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New ICA<\/a>\u2019s group exhibition, “Looks”, can be seen as a temple to digitised and synthetically enhanced humanism, where identities and their bodily expressions grow and morph within the matrix of endless online information. Identities no longer exist without the consumer, without a comment or without an online habitat they can live within. This new world enables public performance of identity\u2013an identity no longer controllable by one\u2019s self, but determined and organised by facts beyond one\u2019s scope. The human body and its expression of identity are no longer linked.<\/p>\n Sculptures, paintings, videos, photographs and objects presented in “Looks” interact with each other and coincide throughout the gallery space. Formally very distant, they appear to be in constant posthuman dialogue with each other.\u00a0<\/p>\n “A day in the life of bliss”, a\u00a0\u00a02-channel film by\u00a0Wu Tsang<\/a>,\u00a0<\/i>exists in a near-future, science-fiction setting bathed in neon and made of online avatars and personas; the atmosphere of an underground futuristic nightclub with mirrored surfaces reflecting projected imagery floats somewhere between documentary and fiction. Installed in the ICA upper galleries,\u00a0<\/i>“A day in the life of bliss”\u00a0explores issues of sexuality, identity, marginalised subcultures and the narratives that construct them. In the video, it\u2019s 2017 and the society is regulated and monitored by invisible bass frequencies and social media avatars that are challenged and combated by the celebrity figure BLISS (played by performance artist Boychild<\/a>). Wu Tsang looks at the issues of marginalisation, queer and trans narrative, posthuman body politics and searches for personal identities; how these issues have been transformed by the technology dominated contemporary life and social media is a key focus.<\/p>\n The issue of the posthuman body is particularily present in Juliette Bonneviot\u2019s<\/a> \u201cXenoestrogens<\/a>“. Seven monochromatic paintings\u2013seemingly representative of abstract expressionism\u2013surround the visitor from all angles and confront with their boldness and slightly terrifying confidence. Closer encounter reveals that each of these paintings is a careful composition of both natural pigment sources and compounds containing types of xenoestrogen. Xenoestrogens are most famously found in birth control pills, silicones, lacquers, pesticides, detergents, lotions, shampoos, PVC, food colouring and recycled plastic; they are believed to disrupt the endocrine system of mammals by mimicking effects of estrogen, and potentially influencing gender and behaviour.\u00a0 This investigation into gender and ecology seems to provide an exploration of the hidden life and power of the chemical and its biological, cultural and philosophical implications. As our bodies are enhanced and altered by a chemical, a technological device, a prosthetic device, they create new forms of being- once seen only in science fiction.<\/p>\n Andrea Crespo<\/a>\u2019s “Parabiosis\u2013Neurolibidinal Induction Complex”\u2013occupies the space next door. Crespo\u2019s dark-toned video with glowing UV scanning lines running across the screen tells a story of mental pathology and personality issues through protagonists Celinde and Cynthia, seemingly schizophrenic, hyper-real transgender manga characters. Sis is a system which plays a crucial role in this work: it is a technologised organism that lives within embodied networks of information and enables Crespo\u2019s characters to exist. Production of identities, thoughts, moods, emotions and interests expressed through online avatars is not a new phenomenon; in Crespo\u2019s work, however, Sis exceeds into a system which becomes an identity itself, a schizophrenic compound of selves.<\/p>\n The lower gallery space is occupied by two artists: Stewart Uoo and Morag Keil. Morag Keil<\/a>\u00a0explores the issue of identity in the post-internet age, as well as the body and its relationship to the sociopolitical structure. “Leg1”\u00a0is a new video work presenting an Amy Winehouse tattoo on an anonymous limb, whereas “Untitled” creates an intimate dialogue between the viewer and a banal Instagram feed. Both works seem to create an image of a metropolitan female identity affected by social media and popular culture.<\/p>\n Identity and gender in Uoo\u2019s works seem to be situated at the intersection of fantasy, erotic performance and advertising. Identity is seen as pass\u00e9 and, in Uoo\u2019s world, the post-human doctrine takes over. Two female dystopian cyborg-mannequins are burned and spill their entrails \u2013 cables and wires. They reveal hints of their identities, which are inspired by the Ghetto Goth and Boho girl looks, so ubiquitous online. These are juxtaposed with Uoo\u2019s new carpet work, which depicts a cover of a Cosmo Girl magazine. Words of sexual or emotional embarrassment and pleads for advice are perfectly woven into a gigantic rug, presenting yet another vector for turning one\u2019s troubled teenage identity into a clich\u00e9d but entertaining mockery.<\/p>\n In “Looks”, gender, identity and the human body are like hallucinatory flashbacks to a world that may have already ended. Bodies are enhanced or reshaped by synthetic substances; identities are over-edited, commented on and no longer natural, but still dependant on the speed of one\u2019s wi-fi. Everything is a part of social exchanges \u2013 everything is networked, developing and morphing\u00a0in constant flux. Social, technological and cultural forces shape the contemporary self; identity and brand blend. This new system could be seen as having a negative impact on humans, but is also presented as a tool enabling one with endless freedom of choices and fluidity of identity and gender.<\/p>\n \u00a0Text by Agnes Gryczkowska<\/strong><\/p>\n ‘Looks’ is now showing at the\u00a0ICA<\/a>\u00a0until 21 June 2015<\/strong><\/p>\n Mehr:\u00a0Playing Games At Centre Pompidou’s Nouveau Festival<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n![\"Installation](\"https:\/\/www.sleek-mag.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Andrea_Crespo-Looks-ICA-0087.jpg\")
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