[Nettime-ro] An organic cyberpunk - Gaál József

[Bazis <bazisgallery@gmail.com>]

tml>



An organic cyberpunk - GaÃl JÃzsef

BÃZIS â contemporary art space Cluj-Napoca

opening: 26 october , 2012, h: 19.00

address: Fabrica de Pensule, 59-61 Henri Barbusse st., 1st floor, Cluj-Napoca



----------------------------------------------------------------------- 

An organic cyberpunk â GaÃl JÃzsefâs phantasm

To keep within the bounds of human condition or to give up everything related to it, passing through a dehumanization process, and facing the transformational processes of abandoning the self proposed by the globalization era, in which the nature of human identity and uniqueness becomes questionable? The dialectic of the art of GaÃl JÃzsef, especially as it can be intuited in his sculptures, is dealing with a permanent dilemma, that of the being forced to move back and forth in between those two completely opposite states of mind. Beginning with 1995, the dawn of his art work series, his art went through various and relevant transformations. These transformations were of a formal nature, but the message has been kept identical, at least from a technical point of view, as seen in the sensitive art works of the Macula series (1995), evoking some mummified heads, and yet again seen in the brutal monumentality of the torsos from the Phantasma series (2011) â the conception frame, the sculpturesâ origin: the interior parts are  made of wood, the surface of leather and nails, and recently â to emphasize the plastic art message â metal wire and bits. The artist chose to never use synthetic materials; his option for certain types of materials is concerned with the inner message these materials bear in themselves, of their historical and narrative infinite possibilities; the implants on the sculpturesâ surface originate in the props from a past era and in common household objects, belonging to another social class (see trappings, etc.).
Replacing the past archetypes, GaÃlâs new sculptures are envisaging a futurist dual being â a cyborg, half robot, half human being. The human being, who lives under the spell of prosthesis, who almost religiously mystifies the standard beauty ideals, who is at the same time trapped into the very active nature of a hedonist consumerism attitude, fighting with the interferences concerned with his identity, this conflicted human being is confronted with an auto-reflexive process by these sculptures integrated into a transhumanistic apprehension. Through his sculptures, GaÃl JÃzsef is addressing, maybe for the first time, an ethical matter: what could be the consequences of humanity's wish to accede to a post-human condition, in which mental and physical borders would be abolished? To what extent could the transformation of the individual into a superhuman devoid of feelings could be plausible, when old age, disease, death â and actually even life itself do not matter any more? The grinning, brutal, utterly fractured faces, imprisoned in chumps, they could be considered the failures of humanistic renascentist utopia and of 20th centuryâs cynicism. At this point, the question that arises naturally would be: are GaÃl JÃzsefâs sculptures series stating the damnation of the machineries, originating their statement into technophobia (some sort of BioLuddism) or are they  the manifestation of a 21st century cyberpunk gesture creating its own satirical transhuman world. Both attitudes could be validated, if we take into account that these human-robots chimeras are made of organic materials, claiming their right to an identity, but at the same time these art works could be seen as a manifestation of  contemporaryâ intellectual eclecticism.

                                                                                                                 NoÃmi SzabÃ, curator, art historian (Budapest)                                    



-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Un cyberpunk organic â Fantasma lui GaÃl JÃzsef

A pÄstra condiÈia de om sau a renunÈa la tot ce este uman, Ãntr-un proces al dezumanizÄrii, optÃnd pentru calea uÈoarÄ a globalizÄrii Èi uniformizÄrii? Dialectica artisticÄ, pendulÃnd Ãntre aceste douÄ existenÈe diametral opuse, se manifestÄ 
printr-o dilemÄ constantÄ prezentÄ Ãn arta lui GaÃl JÃzsef, Ãn mod deosebit Ãn sculpturile lui. PercepÈia sa plasticÄ a parcurs o transformare puternicÄ, ÃncepÃnd cu primele serii din 1995. PlecÃnd de la lucrÄrile sensibile din seria Macula (1995), evocÃnd niÈte capete mumificate Èi, pÃnÄ la monumentalitatea brutalÄ a busturilor din seria Fantasma (2011), Ãn arta acestuia s-au materializat multe transformÄri formale, ÃnsÄ mesajul a rÄmas identic â cel puÈin din punct de vedere tehnic - modul de construire, provenienÈa sculpturilor: miezul lucrÄrilor este sculptat Ãn lemn, suprafaÈa lor fiind iniÈial alcÄtuitÄ din piele Èi cuie, pentru ca mai apoi sÄ treacÄ la harnaÈamente vechi Èi curele din piele, iar mai nou - pentru un impact plastic â din sÃrmÄ metalicÄ Èi zÄbale. Artistul nu lucreazÄ niciodatÄ cu materiale sintetice; materialele pentru care opteazÄ conferÄ ele Ãnsele, prin construcÈia lor interioarÄ, posibilitatea narativitÄÈii Èi a parcursului istoric, Ãn mÄsura Ãn care implanturile de pe suprafaÈa sculpturii provin din recuzita unei alte epoci Èi din obiectele de uz comun ale unei alte clase sociale (vezi harnaÈament, etc.).

Ãn locul arhetipurilor mitice ale trecutului, noile sculpturi ale lui GaÃl ÃmbracÄ chipul unei fiinÈe futuriste duale â un cyborg: pe jumÄtate robot, pe jumÄtate om. Omul, care trÄieÈte Ãn vraja protezelor, care mistificÄ pÃnÄ religie idealurile de frumuseÈe uniformizate, care altminteri se supune ordinului hedonist al consumerismului, care luptÄ cu perturbÄrile de identitate, este Ãndemnat la o puternicÄ autoreflexie prin sculpturile integrate Ãn concepÈia transumanismului. GaÃl JÃzsef adreseazÄ prin sculpturile sale, poate pentru prima oarÄ Ãn mod direct, o problematicÄ eticÄ: ce consecinÈe poate avea dorinÈa omenirii de a accede la o stare postumanÄ, Ãn care s-ar depÄÈi orice barierÄ fizicÄ Èi mentalÄ cu ajutorul tehnologiei? Ãn ce mÄsurÄ poate fi plauzibilÄ transformarea individului Ãntr-un supra-om fÄrÄ sentimente, cÃnd nici bÄtrÃneÈea, nici boala, nici moartea â dar de fapt nici viaÈa nu mai are mizÄ? Chipurile brutale, rÃnjite, puternic fracÈionate, Ãnchise Ãn butuci sunt marii perdanÈi ai utopiei umaniste renascentiste Èi ai cinismului secolului XX. Sunt fiinÈe transumane, tranzitorii. Se pune Ãntrebarea dacÄ seria de sculpturi a lui GaÃl JÃzsef se situeazÄ de partea distrugerii, Ãntr-un demers tehnofobic, a maÈinilor (un fel de âbioluddismâ) sau Ãntr-un gest al unui cyberpunk ÃndrÄzneÈ din secolul XXI care ÃÈi creeazÄ propria lume transumanÄ satiricÄ. Poate ambele atitudini sunt corecte, dacÄ pornim de la ideea cÄ aceste himere oameni-roboÈi sunt construite din materiale organice, presupunÃnd dreptul lor la individualitate, totodatÄ ÃnsÄ, lucrÄrile pot fi considerate o fiinÈare a eclectismului intelectual al prezentului.

                                                                                                                     NoÃmi SzabÃ, curator, istoric de artÄ (Budapesta)




-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Egy organikus kiberpunk - GaÃl JÃzsef FantazmÃja

Az elembertelenedÃs folyamatÃban embernek maradni vagy lemondani a humÃnumrÃl a globalizÃciÃ, az uniformizÃlÃdÃs kÃnnyebbik ÃtjÃÃrt? E kÃt szÃlsÅsÃges lÃtÃllapot kÃrÃl zajlà mÅvÃszeti dialektika Ãllandà dilemma GaÃl JÃzsef mÅvÃszetÃben. SzobrÃszatÃban kÃlÃnÃskÃppen. Az 1995-tÅl indulÃ, kezdeti szobrÃszi szÃriÃi Ãta hatalmas ÃtalakulÃson ment keresztÃl plasztikai felfogÃsa. Az egyik elsÅ, 1995-tÅl kÃszÃtett, mumifikÃlÃdott emberfejeket idÃzÅ Macula sorozat ÃrzÃkeny darabjaitÃl, a 2011-ben kÃszÃtett Fantazma szÃria  bÃsztjeinek brutÃlis monumentalitÃsÃig sok formai transzformÃcià valÃsult meg, azonban szobrainak âlegalÃbbis technikai  szempontbÃl- eredÅje, megkonstruÃlÃsuknak mÃdja hasonlà maradt:  a fÃbÃl kifaragott szobormag felszÃnÃt kezdetben bÅrrel Ãs szÃgekkel, majd rÃgi lÃszerszÃmokkal, bÅrszÃjakkal Ãs egyre plasztikusabb hatÃst eredmÃnyezÅ fÃmhuzalokkal, zablÃkkal kÃpezi ki. Soha nem dolgozik szintetikus anyagokkal, sÅt vÃlasztott matÃriÃi mÃg a tÃrtÃnetisÃg Ãs a narratÃva lehetÅsÃgÃt is magukban hordozzÃk, amennyiben a szoborfelszÃnre ÃpÃtett implantÃtumok egy mÃsik kor, egy mÃsik tÃrsadalmi osztÃly rekvizitumaibÃl, hasznÃlati tÃrgyaibÃl (lÃsd lÃszerszÃm, stb.) ÃpÃlnek fel. 

GaÃl Ãj szobrai a mitologikus mÃlt archetÃpusai helyett a futurista kiborg lÃny fÃlig gÃp, fÃlig ember arcÃt vettÃk fel. A transzhumanizmus gondolatkÃrÃbe Ãgyazott plasztikÃk sÃlyos ÃnreflexiÃra kÃsztetik a protÃzisek bÅvkÃrÃben ÃlÅ Ãs az uniformizÃlt szÃpsÃgideÃlt vallÃssà misztifikÃlÃ, egyÃbkÃnt pedig a fogyasztÃs hedonista parancsÃnak engedelmeskedÅ, identitÃszavarral kÃzdÅ embert. GaÃl JÃzsef talÃn most elÅszÃr tesz fel direkt etikai kÃrdÃst szobrain keresztÃl: milyen kÃvetkezmÃnyekkel jÃrhat az emberisÃg poszthumÃn Ãllapot utÃni vÃgya, amikor a technolÃgia segÃtsÃgÃvel ÃtlÃp minden fizikai Ãs mentÃlis korlÃton? Mennyire lehet ÃdvÃzÃtÅ az  egyÃn Ãrzelemmentes szuperhumÃnnà vÃlÃsa, amikor nem szÃmÃt ÃregsÃg, betegsÃg, halÃl - de valÃjÃban az Ãlet sem? A brutÃlis, erÅteljesen tagolt, kalodÃba kÃnyszerÃtett, vicsorgà arcok a reneszÃnsz humanizmus utÃpiÃjÃnak Ãs a XX. szÃzad cinizmusÃnak nagy vesztesei. Ãtmeneti, transzhumÃn lÃnyek. FelmerÃl a kÃrdÃs, hogy GaÃl JÃzsef szoborsorozata a technofÃb gÃprombolÃs (egyfajta bioluddizmus) pÃrtjÃn Ãll vagy merÃsz XXI. szÃzadi kiberpunk gesztussal megalkotja a sajÃt szatirikus transzhumanista vilÃgÃt. TalÃn mindkÃt ÃllÃspont igaz, hiszen ezek az ember-gÃp kimÃrÃk organikus eredetÅ anyagokbÃl kÃszÃltek, amely feltÃtelezik az egyÃnisÃg lÃtjogosultsÃgÃt, ugyanakkor sÃlyos lÃtleletet adnak a jelenkor szellemi eklekticizmusÃnak vÃgÃnyairÃl.

                                                                                                                       Szabà NoÃmi, kurÃtor, mÅvÃszettÃrtÃnÃsz (Budapest)                                



-----------------------------------------------------------------------

âfor further details, please contact us: bazisplatform@gmail.com      

-tml>

contemporary art platform
www.bazis.ro

-
_______________________________________________
Nettime-ro mailing list
Nettime-ro@nettime.org
http://www.nettime.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/nettime-ro
-->
arhiva: http://amsterdam.nettime.org/