Picturing the Posthuman Gouache and watercolour on paper 30 x 42 cm 2015
PICTURING THE POSTHUMAN
TRANSHUMAN and POSTHUMAN
I have been thinking about posthumanism, transhumanism, existential risk posed by emerging technologies, and artificial intelligence...especially regarding increasingly autonomous weapons eg: weaponised drones. AND, I have been thinking about how to convey some of these ideas in my paintings, without being illustrative or providing an 'artist's impression' - like a scifi image.
Posthumanism is a kind of end point of transhumanism. Transhumanists believe that the human is compromised by biology. They propose that technology can alleviate biological limitations and enhance abilities, such as intelligence. They aim for 'singularity', the ultimate posthuman condition. But 'singularity' could mean that there's no body at all. The ultimate cleansing! And, definitely posthuman! An example is: downloading minds to be algorithmically encoded for an eternal unembodied 'existence'. However, I'd argue that the posthuman label could be applied well before the body became completely obsolete.
It's all absolutely fascinating!
PAINTING
And, my interest in creating paintings that 'speak' of these fascinating, but also concerning issues, is a contrary one! Painting, with brush and paint like I do, is not hi-tech. What can something that sits outside the contemporary technological frame generally, and new-media frame specifically, provide? For me...it reminds me of being human.
So, to Picturing the Posthuman - here is a painting that seems to offer two choices, but it's much more complex than that. The spiral of binary code repeats the word 'resurrection'. It implies that a posthuman existence, such as the downloading of minds, could be classed as some kind of intent to resurrect 'life'. The small tree...yes, my transcultural religious tree-of-life... is surrounded by colourful dots, that could be stars, thoughts, other small but indiscernible trees? At the outer edges there are random zeros and ones, indicating the present day world where technology influences our lives.
Like two galaxies about to collide, this painting presents a possible tense situation. Another way of thinking about the painting is that two posthuman worlds exist, one where existence is an ordered posthuman future, the other where technology has become self propelling and out of the control. leaving humanity in a chaotic posthuman half-life future. But then...who's to say this is not already the case?
I am sure you can think of a few scenarios for this painting too...I've certainly got more...
The cosmic background suggests time...time to make decisions...or that it is time to make the right decisions. As cosmologist and astronomer Lord Martin Rees, wrote in his 2003 book 'Our Final Century' What happens here on Earth, in this century, could conceivably make the difference between a near eternity filled with ever more complex and subtle forms of life and one filled with nothing but base matter.Martin Rees, Our Final Century: A Scientist’s Warning: How Terror, Error, and Environmental Disaster Threaten Humankind’s Future in This Century—On Earth and Beyond (New York: Basic Books, 2003) p.7-8
NEWS
I am very excited to let you know about a scholarly article which has been published about my paintings Kathryn Brimblecombe-Fox: Paintings 2002 - 2010 by Dr. Christine Dauber [PhD. Art History]. The article has been published online at the innovative PANOPTIC PRESS.
To whet your appetite here are two quotes:
It must first be understood that in these latter paintings, Brimblecombe–Fox is not so much concerned with landscape painting per se, but in a Warburgian sense, searches for the universal connections, or common ground between people, races and religions. In doing this she searches for a means to overcome the violence that exists in and between barriers to cultural understanding. Dr. Christine Dauber [PhD. Art History].
and
Similarly, in relation to Brimblecombe-Fox’s more recent work, the description “contemporary landscape artist” can actually be deceiving, for although she still uses elements and images that are drawn from nature such as a tree, a leaf or an island, she travels in new dimensions as she expands her concerns with the landscape into global questions on ecology and world harmony. Dr. Christine Dauber [PhD. Art History].
Cheers,
Kathryn
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