Singularity at the end of the human era
Materials: Metal mesh, branches, chain, latex paint, metal paint, polystyrene foam 35inch x 42 inch x 27 inch Human civilization may be reaching its singularity and endgame. We lie in waste, garbage bags gather and solidify. Nature undergoes a calcification, unable to flourish. And we are bound by our own devices, our technologies and our own desires. We know we float in space, precious and unique, but like a true singularity – the final state of matter before it falls into a black hole – we are at risk of irretrievable loss. We need to prepare and engage before we reach the point where a catastrophic change may occur. Our hope lies in our hearts.
Loi des cinq tables
Materials: Chains, metal, plastic painting trays, concrete, paint; 45x74x4 inches Table des cinq lois, is inspired by the ancient Roman Law of the Twelve Tables, a codex which provided the foundation for Roman law during the Republic, and consequently, as the basis of common law in many countries, and the of the United States legal system. It formalized laws outlining social, fiscal and moral responsibilities and consequences for failure to conform. (I have my law degree from the University of Montreal, LLB). I examine this in contrast with the futility of such laws in the face of the technological singularity, Table des cinq lois is a physical description of a future in which written law has little use. With the advancement of technology and Artificial Intelligence, the need for traditional ways of governance will become obsolete. Pre-constructed and pre-conceived rules become ineffective and impotent within the cyber universe in which we live. As we are increasingly immersed in our new digital, hyper-real world, there is a transformation in how we connect, communicate, and govern ourselves. The Law of the Twelve tables is purported to have been inscribed on bronze. In my work, there are five ‘tablets’,representing man, and the five elements of the universe. Liquid which would once have been used to write, paint and draw, has solidified into solid, fixed, gold nuggets useless for communicating. Indeed, gold, in the future world loses all value, commercial or otherwise. When viewed in person, the ‘tablets’ offer back to the viewer, a reflection of themselves. We are asked to consider what laws truly bind us.
Connected 1 (le piano Van Eetvelt), part of the Collective Consciousness series
Installation/Performance piece. Medium : Acoustic piano, sensors, wire, steel, aluminum, syringes, acrylic paint, rubber, plexiglass, solenoids, wood, metal togas and elastics Dimensions : 50 x 25 x 72 inches
Connected 1 (le piano Van Eetvelt)
Installation/Performance piece. Medium : Acoustic piano, sensors, wire, steel, aluminum, syringes, acrylic paint, rubber, plexiglass, solenoids, wood, metal togas and elastics Dimensions : 50 x 25 x 72 inches I integrated a piano with a painting machine that creates images based on the input of both the musician and the artist. An acoustic piano is connected to “a box of colors”: a device which includes a field of 88 syringes containing paint of different colors linked to the keys. These keys are connected to sensors commanded electronically. It is a singular exploration of sequential creation and exemplifies the impact collaboration has between artists (the painter and the pianist). They work to deliver a cohesive message to the viewer. Sometimes this feels instinctual and will be created in a short intense period. No matter the technology and/or machinery, human input will and must, always influence creation. The impending technological singularity demands that we pay attention to the necessity of human interaction and input, for the survival of our most essential qualities of creativity and imagination.
Collective Consciousness
Much of my art focuses on the approaching technological singularity. Human existence today teeters on a precipice. We are at a pivotal moment, at which our fate lies in our immediate collective action. Some singularity theorists project that the radical exponential progress of Artificial Intelligence, will reach a saturation level – the “technological singularity” – by mid century, only three decades from now.
Technological growth, AI, and our immersion into the digital, hyper-real cyber world, will impact human civilization in unknowable ways. It could be a threat, but we need to hope it is an opportunity. As one science writer states “We will soon create intelligences greater than our own... human history will have reached a kind of singularity, an intellectual transition as impenetrable as the knotted space-time at the center of a black hole, and the world will pass far beyond our understanding.”
Only through a connected, collective consciousness, which we can create through connection with each other, can we ensure the future survival of ourselves and our planet. I believe that artists can be an agent of positive and necessary change.
For "Face the Music" - one component of my series "Collective Consciousness", various objects and materials that represent civilization, are put into a modified washing machine, and the resulting sounds created by the rotating mechanism, recorded. A layout of the blackened objects upon a stark white canvas, will be presented before a black brick wall, separating the machine from viewer. The viewer becomes implicated when a sensor, activated by their presence, triggers the sound recording.
There is a movement back to stone, back to dust, and all in darkness, against the canvas our world has provided. The black on white is like a reverse image or a negative plate of the universe of black skies filled with points of white light.
PLEASE NOTE - a documentary featuring my installation "Face the Music / Collective Consciousness", is being filmed in Turkey this summer during the Sinopale Biennial. The documentary is entitled "Face the Music", directed by Yusuf Emre Yalcin. Filming is set to start with my arrival at the Istanbul airport on July 19th. The documentary follows my creative process for this particular installation which was conceived during my last visit. The filmmaker's intention is to show how art can be created despite political instability and upheaval.
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