Digital Artist, Video Editor, & Photographer
Posthumanism
Instalation view
At the Currents New Media Festival in 2016, my series of photographs, Posthumanism, were displayed. Each had an embedded QR code that linked to an animation, which could be viewed from a personal device, such as a smart phone. To date, this has been the most prominent example of my work, which tends to focus on expressing and exploring the complicated relationship between nature, humans, and technology; how each one impacts the others. My art not only incorporates these elements, but also draws the audience themselves in via the technological devices so many of us have come to rely on, in order to fully experience the piece.
Artist Statment:
Electronics have infiltrated every aspect of our lives and our dependency on them continues to increase. The concept of people losing their humanity to technology, even to the point of physical symbiosis, fascinates me.
Posthumanism is defined as the condition in which humans and technology are becoming increasingly intertwined. Embedded in this series of six photographs are QR codes that link to an animation which can be viewed on a personal device, such as a smart phone. The photographs should hang in linear sequence being: Posthumanism, Download, Overload, Addiction, Communication, Glitch. The animated GIFs are sized for the average smart phone and vary on orientation. This interactivity, along with an exaggerated portrayal of Posthuman figures, investigates the influence of technology on human beings.
Although we control technology, its impact on us is undeniable. In some ways our devices have redefined our personal space. In order to fully experience this series, the viewer must make use of their own device, thus crossing into their newly defined personal space.
Each image deals with a psychological aspect of technology’s influence on human beings. Communication, for example, deals with the fact that connecting to each other no longer requires human interaction through look or touch, further demonstrating how integrated our devices are into our existence on a personal level.
Currently, personal technology is viewed as an accessory. Within a Posthuman world, “humanness” will exist in terms of information patterns rather than outward appearances. Therefore, in this series, the human form itself progressively takes on the role of an accessory. As the series advances, the imagery depicts technology’s increasing intervention by taking over the internal functions of a human body.
Ultimately the work portrays a tangled relationship, not only through the concepts displayed in the imagery, but also in the participation of audience members by linking viewer, device, and artwork. This work serves as a way to better understand the digital age and explore its possible future consequences on our humanity.