoundscontributetotheculturalresonancesofanewtrack.
Musicalsampling,likevisualappropriation,createstimeobjects.
Inamusicaltrack,samplesindexthehistoriesofmusicalpracticeswhichpreceededthenewtrack.
Considerthecommonpracticeofsamplingjazzhornsinhiphopmusic.
Forananalyticallistener,hearingsamplesofjazzhornscouldencourageasubconsciouslinkbetweenthelyricalthematicsofthenewtrackandthehistoryofjazzmusic(encompassingtheoppressionssufferedbyblackjazzmusicians).
Alistenerissimultaneouslyinthepresentdayandaccessingtimeobjectsfromthepast,andthisaddscomplexityandlayersofmeaningtothereceptionofthenewtrack.
207Thisartworkrecentlysoldfor$US5.
6m.
208InFountain,Duchampfamouslyrecontextualisedacommerciallyproducedurinal,titledit,andcalledithisownartwork.
209Gordon,2000,p.
32.
210Delillo,2010,p.
6.
211IdiscussedBourriaud'searlierbookRelationalAestheticsinchapter2.
212Bourriaud,2002,p.
39.
213Ibid.
Whilemostofthesecomparisonsareaccurate(albeitsomewhatcursory),Bourriaud'scitesAngelaBulloch'sdubbingofAndreiTarkovski'sSolaris,andcomparesthisworktotoasting,rappingandMCing.
Thiscomparisonishighlyreductionist,ethnocentricandoffensive–demonstratingaprofoundignoranceaboutthelongandcomplextraditionofblackoralitythatledtoMCingasweknowittoday.
Forinterestedreaders,chapterthreeofTriciaRose'sBlackNoise(1994)providesanastuteanalysisofthetraditionsofblackorailityandhowMCingfurthersthesetraditions.
57Inmusic,however,theseassociationsareimplicit–notalllistenerswouldpaythismuchattentionataconsciouslevel.
Invisualart,conversely,appropriatedimagesaregenerallymorelikelytobeexplicitlylinkedtothemeaningoftheartworkthaninmusic.
Thoseviewingaworkofcollagearelikelytoassumethatallvisualimages/motifsshouldbeinterpretedaspartofthemeaningofthepiece.
Foramusician,itiseasytoisolateandlocatedifferentsoundswhenlisteningtomusic,butnon-musiciansoftenhavedifficultypayingattentiontojustonesoundorinstrument.
(Iknowthisfromyearsspentdoingmusicproduction/performance,andhearingnumerouspeoplesoundsurprisedwhenIpointoutaparticualrsoundthattheyhadnotnoticed.
)Eveniftheindividualsoundsconstitutingatrackaresuccessfullynoticedandidentified,someanalyticallyinclinedlistenersmighttryandinterprethoweachandeverysoundtheyhearcontributestothemeaningofagiventrack,butmostwouldnot.
Appropriationinvisualartalsoexplicitlyevokesthematicsofownership(asInotedwithreferencetoSherrieLevine'swork).
TherearenumerousexamplesofthiscritiqueofownershiprecurringthroughoutMaurizioCattelan'soeuvre.
In-76.
000.
000(1992),Cattelanre-presentedabrokensafefromwhich76millionlire(Italiancurrency)hadpreviouslybeenstolen.
CattelanstoleanentireexhibitionofworksbytheartistPauldeReusfromtheGalerieBloominAmsterdam,alongwiththeofficefurnishings.
WearingtheDuchampianinfluenceonhissleeve(asLevineandGordonalsodo),hetheninstalleditallinthesameconfigurationatthenearbyDeAppelgallery,underthetitleAnotherFuckingReady-made(1996).
Caughtnowincourt'causeIstoleabeat/Thisisasamplingsport/ButI'mgivingitanewname/WhatyouhearisminePublicEnemy,lyricsfromCaught,CanIGetaWitness214Thestrategiesofmusicalsamplingandthoseofvisualappropriationcouldbeseenasequivalentintheiremphasisupontheissuessurroundingownershipandoriginality.
TheseminalrapgroupPublicEnemy,forexample,frequentlyengagewiththesethematicsintheirlyrics,explicitlydrawingattentiontothefactthattheyaresamplingthework(traditions)ofothersandrecontextualisingittocreatetherownnewmeanings.
Thethematicsofownershipandoriginalityassociatedwithmusicalsamplingareperhapsmademoreexplicitduetothehighprofilelegalcases215thathaveplaguedthemusicindustrysincethe1980s–inwhichrecordcompanieschargeartistswhosamplewithcopyrightviolations,andtheartistswhoarechargeddefendtheircreativityonthegroundsoffairuse.
216Itisoutsideofthescopeofthisdiscussiontoinvestigatethelegalityofthesepractices,butmypointistoclaimthatthemediaattentionthatcopyrightcaseshavereceivedmayhavecontributedtothefactthatlistenersarecognizantofthesethematicswhenhearingmusicthatcontainssamples.
Critiquingthenotionoforiginality–theownershipofideasandforms–iscentraltoartworksthatdeployappropriation.
Recalltheaforementionedcycleofliminalityandsubsequentassimilationinculturalpractice.
FortherevolutionaryItalianmodernistLucioFontana,thelacerationsofhiscanvases(producedfrom1958onwards)weresymbolicandviolentlytransgressiveacts.
Inasuiteofuntitledworks(thefirstwasproducedin1993,seefig4.
3),MaurizioCattelanappropriatesFontana'sgesture,butslashinghiscanvaswiththreestrokesthatformtheshapeoftheletter'z',unmistakeablyindexingFontana'sworktothequasi-contemporaryDisneyseriesaboutthecharacterZorro.
InthisremakeofFontana'swork,Cattelanhumourouslypresentshisownuseofaweaponasthegestureofacomicvillain.
217Fig.
4.
3:MaurizioCattelan,Untitled(1996).
Acryliconcanvas.
Itisworthnotingthatinthesamestrikeofthisweapon,Cattelan'sswashbucklingelegancealsoechoestheethicofthecharacterZorrohimself-theethicofredistributingpiratedmaterial.
Cattelan'spiracyoperatesonanumberoflevelssimultaneously:theworkcritiquesissuesofownershipbyblatantlystealingandredistributingFontana'sgesture,butatthesametimeitalsoclearlydemonstratesthebroaderissueofhowcontextaltersmeaning(anotherthemenotedabovewithreferencetoLevine'swork).
NicholasBourriaud'sbookPostproductionsuggestsatransitionbeyondwhatiscommonlytermed'theartofappropriation',implicitlyunderpinnedbyanideologyofownership,towardswhathedescribesas"acultureoftheuseofforms,acultureofconstantactivityofsignsbasedonacollectiveideal:sharing".
218Thedefiningcharacteristicofpostproductionmethodis"theinventionofpathsthroughculture".
219214PublicEnemy,1988.
215VisualartistssuchasJeffKoons,SherrieLevine,andnumerousothershavealsobeenplaguedbyhighprofilelegalcasesinvestigatingwhethertheappropriationintheirartworksconstituted'fairuse'.
216Legally,anun-clearedsampleisaninfringementofcopyright.
Creatively,asampleisacitation-arguablyanessentialwaytomakeprogressinanyfieldistorefertoandquotefromthosewhopreceedyou.
217Bourriaud,2002,p.
59.
218Bourriaud,2002,p.
9.
219Ibid,p.
18.
58Postproductionisatechnicaltermfromthefilm/television/videoindustries.
Itreferstoanyprocessesappliedaftertheinitialproduction(recording/filming)stage,encompassing"montage,theinclusionofothervideoandaudiosources,subtitling,voice-oversandspecialeffects.
"220Theartistaspostproducer,the'userofforms'asBourriauddescribesher/him,isprimarilyengagedwithmanipulatingpre-existing(pre-recorded)culturaltexts.
ThemainflawwithBourriaud'sframeworkisthathewrites(in2002)ofthestrategiesofpostproductionasthoughtheyarerecentinnovations.
Hehasre-purposedatermfromadifferentdiscipline(film)anduseditinanovelmanner,buttheactualcreativestrategiesarewellestablished.
AsIhavedemonstrated,artistsandmusicianshavebeenre-deployingtheformsofpriorworksformanydecades.
Themodesofreproductionhavechangedovertime,buttheprinciplesarethesame.
ItappearsthatBourriaudissimplyleveragingattentionforhisownselectclusterofartistsoffthebroaderpop-culturalcurrency(familiarity,accessibility)oftheDJ.
Ihavealsodemonstratedthatthesamplescontainedwithinanartwork(ofanymedia,includingmusic)arenotsingularandrepresentational–theymightrecallmultiplemomentsofhistory,indexmultiplesociopoliticalperspectives,culturalassociations,andsoforth.
Onceanythingisrecordedittakesonalifeofitsown.
Mashups:thebastardchildrenborneoutofmusic'sinfidelitiesBythelate1990s/early2000s,mashup221recordings(alsoknownas'bastardpop'222–unofficial,illegitimateremixes)startedtogainpopularity.
Mashupscombinetwoormorerecordingstomakeanewtrack.
ProbablythemostwellknownexampleisDJDangermouse,whoachievednoterietywhenhereleasedTheGreyAlbumin2004(seefig.
4.
4)–mixinginstrumentalsectionsfromTheBeatles'WhiteAlbumwithacapellavocalsfromtherapperJay-Z'sTheBlackAlbum.
Therearethreekeythingsthatdifferentiatemashupmusicfromthebroadermusicalstrategiesofsampling.
Firstly,mashupsdonotusuallycontributemuch(ifany)newmusicalmaterialsuchasnewinstrumentation,programmingorlyrics.
223Theemphasisisontheintertextualrelationshipsbetweenthesourcematerialssampled,notoncontextualisingtheseinrelationtonewmaterial.
Therelationshipbetweentheseexistingmusicsisthenewmusic.
Secondly,mashupsarenotablefortheextenttowhichtheydisorientthelistenerbyconflatingmultiplemusics.
Priortotheriseofmashupmusic,producerswouldmostcommonlyonlytakeonesection(forexampleabassline,adrumloop)fromanspecificrecording,notliftanentiretrack.
InearliermodesofsampledelicproductionsuchasTheBombSquad'sproductioninPublicEnemy'searlymusic,theremightbeoneortwophrasesorsectionsinthenewtrackwhicharerecognisable.
Inmashupmusictherearehugechunks,andtheeffectcanbequitedisorientating.
Thirdly,mashupsareespeciallynotableasamusicalformfortheir'smartass'sensibility–asenseoffun,playfulnessandhumourpervadesthemusicalselectionsmade.
224Fig.
4.
4:RamonandPedro,TheGreyVideo225(2004).
Video(still).
220Bourraud,2002,p.
13221Theterm'mashup'ismainlyusedinthischaptertorefertomusicalcombinations.
InthepreviouschapterIalsousedthetermtorefertovideocombinationsintheaudiovisualmashupsofAnaesthesiaAssociates.
222Theterm'bastardpop'hasbeenusedforanumberofyears(originsunknown).
ThisterminfluencedmybroaderconceptionofbastardmediawhichIpresentedinchapter1.
223InmyownmashupproductionasCopycatCrime,Iusuallydoaddadditionalmusicalmaterialofmyown(drumprogramming,turntablescratches),butthisisdonetohighlightandaccentthemusicalstructuresthatarealreadypresentinthesourcetracks.
Imakeeveryattempttoemphasisethenuancesofthesourcematerialasmuchaspossible.
IdothistoaslightlylesserextentwiththemashupsofAnaesthesiaAssociates,inwhichsomepassagesofmusicarecomposedfromscratch.
224OnerecentexceptiontomydefinitionistheKleptones'2010releaseofthedoublealbumUptime/Downtime(onlyavailableonlineat).
WhilethisthirdfacetofmydefinitioniscertainlytrueofthemusicontheUptimealbum,Downtimeisveryslow,ambientandcontemplative.
Theexistenceofthisalbum(andothermashupswhichhaveamoreserioustone)doesnotreallydetractfromtheessenceofmydefinition,however,becausethevastmajorityofmashupsarecharacteristicallyfun,upbeatandhumourous,andtheyretainahighlevelofculturalcurrencyassuch.
225TheGreyVideo(2004)isamashupmusicvideomadetopromotethesongEncore(offDJDangermouse'sGreyAlbum,2004).
Inthisvideo,footageoftheBeatles(fromthefilmAHardDay'sNight,1964)andJay-Z(fromanunknownperformance)ismanipulatedtogetherwithnewfootagethatwasfilmedusingBeatlelookalikesandotheractors/dancers.
Thevideodepicts(amongotherthings)RingoStarrscratchingonasetofturntablesandJohnLennonbreakdancing.
59Somemashupshighlightmusicalsimilarities,suchaslyricalsimilarities,226orscenarioswhereoneartisthasstolenariff,motiformelodyfromanotherartist.
227Othermashupshighlightdifference,suchasdivergentlyricalthematics,228divergentorconflctinggenres,229ordivergentapproachestothecommercialfacetsofthemusicindustry.
230Thevastmajorityofmashups,however,donothaveaclearlogicbehindthecombination,andthatispreciselythepoint.
Musicsarecombinedsimplybecausetheycanbe-thewierderthebetter.
Fig.
4.
5:JamieFMusic,DMXVs.
Ghostbusters(2007).
Audio(videostill:audiotrackonYouTube).
231Asacriticalstrategy,mashupsexplicitlyaddress-asallpracticesencompassingsampling/appropriationdo–issuessurroundingownershipandoriginality.
Unlikepreviousmodesofsamplingpracticeinmusic-butsimilartohowappropriationoperatesinvisualartspractice-mashupsarenotablebecausetheyexplicitlyengagethelistenerwiththenostalgiaandtheiconographicculturalassociationsofoldertracks.
Inmashupmusic,thejuxtapositionsarenumerous,obvious,explicit,andtheyconflatemusicsthatcomefromvastlydifferenterasandculturalcontexts-tocreateaheterotopicspaceinwhichmultiplenostalgiasarepresentedsimultaneously,andthesenostalgiasareoftenincompatiblewitheachother.
Theextentofthedisorientationthatoccurs,andalsothesenseoffun/humour,arethekeyculturalresonancesofmashupsthatIwishtoemphasise.
Likeallofthemusicalpracticesdescribedabove,thereisaclearnormativedimensiontotheculturalphenomenonofthemashup.
MTVnowcommisionstheproductionofnumerousmashupstoairontelevision.
MainstreamradiostationssuchasBBC'sRadioOnehaveshowsdedicatedtomashups.
WhenamashuptrackisuploadedtoYouTube,itisnowviewed–atamanagementlevelinthemusicandentertainmentindustries-asaculturalphenomenonthatcanprovidefreechannelsofviralmarketing.
ThemanagersofYouTubeturnablindeyetothecopyright-violatingimplicationsofhome-producedmashupsthatareproducedanduploaded.
Insteadoftakingthemoffline,theyhavesetautomatedprocessesinplacetotagthesevideoswithanadvertisement/link-sothattheaudiencesaccessingthemashupareencouragedtobuyoneofthesampledsourcetracks.
232Similarly,theinternationallysuccessfulaudiovisualmashupbandAddictiveTVhavebeencommissionedtoproduceviralmashuptrailersforblockbusterhollywoodmovies.
233Yetanotherliminalmodeofmusicalpracticeisassimilatedintoacceptedmodesofmainstreampractice.
Thatwhichistransgressiveandliminalwillalwayssitinrelationtotheverypowerstructuresthatitquestions–"themutationsofoneagemaybecomethenormsofanother".
234Inthecaseofmashups,themutationshavecertainlybecomethenorm.
226InIsraelforexample,agroupcalledBonnaMusicremixedtheDepecheModesongEnjoytheSilence(1990)withBalagan'sSheket(whichmeanssilenceinHebrew)tocreateatrackcalledEnjoytheSheket(2005).
Thistrackisalsonotableasoneofthefewlegalmashupsproduced.
227Britney'sSupermassiveHole(2006)mixesMuse'ssingle,SupermassiveBlackHole(2006),withBritneySpears'DoSomethin(2004)–drawingattentiontothemusicalsimilarities(riff,keyandtempo)betweenthetwotracks.
228OneexampleistheKleptones'Ride(2004),combiningtheovertlyhomophobicEminem'sMyNameis(1999)withQueen'scovertcelebrationofbisexualityBicycleRace(1978).
229OneexampleistheMTVMashtrackProdigyvs.
Enya–SmackmyBitchUp/OrinocoFlow(producerandreleasedateunknown),mixingtheovertlyviolentandhypedmoodofProdigy'sSmackmyBitchUp(1997)withEnya'sambientandmeditativeOrinocoFlow(1988).
230OneexampleisPartyBen'sFugaziVs.
Destiny'sChild(onlinerelease,productiondateunknown),combiningvocalsfromIndependentWomen(2001),bythecharttoppinggroupDestiny'sChildwithWaitingRoom(1989),bytheAmericanpunkbandFugazi–abandwhowereespeciallyvocalabouttheirindependentstanceandDIYbusinesspractices.
231Accessedat.
Frequentlyproducerswillwishtoputanaudio-onlytrackontoavideo-sharingsitesuchasYouTube,andtheydothisbyputtingastillimage(orseriesofstillimages)ontothevideotimelinewhichisvisiblewhiletheaudioplays.
232ThelasttimeIuploadedaCopycatCrimetracktoYouTube,ittooklessthanaminutebeforemyvideowastaggedwithalinktotheiTunesstoreforoneofthesourcetracks.
IassumethattheautomateddecisionaboutwhichsampledtrackisactuallylinkedwilldependonwhichrecordcompanypaysmoremoneytoYouTube.
233AddictiveTVhaveproducedmashuptrailersformoviessuchasSnakesonaPlane(2006),TaketheLead(2006),SlumdogMillionairre(2008),IronMan(2008),andanumberofothers.
234McKenzie,2001,p.
25460Foraquickhitofpathos:RonnievanHout"Asanart-schooldropout('adisillusionedyoungpunkrockerwhoespousedthepoliticsofnofuture')whowasfailedinhisfinalyearatartschool,vanHouthasbeenwellplacedtoregardtheritesofarteducationwithamaximumlackofnostalgia.
"235NarrativesoffailureaboundinthepracticeofNewZealandartistRonnievanHout.
TheartistnotoriouslyfailedfromhisfinalyearatIlamSchoolofFineArtsinChristchurchin1982.
236InUnemploymentRecordsandAlienProfilesvanHout'sownunemploymentrecordsarelaserprintedandframedtogetherwithprintsofalienspacecraft-thesamewaythatyouwouldusuallyframeadegreeyouhadachieved.
ThecuratorJustinPatondescribestheworkthus:"Forthefullhitofpathos,readthefineprint.
HASJOBINTERVIEWATELAMSCHOOLOFARTAUCKLANDNEXTWEEK.
HASBEENRECOMMENDEDFORITANDCONFIDENT.
HASNAMEDOWNWITHPOSTOFFICEHEREINWELLINGTONFORMAILSORTERPOSITION.
POLITEWITHPLEASANTPERSONALITY.
.
"'237Inthisbrazengesture,theartistself-deprecatinglypresentstheviewerwiththerealitiesoflifeasaworkingartist.
Inotherworksheturnshisattentiontotheaspirationsofothers.
InhisUntitledBandEmbroideryseries,vanHoutappropriateshand-writtenadvertismentsformusiciansfoundinguitarshops-inastrangetwistonthemachoaspirationsforrockstardom,theartist(sometimesineptly)embroidersthesetextsontobarecanvases.
"Thevoicesoftheadvertisements.
.
.
seemnewlyhopefulandvulnerable.
"238ItisdifficultnottoimbuevanHout'sgestureswithmusicalorfilmicmetaphors-thereisalow-fi,punkaesthetictotheroughprintmakinginUnemploymentRecordsandAlienProfilesandtheineptstitchingofhisUntitledBandEmbroideryseries;theshiftsincontextofhisappropriationsareakintotheDJ'scrossfadersetinthemiddle,todoubleexposuresandjump-cutsinfilm.
239Atfacevaluethegeturesmightbehumourous,butafterdwellingontheworkforawhileanoverwhelmingsenseofpathosisintroduced.
Giventheculturalassociationsandeffectsofthemashupoutlinedabove,andgiventhepathosofwatchingtheculturalassimilationofthemashupunfoldoverthepastfewyears,themashupisaculturalphenomenonwhichishighlyemblematicoftheculturalclimateofinformationaldelirium.
Canthestrategiesandimplicationsofmashupproductionberecontextualisedinaninstallationartworkthatreflectsuponthenuancesofinformationaldelirium235Paton,2003,p.
16.
236VanHoutlaterwentontosuccessfullycompletehismastersinFineArtthroughRMITUniversityinMelbourne.
237Ibid.
238Paton,2003,p.
20.
239Paton,2003,p.
42.
61BrokenWineGlasses2.
0Fig.
4.
6:DanielJames,BrokenWineGlasses(2009).
Installation(videostill).
Thesettingisadesertedparty.
AslightlyatypicalDJrigsitsattheendofthespace,blaringmashupsofpop,rock,hiphopanddancemusic.
Shardsofbrokenwineglassescyclemesmerisinglyatopaturntable.
AlargevideoprojectionshinesbehindtheDJrig-depictingapairofcrystalwineglasseswhichresonatewhentheyarerubbedbyafingertip.
Thedroningtonesoftheresonatingglassesmixdissonantlyintothemashups,andthefragmentsofbrokenglassrefractandscattertheloweredgeofthevideoprojection.
TocreateBrokenWineGlasses2.
0,IthrewapartyforahandfuloffriendsandperformedthereasaDJ–thelasteverperformanceofCopycatCrime.
ThenaftertheguestsleftImodifiedthesceneintoaninstallationartwork.
BrokenWineGlasses2.
0disruptstheconvivialityofCopycatCrime.
Atfacevalue,thisartworkcouldbeinterpretedasasomewhatcynicaltakeonthepostmoderncondition.
IsthispieceanexampleofbleakBaudrillardiannihlism–signsthatendlesslypointtooneanotherbutdonotofferatangibleansweraboutrealityNo-thepartyandit's(reconstructed)aftermathtakeplaceasrealpassagesofexperience.
Thisentirediscussionisgroundedbythethematicofsubjectivity,withafocusonhowtechnologyinformsformationsofpower-knowledge.
Eventhoughthebeliefinanabsolute'real'isanavephilosophicalposition,artworkscreatepassagesofexperiencethatreflectupontheexperienceofreality.
Everyaudiencememberhastoassumeasubjectposition.
Themashupitselfisalsoaculturallytangible,realphenomenon.
The'dis-placement'describedbytheheterotopiaisanexperientiallyrealplacetooccupy,andfurther,itisariteofpassagethatexiststocontestotherrealsites.
Thereis,ofcourse,anormativedimensiontothisstrategy.
Asevidencedbycasestudiespredominantlydrawnfromthehistoryofcontemporarymusic,thatwhichistransgressiveandliminalwillalwayssitinrelationtotheverypowerstructuresthatitquestions–"themutationsofoneagemaybecomethenormsofanother".
240240McKenzie,p.
25462Asamodeofculturalproduction,themashup(andinfactanyartworkthatdeploysappropriationasastrategy)isinseparablytiedtoissuesofownershipandoriginality.
Recordcompaniesfocusonthedollarsign–theyhaveavestedfinancialinterestinpursuingroyaltiesfromartistswhosample.
Artistsfocusoncreatingwork,andinvariablyfightbackbyclaimingthattheauthorofaculturalproductdoesnotowntheresonancesofthatculturalform.
TocrudelysumupBourriaud'sposition,weareallplayingnicelyandsharingourtoys.
ToputitsomewhatlessconviviallythanBourriauddoes,weareallstealingfromoneanother–butthecrimesaremutualandreciprocal,it'sfairgame.
Andgiventhenormativedimensiontothisgame,thehegemonyofthemusicindustryeventuallyassimilatesthesemodesofproduction(realisingthattheycaninfactmakeadvertisingrevenuefromthephenomenon).
Indeployingthestrategiesofmashupproduction,Ihavecreatedanartworkthatisexplicitlycriticalabouttheverynotionoforiginality.
Inthesamebreath,paradoxically,IalsoclaimthatIhaveproducedoriginalworkwhichmeetsthedoctoralrequirementsof'newknowledge'(byinvestigatingBaudrillardian,DeleuzianandFoucauldianthoughtonthesimulacra,andthenframingmyownhybridofDeleuzianandFoucauldianthoughtwithanewterm,'informationaldelirium',todenotethecurrentculturalclimate;bylocatingtheculturalstrategiesofmashupproductionashistoricallyrootedinsamplingandappropriationpracticesinbothmusicandvisualarts,andalsobyidentifyingthenormativedimensiontothehistorythatunderpinsthesestrategies;andfinallybycreatinganartworkwhichconstitutesauniqueandidiosynchratic–albeitpathos-tinged-passageofexperience).
Theaftermathofapartyisinescapablydelerious.
Theoverstimulationofmeetingnewpeople,theconversationsandflirtationsyouexperienced–thisoverstimulationgivesahangoverthatiscompundedbytheneurologicalaftereffectsoftheliquidsimbibed.
Yourbodyachesfromdancingtoomuch.
Yourheadspinsintimetotheplatteroftheturntablethatsomeoneforgottoturnoff.
Theaftermathofapartyisastrangesettingtorevisitfun(andoftenamusing)memories.
ThemashupsofCopycatCrimewereproducedovertheperiodofayear,andwereperformedinDJsetsatnumerouspartiesduringthatperiod.
Thisismusicwhichwasproducedtobesharedamongstfriends.
Thesemashupsarelight-hearted,funcombinationsofdivergentmusicswhichresonatewithvaryinglevelsofnostalgia(dependingontheaudience).
Theaftermathofapartyisinescapablycontemplative.
Bymakingasimpleshiftincontextfromthedancefloortothecontemplativesettingofanartinstallation,theintertextualoverstimulationofthemashupisitselfreconfigured–thedysfunctionalhyperrealityofthemashupbecomesasubjectofinquiryinit'sownright.
1980'sand1990'shits–songswhichweresunginallearnestnessatthetime–arenowreconfiguredas'signsofthetimes',timeobjects,triggeringmemorieswhichendlesslypointtooneanother.
Whenyouhearitataparty,youdancetoit.
Whenyouhearitinanartgallery,youanalyseit.
Theaftermathofapartyevokesaninescapableelementofpathos.
Informationaldeliriumischaracterisedbycyclesofdeterritorialisationandreterritorialisation.
Themotifofcycling/loopingisrepeatednumeroustimesinBrokenWineGlasses2.
0.
Therearecountlessmusicalloops.
Aturntablespinswithbrokenwineglasses.
Theshardsofglassrefractaprojectionofthesameglasses(intact)beingresonatedbyafingertip.
ThemovementoftheprojectedfingertipechoesthemotionofaDJcueingthenexttrack.
63ThisisnotaconclusionVersion1Endwhereyoubegan.
Sometimescalled'echoing',thistypeofendingpicksupanidea/imagesuggestedintheintroductionandechoesitintheconclusion.
Eachchapterraisesaclusterofissuesandasksaquestion.
Eachartworkrespondsbybychallengingandinterrogatingtheissuesraised.
Concludingthechaptertowhichtheyhavebeenassignedisnotthesoledutyofeachartwork.
Thisdocument,liketheartworksthatitcontextualises,isresistanttohierarchy.
Assuch,thereisnometa-conclusiontodrawattheend.
Iftheartworksoperateasintended,thespiritofeachartworkwillhauntthetheoreticalandpracticalissuesthatareraisedinallfourchapters.
Fig.
A:DanielAgnihotri-Clark,SéanceforNamJunePaik(2008).
Curatorialproject(publicityimageusedonposters,fliersandweb).
Version2Endwithasummary.
Atypicalandtraditionalwaytoconcludeisbyrestatingthethesisandsummarisingitsmainsupportpoints.
Inchapter1,Isetthesceneforthisresearch-highlightinghowtechnologyhasculturalvalueaswellasfunctional/instrumentalvalue.
ThisnotiondatesbacktoancientGreekthinking-artandtechnologyareinseperablyintertwinedintheGreekwordtechne.
Inthepresentday,thereisafieldofculturalpracticewheretechnologyactsasmediumtochannelideas.
'Reverseengineering'isanamegiventodenoteastrategybywhichtechnologyisreconfiguredtoshift(andsometimeschallenge)it'sculturalcurrency.
Iemployedtheterm'bastardmedia'toreferspecificallytotechnologicallyenabledartworkswhichexpresslychallengetheforwardmomentumoftechnology.
Thischapteralsoinvestigatedanumberofculturalprojectsinwhichtechnologyactsasbothmediumandsubject.
WhilesomeartistssuchasStelarcandKacecstaticallycelebratetheforwardmomentumoftechnology,otherssuchasPaikareplayfullycriticalofit.
Ihighlightedatensionbetweenhighandlowtechne.
Ialsoinvestigatedthestrategiesofthegrotesque,becausethesefancifulscenesofeccentricitycanofferachallengetocomplacenttaste(highart).
IarguedthatgrotesqueartworkssuchasTonyOursler'sarenotactuallycriticalaboutthetechnologiesthattheydeploy.
Chapter1asked:"Canthestrategiesofthegrotesque(constructingfancifulscenes)bedeployedtodirectlyscrutinisetheforwardmomentumoftechnology-thedialecticbetweenhighandlowtechnology-andvisavis'high'and'low'artFurther,canthecartoon-likequalitiesoffancifulnarrativesbedeployedwithasenseofhumourtoactuallyheightenthesenseofdisquiet"CodeMonkey1.
1responsdedtotheseissueswithafancifulscene–thisinstallationartworkpresentsaroboticmonkeythatiscreepy,abjectandrepulsive,butalsosimultaneouslycute,endearingandfunny.
Anthropomorphisingthemachine'squasi-humancharacteristics,themonkey'sambivalentandnarcissisticbehaviourisfunnybutdisquieting.
Further,theworkaddressestechnologyasbothformatandsubject.
CodeMonkey1.
1isagrotesquebastardchildoftechnologicalprogress.
Inchapter2Iinvestigatedthetheoreticalterrainofsubjectivity,andhowweareeachsubjecttomultipleformationsofpower-knowledge.
Ialsonotedthat,whilstimmenselyinfluential,MarshallMcLuhan'stechnologicaldeterminismisproblematicbecauseitdoesnotallowformultiplemeanings-andthesemultiplicitiescharacterisetechnologicallyenabledculturalpractice.
64Ihighlightedarecurringpatternincanonisedartpractice(conceptualandrelationalart)–thatattemptstoachieveemancipationwillfail,becausewithanyutopianideologicalvision,someonewillalwaysbeleftout.
Iidentifiedaparadox–thatartisinseperablycomplicitwithhegemonicformationsofpower-knowledge,evenifitclaimstochallengethesesameformations.
Iacceptedthisparadoxwithaknowingsenseofhumour.
Chapter2asked:"How[…]canself-reflexivityandhumourbedeployedtocreateanartworkwhichretainsatheoreticalfocusonsubjectivitybuthasapracticalfocusontechnology"SchoolofFineArtsrespondedbyconfiguringanumberoftechnologicalelementsintomultipleandconflictingsubjectpositions.
AnandroidwatchesanarchivalvideosampleofTarzanassertinghisauthority(spankingamonkey).
Theandroiditselfiscomplicitwiththesepower-relations,andassertsitsownauthorityoveranothermachine,aradiocontrolledballofgaffertape.
Autobiographicalinterpretationsareforegroundedbythetitleofthiswork,identifyingtheinterrelationshipsbetweenmachinesasallegoricaloftheinterrelationshipsandpowerstructuresfoundininstitutionsoflearning.
Asthecreatorofthiswork,IamthusknowinglycomplicitinthepowerstructuresthatIcriticallyreflectupon.
Inchapter3Iturnedmyattentiontotheaestheticisationoffailure.
Iinvestigatedtheglitchinculturalpractice,anditsoverlapwithperformance(inthethreesensesofthetermthatMcKenzieidentifies).
Theculturalglitchwasredefinedtoencompassanyslippage–accidentalorintentional.
Whenencodedmediaglitches,theseslippages(deterritorialisationsandsubsequentreterritorialisations)generatenewmeanings.
Ialsoinvestigatedcasestudiesofperformance(inaculturalsenseoftheterm).
Inthetraditionofperformanceart,theexplorationofthelimitsofthebodyisacentraltheme.
Intechnologicallymediatedpractice,theglitchinvestigatestechnologicallimits.
Inthe'glitch'musicmovement(artistssuchasKimCasconeandOval),andinothervisualartspractices(suchasthoseofLenLyeandDavidHall),lowperformanceinatechnologicalsenseisaestheticised,anditbecomeshighperformanceinaculturalsense.
(Iftheslippageisadesiredoutcomeitalsobecomeshighperformanceinatechnologicalsense).
Culturalpracticecanhighlightthesubterfugeofmediatingtechnologies,tocreateatheatreofslippage.
Chapter3asked:"Howmighttechnologicallyenabledculturalperformanceembodyanoscillatingtensionbetweenhighandlowperformance(inasensethatintegratesbothculturalandtechnologicalmeaningsoftheterm)Further,isitpossibletoachievethisinamannerthatscrutinisesmediatisedrepresentationsofidentitymoreclosely,inrelationtomainstreammediainapop-culturalcontext"AnaesthesiaAssociatesrespondedbycreatingadeliberatetensionbetweenbetweenhighandlow,oscillatingbetweenhighandlowtechnology;highandlowart;highandlowperformance(inallthreesensesoftheword).
Thismediatisedperformancecreatesnumerousslippagesofmeaning.
Representationsofidentityareglitchyandmultiple.
Inchapter4Iinvestigatedinmoredepththeculturalconditioninwhichmeaningisperpetuallyencodedanddecoded,juxtaposedandrecontextualised.
FindingBaudrillard'sviewofthesimulacrumtobesomewhatbleakandnihlistic,Iemphasisedthenotionofan'experiential'realitythatisnotsingularandabsolute,butsubjectiveandmultiple.
Aligningthediscussionwithmyinterestinsubjectivity,IalsolookedatFoucault'sideaoftheheterotopiaasaframeworkforunderstandingdisplacement.
Ifoundthat,inspiteofanormativedimensiontoliminalpractices,theheterotopiastilldoesfunctiontocontestthe(experientially)real.
Icoinedtheterminformationaldeliriumtodescribethecurrentculturalclimate.
InculturalpracticeIinvestigatedthestrategiesofsamplinginmusic.
Ialsocomparedsamplinginmusictoappropriationinvisualart,inordertoestablishhowmashup/samplingstrategiesmightoperateinanartcontext.
IidentifiedthatBourriaud'sframeworkof'postproduction'formulateswell-establishedtraditionswithinmusic(andinthevisualarts)as'newtrends'inthefieldoffinearts.
Ialsofoundthatthemashup,likenumerousothersamplingstrategiesthatpreceededit,issubjecttothenormativeprocessofassimilation.
Chapter4asked:"Canthestrategiesandimplicationsofmashupproductionberecontextualisedinanartworkthatreflectsuponthenuancesofinformationaldelirium"BrokenWineGlasses2.
0reflectedonthequestionandrespondedunintelligiblywithadeliriousairofpathos,aself-deprecatingsenseofhumour,andathrumminghangover.
65Version3Endwithfurthercommentsfromthewriter.
Suchcommentsshouldbenaturalandlogicalextensionsoftheinformationinthebodyofyourdocument.
Inthisdocument,Ipresentedaclusteroftheoreticalandsociopoliticalissues,andIcontextualisedtheseconceptswithselectedcasestudiesfromculturalpractice.
Ilocatedandanalysedanumberofproblems,complexities,andparadoxesinthefield.
WhileIcanidentify(andtoacertainextentredefineandrecontextualise)theseissues,theycannotbecloseddowninasingular,overarchingandconclusivemanner–theyremainopenfordebate.
Whilstresearchingthefield,Idevelopedanumberofstrategiesformakingtechnologicallymediatedculturalproducts.
Iappliedthesestrategies,andImadeasuiteofartworks.
Culturalproductsperformmosteffectivelywhentheyretainadegreeofopen-endedness,multiplicityandambiguity.
Thisdocumentcontextualisesfouruniqueandidiosynchraticartworks,anditistheartworksthemselvesthatoffernewwaysofunderstandingtheissuesraised.
Thisisnotaconclusion,itissimplytheendofadocument.
Version4Endwithfervour.
Strategiesforgettingthereader'sattentioncanbeusedtoendyourwritinguniquelyandmemorably(e.
g.
statingaprovocativequestionoranaptquotation).
Willthisaestheticisedfailuretoofferastraightforwardlinearconclusionberecognisedashighperformance"Deliriumoracuteconfusionalstateisatransientglobaldisorderofcognition.
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Notesoncitationsandformatting1-Allhyperlinkstoonlinesourceswereactiveasat14/05/2010.
Whereanonlinesourcehasbeencited,Idonotprovidepagenumbersfordirectquotes.
2-Thefirstpageofeachchapter(textwithgreybackground)isapartiallyfictivepassagetodescribemyownartwork.
Aspectsofthesepassagesarederivedfromappropriatedtext,butthesepassagesarenewcreativeoutcomesintheirownright.
Therefore-aswithsomeofmymashupperformancesandrecordings-Idonotnecessarilyidentifyandcitethesourcesusedinthesepassages.
3-Thereareanumberofin-textcitationsoftextfromworksoffictionandlyricsfrommusicalrecordings(whichappearindented,boldanditalicisedin-text).
Thesearegivenas'flavouring'quotes–toidentifythesecreativeworksIprovidetheauthor'snameandthetitleoftheworkinthetext.
Forlongernon-fictionalsources(whichappearindentedin-text,butnotboldoritalicised),thenameandtitleareonlycitedinfootnotesandendreferencing,notin-text.
4–Whereanartistismorecommonlyknownbyapseudonymthanbytheirrealname(egGrandmasterFlash),Iprovidetheirfullpseudonymasthemainfootnotedreference(andtheirbirth/legalnameinbracketsinthereferencedetails).
5-Whereamashupworkiscited,Icannotnecessarilyprovidefullreferencesforthemashupitself,oridentifythesourcematerialthathasbeensampledtocreatethenewwork.
Mostmashupsareillegalundercopyrightlaw,andthuspostedonlineanonymously–inlocationsthatarenotstatic.
Ifamashupistakenofflineforlegalreasonsitcommonlyreappears,butmirroredindifferentlocations.
Icannotthusprovideaccuratedetailsbeyondnameanddate,andsometimeseventhesedetailsareambiguous.
Further,Innote2,IcommentedthatsometimesIdonotprovideinformationaboutthesourcematerialformyowncreativework–thisisuptotheaudiencetodiscerniftheycan(andwishto).
WhenIamdiscussingthemashupworkofothers,however,Iamspeakinginthecapacityofaudiencetosomeoneelse'swork.
Inmycriticalresponsetotheworkofothers,itmayberelevanttothediscussiontoidentifythesourcematerial-ifIdoinfactrecogniseit–inordertonotetherelevantresonancesandassociationsthatareinherenttothesourceworks.
Whereverpossible,therefore,Iprovidethebasicinformationforanysourcematerialthathasbeensampled:title,artistnameandtheyearofrelease,butnottherecordcompanyandreleasedetails(sinceIamdiscussingthesesourceworksinrelationtoanewwork,notintheirownright).
70ImagesourcesACopyrightownedbyauthor1.
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8Copyrightownedbyauthor2.
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8Copyrightownedbyauthor3.
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4Copyrightownedbyauthor3.
5Copyrightownedbyauthor4.
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4Screenshotfromvideoaccessedat4.
5Screenshotfromvideoaccessedat4.
6CopyrightownedbyauthorNote:Someimageshavebeenedited(cropped)fromhowtheyappearinthesesourcelocations.