Art Essay

When it comes to comparing Sterlac I can see that he reaches a second level of existence where the body becomes the object for physical experiments in order to discover his limitations. When Stelarc speaks of the "obsolete body" he means that the body must  begin to be considered as an extendible structure enhanced with the most disparate technologies, (that’s why he uses technologic devices and attaches them to his body) which are more precise, accurate and powerful: "the body lacks of modular design," - "Technology is what defines the meaning of being human, it's part of being human." While Peter, thinks about technologic devices as in TV and what it does to us, thinking about what we see through TV thinking that while we watch it, we’re loosing connection with it, he saves voice recordings and adds them to his own video records, he describes the process as being “shoot up” and thinks deeply of the moments being proceeded on TV such as news. He tries to create a perceptual trap that the viewer falls into, in his exhibitions he tries to confuse people, using cubes, tables, glasses being projected by a projector, saying that he wraps the image or video onto flat surfaces, pillows.. etc projecting from different angles, so when looking besides looking at the piece you're also looking at the projection.

Peter projects human bodies and actual people into his pieces while being projected while Sterlac uses his own body in order to get his message across he has always been been enhancing the body, that technology is going to take over our lives. Sterlac and Peter have in common the way they see technology and both work that subject, however besides different mediums being used, their outcome and works are way different, This has been very interesting and helpful because now that I know that Sterlac altered his body and attached an ear to his arm it made me realise of new concepts that I could use for my upcoming projects, adding fingers to my hand (which some people are born with) Here’s a bit more about Peter’s work https://vimeo.com/45263989

Sterlac’s attached ear on top 

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Peter’s projection onto a book, below.

Sterlac tries to implant technology into the body so that the body as a system becomes subjectively aware again, new technologies tend to generate new perceptions and paradigms of the world, and in turn, allows him to take further steps.

He was a Cyprus-born performance artist raised in the Melbourne, he uses his own body and experiments with identity and the human anatomy, focuses heavily on extending the capabilities of the human body.

(Exhibition at Melbourne in March 2012.)

 Stelarc's performances often involve robotics or other relatively modern technology joined with his body. In 26 different performances he has suspended himself in flesh hook suspension. In another performance he allowed his body to be controlled remotely by electronic muscle stimulators connected to the internet, called Parasite

"The Third Hand" was a piece of robotic performance art that became one of the most famous works form the artist. His "third hand" was made of cast latex, aluminum, cables, and a battery pack, and worked by picking up muscle movements from the legs and arms. One of Stelarc's main themes and concerns was the imbalance of the human body, and how computers are such a major part of everyone's lives. In the early '80s, Stelarc was predicting the of universal technology, and saw humans and computers as growing and living off of each other.

Here is a video of him performing The Third Hand:

Peter Sarkisian is an American new-media artist born in Chicago, Illinois in 1928. His work combines video projection and sculpture to create a hybrid form of multi-media installation.

At the early age of sixteen Sarkisian was awarded a special scholarship to study at the Art Institute of Chicago. The scholarship was renewed for 3 additional years and Sarkisian continued his education at the institute throughout his teens. In 1948 Sarkisian and his family moved to Southern California, where he painted independently while stationed at Fort-Ord military base. In 1952 he received first prize for Figurative Painting in the De Young Museum's “13th Annual Society of Western Artists Exhibition”.

Later on, Sarkisian met the extraordinary curator Walter Hopps. He has had the distinction of being among the few artists exhibited by the curator himself in all the major venues at which he curated during his pioneering years in Los Angeles. These include, in chronological order:

• The Syndell Studio in 1954 • Action Painting 1 (Merry-Go-Round-Show) in 1955 • Action Painting 2 (Action Squared) in 1956 • The Ferus Gallery in 1957 • The Pasadena Art Museum in 1961.

By Peter Sarkisian.   

The mediums he used were:

-Powder coated.

-Steel and aluminium.

-Oversized ceramic cup.

-Concrete.

-Tinted polymer resin.

-Paper. 

-Coins. 

-Video.

-Projection and audio.