Since the beginning of the 20th century, some
artists included technology in their performances and raised questions about the
relationship of humanity with the new advancements. Some of the artist’s
performances consisted on providing some points of view about the constructed
social definitions that shape our lives. Some others questioned if mores and
values were beneficial for mankind evolution, or on the contrary, humans ended
up acting as programmed beings.
Artists like Marinetti wrote his visions of the
future and shared them with the world in a manifesto. Some other artists like Samuel
Beckett, wrote stories concerned with how the natural state of man could be,
versus a man living in society. Also, plays like “Krapp’s last tape” examines
the changes that individuals experience through the pass of time in life.
Performances by artist like Laurie Anderson, the Wooster Group, and Guillermo
Gomez Peña, measure the shifts and transformations of society in the contemporary
world, but identify some new challenges that individuals confront nowadays. They
explain that the virtualspace is a new place of interaction where information
flows and where our minds are connected to a network of instant communication.
However, lack of human contact and face to face interaction could affect our
personal and emotional development. In addition, artists like Eduardo Cak,
Orlan, and Stelarc experiment with technology, medical procedures and scientific
knowledge to reveal their viewpoints related to human identity.
Nevertheless, the performances of these artists might
differ superficially, but they share in common the claim that technology has
given a new dimension to human existence. Therefore, to determine this merging
identity of mankind, we should explore the many layers that form our complex
lives. By looking into each one of these
artworks, it can be revealed that human beings are constantly internalizing the
influences of the outside world and constantly transforming.
It seems that
technology is the instrument of mankind to transform the reality and ourselves.
Since the beginning of the 20th century, there were some Italian artists
that were inspired by the increasing speed of life and the new era of
technological advancement. “The Futurist
Manifesto” by F.T. Marinetti, was a statement that envisioned the future of
mankind. The influence of war, the
ability to create machines, the innovations of the electric light, the
automobile and the plane, provided men with an endless power and progress never
seen before. The futurist ideal of Marinetti projected a metamorphosis of form,
where man and machine blended in a dense-sculptured body.
Also, feelings and politics were outlined in the
manifesto, which stated that the destruction of the past was necessary in order
to construct a new future. The new identity of man could not be achieved
without “glorifying war and the beauty of speed.” The
splendor of the world was enhanced by the beauty of machine. The Manifesto had
an aggressive character that rejected norms and values carried in social
ideals. Feminism, art, and poetry were seen as week manifestations of the
identity of mankind. In order to move forward and reach the future man should
embrace technology and “feed the unknown.” Shift in shape and form to become
indestructible. That was the vision of Marinetti, who anticipated that the new
identity of mankind would take an anthropomorphic shape, in which machines,
speed, noise and men would fuse.
Likewise, in “Krapp’s
Last Tape” by Samuel Beckett, it can be observed how the interaction of man and
machine became essential through the pass of time. For Krapp, the use of a
technological device made it possible to measure the changes and transformation
in his identity when he was young, adult and then, elderly. He could detect
that his way of thinking changed according to the age and moment in which he
was living. And through the use of the recording machine, he connected his past
thoughts with his new reflections. That metaphysical
reality was possible only for the use of the machine. “Just
been listening to an old year, it must be at least ten or twelve years ago. At
that time I think I was still living on and off with Bianca.” Krapp’s recorded
thoughts and speeches transcended space and time and existed simultaneously in
the room where an elderly Krapp sat next to the table. A rewinding tape could connect the distant and
blurred past with the present life of Krapp.
However, there is another aspect in the interaction
of man and machine that the play discusses. And it is the physical connection
that Krapp developed to the device. “He suddenly bends over machine, switches off,
wrenches off tape, throws it away, puts on the other, winds it forward to the
passage he wants, switches on, listens staring front”. Krapp has been isolated
from the company of family and friends, therefore, he is emotionally attached
to the memories that the machine reproduces. When the machine played some
passages in which Krapp felt alone, he would react with anger towards the
machine, and then, Krapp would play other passages, in which he would feel
happy. In Beckett’s play there are two ideas related to the interaction of man
and technology. One is that men have a physical connection to machines, and
second, the machines allow men to reach a new ethereal plane where the body
cannot reach.
Similarily, in Kaspar
by Peter Handke, the play debates about the influence that society has on individual’s
personality, and how that influence shapes individual’s identity. The stage in
the play is designed to reproduce an atmosphere of suspense. A laboratory, in
which Kaspar is being taught to act like a person. On one hand, Kaspar appears to be confused
and behaves erratically. On the other hand, there is a strong presence on
stage. Light and sound effects, simulate the presence of a superior being who
watches Kaspar’s movements, and whose voice and commands could be heard through
speakers. Kaspar’s “actions are accompanied by the sentences from the
prompters. At first the sentences are adjusted to Kaspar movements, until
Kaspar’s movements are gradually begin to adjust to the movements of the
sentences” (82). Kaspar cannot escape from the influence of the voices, who
command him constantly. That scene recreates the process of socialization that
individuals experience in life. In our learning experiences at home, at school,
or at work, we listen to authority figures who tell us what to do. In addition,
Kaspar assimilates what the voices commanded him to do, and as a result, Kaspar
wants to conform to their expectations. “I want to be a person like somebody else
was once” repeats Kaspar (72). At the end of the play, many Kaspars appear on
scene, wearing masks and acting in choreographed movements. Therefore, the play
reflects that all humans are Kaspar. The norms of society, the values and hierarchical
structures of class and race, religion and family institutions, also gender
roles, are constructed ideas. Individuals assimilate ideas in their education
that later are reproduced in their way of thinking and in their behavior. We are
no taught to think by ourselves, but to follow the rules of society. We are
being shaped to be submissive, and to accept what is already established. It
can be concluded that the identity of human beings is socially constructed. The
identity of individuals can be changed, shaped and transformed.
In the same way, in “From the Ice Cube Stage to
Simulated Reality: Place and Displacement in Laurie Anderson’s Performances,” Silvija
Jestrovic acknowledges that Anderson explores the “relationship between
simulation and reality, the real and virtual worlds” in
order to identify human evolution in space and time. Her work involves cultural critique, political
satire, parody, and simulation of reality. Anderson believes that we live in a
highly technological world and that we have lost our sense of place. In her performances,
she experiments with light effects, music, screen projections and storytelling
to drive a major attention from the public. The new era of communication, the
internet, and the cyber space have provided new forms of human interaction and
representations. Anderson seems to be concerned with the new “sense of place
and presence” that individuals experience nowadays in the cyber space. She
distorts reality by projecting holograms, playing recorder music, adding
gadgets in her body and altering her voice to distort our perception and to
break free from the conventional behavior of society. But reality carries a
duality for Anderson, sometimes is difficult to distinguish actuality from
simulacrum. She states that “images are the main means of the contemporary mass
media spectacles that perhaps most strongly define and influence our perception
of reality.” She reaches the attention of her audience to bring awareness of
the contemporary issues of society.
However, society
is focused in the technological advancements, yet is not paying attention that
we are losing the face to face interaction, which cannot be replaced by answer
machines and artificial contact. It seems that
technology is the instrument of mankind to transform reality and ourselves. Our
bodies are designed to exist in the material plane, but our minds transcend
that plane when reach virtual places though the use of devices. The new virtual
interaction that humans experience, are part of our identity even though that
does not seem natural.
Equally, in “The
virtual Barrio @ The Other Frontier,” Guillermo Gomez Peña observes that the
technological advancements of the 20th century made possible for
mankind to expand towards a new frontier, but the down side is that our society
has not changed in many aspects. Our identity still holds colonialist arguments
and racial misconceptions. Peña criticizes that although the cyberspace seems
to be a virtual place where society has equally opportunity of exploration, the
true is that the dynamics of the cyberspace carry the same stereotypes and
racial discrimination found in society. As an artist who works with technology,
Peña found some obstacles regarding access to the net for being “Chicano.” He
realized that the system blames Mexican and Latinos for not participate in new
technologies. But Peña affirms that “people of color and women in the U.S. clearly
don't have ‘equal access to cyberspace.” Lack of money, poor infrastructure and
poor understanding of the “Western democratic values” used in the cyberspace,
were some of the real causes for exclusion. Peña reflects that social and
political structures are replicated in the cyberspace; therefore, nationality,
social class, race and gender determine who has better access to the net. He
concludes that Mexicans and Latinos are not unfitted to handle technology.
Mexican and Latinos are just being relegated to a lower status in the
cyberspace. It is fascinating to reveal that humans evolve, but at the same
time continue to reproduce inequality in society. Elite classes own and dominate
the mass and the media, and restrict the access to minorities that have been
repressed along the century. At some
point, there are not distinctions between the physical plane and the virtual
space for individuals. Because the virtual space is an extension of the
material plane, we can find the same definitions and ideas of society.
Also, in Ben Brantley
’reviews of the Wooster Group’s “House/Lights and To You The Birdie” a
multimedia collage is exposed to the audience to experience a theater
performance as never seen before. Television screens, amplifiers, microphones,
voice alterations, music, lighting effects and actors
fill up the scenario. According to
Brantley “disorientation is the primary sensual pleasure in this presentation,
even as it raises terrifying thoughts about the deeply mixed blessings of technological
progress”. Through the use of the latest tools and technology, the Wooster
Group has assembled a portrait that is functional and that could be compared
with “Cubism.” The performances of the Wooster Group show many aspects of the
same scene simultaneously, and that allows the viewer to conceive a new perspective
of the theatre in the 20th century.
The Wooster Group presents its own theatrical vision
that challenges the expectations of viewers. In "To You The Birdie"
for example, rackets, men, skirts and funny sounds create a bizarre atmosphere
that is enjoyable to the eyes and the senses. The Wooster Group is unique in
its performances and communicates its art effectively. The theatrical
representations are out of the ordinary, and that coexist in total harmony with
the arrangements of sound, lights, microphones and movies projected on scene.
It
seems that these performances are created to project an identity that is confusing
and uncertain. At the same time “House Lights and To You the Birdie” project
the contemporary moment of human existence, where the use of technology
permeates every aspect of life, and individuals consume and integrate
technology into their lives.
Moreover, in “From/To
Body To/From Robot,” Machiko Kusahara depicts the controversial artworks
of Eduardo Cak, whose work “brings a concern toward one's identity including
the role of physical body.” Cak has been experimenting on plants, animals and
also creating real and artificial pieces. Some of his famous works are "Irapuru,”
an actual Amazonian bird and a mythical creature that is recreated in museums by
using artificial materials as metal and plastic. “Teleporting an Unkown
State" is another of his works, in which Cak sends photons" via
Internet to keep a real plant alive.
However, Kac seems to be pushing the limits of art
into the technological advancements. Some of his experiments with genetics have
drawn the attention of the public opinion in his projects. In one controversial
"Living Works" projects, he modified the genetic code of a rabbit by
injecting the genes of another organism. There has been a mutation in the
rabbit that makes it glow when its dark. His experiments with genetics found
some rejection from the public opinion. The unknown result provokes people to
wonder if something wrong could happen, if our society could be affected by
some experiment. Nevertheless, experiments on technology and genetics have been
performed for many years already. New discoveries could help to solve
persistent illnesses that affect humans, or simply take humankind to the next
level of evolution.
Additionally,
in Orlan: Is it Art? Barbara Rose informs that
we should not misunderstand rlan’s art because “our self-
representations might not conform to an inner reality, they could be actually
carefully contrived falsehoods fabricated for marketing purposes-in the media
or in society at large." Since the end of the 1960's, Orlan
has been using her body as a medium to expose her most intimate concerns about
woman's image and its role in society. Orlan performances are emphasized in the
shifts of woman's image through the history and their representation in
the mainstream. Women's figure were always idealized and manipulated. Sometimes
women appeared as pure and angelical virgins, other times, women were
categorized as promiscuous. Therefore, Orlan declares “being a narcissist isn't easy when the question is
not of loving your own image, but of recreating the self through deliberate
acts of alienation” Orlan
shifts her appearance in each one
of her programmed surgeries to reject the stereotypes that society incites on women. Orlan uses the most
advanced technology to sculpt her body, and to find her true self and identity.
Furthermore,
in Zombies & Cyborgs: The Cadaver, the Comatose & the Chimera
by Stelarc "the body is an evolutionary architecture that operates and
becomes aware in the world". In his performances Stelarc explores the
limits and capacities of his body through the use technology. But he has
not only amplified the functions of his body when he connects it to some machines,
he has achieved a new dimension of evolution for mankind.
The ideals that Marinetti dreamed at the beginning
of the 20th century have been reached by the inventions of Stelarc. Moreover,
Stelarc created some machines that when attached to his body, provoke some
behavior through electrical stimulation, remote assistance and the internet.
His body becomes an organism that functions as an automatic machine, an
antenna that receives commands and stimulus from external computers and
the virtual space. Stelarc uses technology in his performances to stamp a new
future vision for mankind. He is establishing that humans are meant to produce
technology and that technology would shape our future.
To summarize, by
analyzing how humans interact with technology, we can reflect on the
complexities of our minds and reveal some debates about human identity. The contemporary advancements in technology allow
us to materialize our abstract ideas, to create tools, to communicate
instantly, to move with speed through space and time. Yet the use of technology
is also controversial, it generates invisible barriers for some, and
opportunities of experimenting for others.
