CURATOR'S COLUMN: I, Cyborg at Gazelli Art House
- Oct 10, 2016
- 2 min read
Opening last week, I, Cyborg presents artworks that explore the relationship between mankind, identity and technology, asking the question whether the latter is something we can no longer survive without. Gazelli Art House announced the group show curated by artist William Corwin, which seeks to investigate the combined nature of man and machine, charting the impact of technology on the progress of evolution, the body and human identity. William Corwin gave After Nyne an insight into the inspiration behind this provocative new exhibition.
We are on the edge of a precipice: homo sapiens are finally addressing their intransigence in the face of species differentiation and epic environmental transformation. How better to explore this than with a subtle survey of contemporary artists who are integrating and assessing our new place in the hierarchies of both nature and metaphysics in their practices? The group exhibition, I, Cyborg at Gazelli Art House, features sculptors, painters photographers, ceramicists, performance and new media artists examining the question of the post-human. Thirteen artists re-envision the state of the human body, mind and history, exploring new and alternative ways of representing corporeality and its processes, and our proclivities as a species for good and evil.
Aziz & Cucher, Dustin Yellin, Elisabeth Kley, James Ostrer, Kianja Strobert, Recycle Group, Roxy Paine, Roxy Topia & Paddy Gould, Saad Qureshi and Will Corwin are not overtly concerned with hi-tech media, but are more interested in addressing the current existential climate with a fluid and multi-media approach that can engender the digital as well as pen and ink, pottery, tapestry, casting and woodcarving. The reference to the concept of the cyborg in the title alludes both to the classic Asimov short story from 1950 (“I, Robot”) and to the allegiance of human consciousness and/or corporeality with the other, whether that be machine, organic or vegetal material or with alternative forms of consciousness—which is the textbook definition of cyborg. Asimov’s story is a fable considering the arrival of a new form of being into the life of humanity, the slave robot, and the highs and lows of that being’s acceptance and rejection. As we stand on the cusp of watching the first major species differentiation of the genus homo taking place since the extinction of the Neanderthals 40,000 years ago, Asimov’s book serves as a lighthearted manual of negotiating the changes we will face.
Situated partly as an “anti-Frieze” exhibition, I, Cyborg is embracing the difficult and challenging moral, philosophical, and psychological concepts that need to be addressed immediately, rather than offering an entertaining visual/experiential voyage catering to the comfort of the spectator. It is an iteration of the “Cyborg” exhibition at Zurcher Gallery in New York which took place a year ago and featured a different roster of artists, including Juliana Huxtable, Antony Gormley, Tamar Ettun, Katie Holten, Mike Cloud and Cordy Ryman, among others. The aim is to present the artist as simultaneously historian and canary in mineshaft; consciously recording the slings and arrows of contemporary life, while also registering pure outrage and ecstasy via their aesthetic outlet.
I, Cyborg
7 October - 12 November 2016
Gazelli Art House
39 Dover Street
W1S 4NN
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