For the majority of this week’s lecture, I sat watching with
my stomach clenched feeling quite disturbed and uncomfortable. However, there were parts were I relaxed and
took in the information with pure academic interest. I would like to examine my comfort and
discomfort with bio-art in an attempt to examine the moral issues of bio-art.
I was most disturbed by Stelarc’s Third Ear. Stelarc had a full-sized human ear inserted
in his left arm as a sub-dermal implant.
According to Stelarc, the ear “is not seen as a sign of lack but rather
as a symptom of excess.” (http://stelarc.org/?catID=20242) Although, part of me was grossed out by the
irregular obtrusion from beneath the skin, I was disturbed at the motivation
for this artistic expression. The motivation
was to suggest an improved human being!
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| Stelarc presents his Third Ear. (http://streetanatomy.com/2012/06/27/stelarcs-third-ear/) |
However, I was comforted by Kathy High’s work on transgenic
mice. High bought mice predisposed to
human disease and cares for them with holistic methods in an attempt to prolong
their lives. (http://www.embracinganimal.com/ratlove.html) Her artistic motivation is a feeling of
empathy. Her empathy is shown in her
exhibit, “Embracing Animal” in which she refrained from displaying the rats in
poses that are reserved for pets to avoid their portrayal as domesticated
animals (http://www.aestheticsandculture.net/index.php/jac/article/view/5888/6622).
 |
| Kathy High's "Embracing Animal" exhibit. (http://www.aestheticsandculture.net/index.php/jac/article/viewFile/5888/6622/15665) |
Finally, it is interesting that I felt indifferent to Eduardo
Kac’s fluorescent bunny, Alba. At first,
I gathered that there was no real thought put into the matter of creating this
fluorescent bunny. Through further
research, it became apparent that Kac’s really thought out the implications of the
project, and ultimately deemed it both harmless and beneficial. Its benefit, he believes, is to explore the
relationship between humans and other species (http://www.ekac.org/gfpbunny.html#gfpbunnyanchor). Unfortunately, Kac never got to take Alba
home to interact with it, and was quite disturbed when he heard of the bunny’s
death in 2002 (http://www.wired.com/medtech/health/news/2002/08/54399?currentPage=all).
 |
| Eduardo Kac and the fluorescent bunny, Alba. (http://www.ekac.org/gfpb1.jpeg) |
Through reflection, I believe that a large amount of my
discomfort for bio-art is from its motivation.
If the art’s motivation is to purely invoke thought and wonder, like in
the case of Stelarc’s Third Ear, I believe that artwork is unjustified. However, if the artwork is motivated by
empathy or love, then I view the art as more palatable.
Works Cited
Aristarkhova, Irina. "Hosting the Animal: The Art of Kathy High." Journal of Aesthetics and Culture. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.
High, Kathy. "Rat Love Manifesto." Embracing Animal. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.
Kac, Eduardo. "GFP BUNNY." EKac.org. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.
Philipkoski, Kristen. "RIP: Alba, the Glowing Bunny." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, 12 Aug. 2002. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.
Stelarc. "Stelarc // Ear on Arm." Stelarc.org. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.
I do agree with you about the uncomfortable feeling when watching the videos, especially the example of Stelarc’s Third Ear. I feel that it does not have any biological meaning and cannot be considered as real Art. I think artists should focus more on real art and carefully use the bio technology.
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