Bruce Lacey was a multidisciplinary artist and comedian, with a focus on performance art and mechanical constructs. Being an inventor and fascinator of all things automata, he consistently pushed boundaries with often robotic pieces taking a satirical look at human issues.
He was approached by curator Jaisa Reichardt to exhibit a piece for Cybernetic Serendipity. “On The Human Predicament” questions self-imposed limitations on the man by the various environments/societies, human’s find themselves in. He argues acting on certain emotional, sexual and psychological needs could actually cause detriments such as imprisonment to one’s life. He believed this prevents us from realizing human potential, and suggest we must change our environment/society to suit ourselves not the other way around.
I find his work very interesting and of value when considering the line between human and machine. However, I found his prose on this particular piece confusing, and while I agree our society as it stands leaves much to be desired, I still haven’t made my mind up on the best ways to solve this, especially amongst the growing nature of technology.
Overall, I think Cybernetic Serendipity is a cornerstone in the discussion of cybernetics, robots and its place amongst humans. I think this is a converstation that will/is becoming more prevelant, and it’s great to question who we are, and how cybernetics might simply be an extension of that.
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