S U B C U L T U R E
Liminal Bio Sphere | Life Underwater

Creative Development | Critical Discussion

SPACE SOON | The Roundhouse, London | UK 2006
PSi12 | Performing Rights | Queen Mary, London | UK 2006
BLUE05 | Human performance, behaviour & limits underwater | Pisa | ITALY 2005
BEAPWORKS | Living & Electronic Arts Research | AUS 2005

Provocation

"A critical consideration for long durational underwater habitat is the need to understand the specific consciousness of gravitational and aqueous conditions on human performance behaviours and limits. I propose this consciousness is a balance between the forces to affiliate and forces to withdraw from inner and outer spaces. An important question is just what this balance implies for the aquanaut and all related life support systems in subspace and how is it recognized and communicated."

Critical positioning

SUBCULTURE proposes a wet extreme environment performance or WEEP (-a play on words refering to the acronym 'weightless environment training' or WET performance laboratories). SUBCULTURE is designed to adapt technologies to road test both the human life support and telematic performance systems required for long-duration underwater habitation and furthermore, recognizing and communicating the specific consciousness of the encounter. AS such, SUBCULTURE posits the strategy of Aquabatics - the embodiment of aqueous philosophy - to challenge notions of post humanism, and ultimately to occupy a new, sub space.

Proposed Idea 2007

To conduct a public wet extreme environment performance WEEP at a depth of 1.5 – 2 ata for five days as an artistic analogue to an outerspace EVA. The artist/aquanaut will perform underwater operations of a utilitarian and aesthetic nature inside a purpose built transparent aquarium while the entire team: including life support crews and systems personnel, will be visible to a live and networked audience. Phase one investigations will include a period of preliminary trials designed to harness and modify current technologies. These investigations will test prototype free flow helmet designs and apparel including built-in-bio fluid and nutrition replenishment systems, waste disposal and bio monitoring devices. Each component will be systems tested to quantify the life support operations and human movement possibilities for the development of a longer public performance.

Phase two investigation will include a psychophysiological study aimed at understanding the specific consciousness, the corollary towards behaviour and performance limits, and any links to hyperbaric decompression effects in such uniquely controlled conditions. Various sub-research strands include: psychometric responses to confined space habitat conditions; neurological function in neutral buoyancy; spatial orientation/ navigation; movement memory function; communication systems; bio-psychological response; oxygen therapy, pressure tissues and dermo saturation analysis over the performance period itself.

It is hoped that these investigations will lead to models that clarify the functional architecture of the different physiological and psychological regions of the performative sites. Both normal and abnormal behaviours including performative and the natural behaviours are to be analyzed. The intention is to form bridges between biological, physical and aesthetical systems notably the perceived actions and consciousness that describe aspects of weep self-organization, performance, and behaviours.

Proposed Idea 2005

Sub Culture: liminal Bio sphere
Original Project Abstract 2004 developed by Sarah Jane Pell with Oron Catts & Ionat Zurr for proposal to The Arts Catalyst, London 2005.
Over six days, life form Sarah Jane Pell will perform a sub space habitat investigation posited at a depth of 1.5ATA in a human-scale bioreactor filled with saline. The aquanaut will be suspended inside an observation chamber that emulates micro-gravity conditions either by vessel rotation (should the tank be spherical) or hydrodynamic force (using a donut-shaped model).

A satellite of cultured and sub cultured life forms contained in mini bioreactors will also perform. Amphibian cells, complex vertebrates and monocultural aquatic organisms will be chosen.All living systems will be tended, monitored and mediated from the third tier biosphere of Life Support Personnel with life form researchers Oron Catts & Ionat Zurr performing Cultural Awareness Responsible Enforcement operations. The intention of the investigations is to CARE between the biological, physical and aesthetical systems that describe aspects of performance and behaviour in a saturated microgravity bioreactor.

The fourth tier will explore telematic performance and consciousness across all systems.

The culture of this research nexus embraces the functional evolution of existing extra-terrestrial, deep aquatic and earthbound living knowledge systems to examine the issues involved in defining and measuring the specific consciousness of life forms.The design considers the functional architecture of the live bio-technological system in relation to the tekhne of cognition and communication. The conditions inside the bioreactor combine saturation and velocity. The outer spheres combines moist and dry, ambient pressure laboratories and observation platforms. Each public and private layer of the micro/macro cultures represents a state or environmental habitat acknowledging the interrelated hybrid life support body comprising techno, industrial and societal faculties.

The unique Meta performative body [inclusive of living and semi living beings] in a hydro micro gravitational field also conveys a paradigmatic shift between two epochs: cultural and ideological and the aesthetical spheres and scientific concepts of the body entity and site. This liminal performance-style laboratory explores the complexities of performance and technology of living systems in relation to their extreme environments. The unique conditions also provide opportunities with predictive validity for alternative habitat whilst unhindered by the requirements of a mission operation. In terms of the living and semi living, findings artistic or otherwise, will act as Canary-type early warning systems alerting larger bodies to environmental and cultural stressors, hazards and potentials. An open call will be made for researchers to submit associated research proposals to this work.

Papers | Panels | Publications

Critical theory/ Panels/ Presentations/ Papers
Birringer, J., (2007) Performance and Science PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art - PAJ 85 (Volume 29, Number 1), MIT Press January 2007, pp. 21-35
Pell, S.J. (2006) Sub Culture: 'Space Soon' art & human spaceflight conference, The Roundhouse, London UK, September 3
Birringer, J., Pell, S.J., Bell, S., La Frenais, R., (2006) Sub Culture: liminal Biosphere Panel PSi 12 Conference, Royal College, London UK, July 14
Pell, S.J. (2005) Sub Culture, Preparing a subspace habitat as an analogue to outer space, Blue2005 Human performance limits and behaviour underwater, Pisa, Italy, December 3
Pell, S.J. (2005) Sub Cultures: A presentation to SymbioticA : the art & science laboratory, The School of Anatomy & Human Biology, The University of Western Australia. Friday Meeting, November 19
Birringer, J. & Danjoux, M., (2005) The Telematic Dress: evolving garments and distributed prior-proception in streaming media & fashion performance, Wearable Technologies Conference, Leeds University UK
Birringer, J., (2005) The Gargarin System: Reflections on “Synnesthesia and Multimedia” a workshop at Enfuit University, December 2004.
Pell, S.J. Catts, O., Zurr, I (2004) Sub Culture: liminal Bio Sphere, 500word Research Proposal to The Arts Catalyst, London

SUB Culture: Duty of Care

Panel, PSi12 Performing Rights Conference, Queen Mary College, London University UK, June 17, 2006.
Panel Chair: Johannes Birringer (Brunel University)
Speakers: Sarah Jane Pell (Aquabatics Australia), Shannon Bell (York University) and Rob LaFrenais (The Arts Catalyst, London).

This panel involved a discussion of 'duty of care' in bioarts/life science and performance research practices, supported by films that show excerpts from lab experiments with SJ Pell submerged in a human-scale aqueous bioreactor connected to a satellite of semi-living aquanuats in self-contained mini biospheres.

03:24 MOVIE: Neohumanism in Aqueous Arts.
Assoc. Prof. Shannon Bell (York University, CA) 2006
Filmed by Pell on Victoria Quay, Fremantle while Bell was Philosopher in Residence at School of Contemporary Arts, Edith Cowan University Western Australia. Screened at SUB Culture: Duty of Care Panel, PSi12 Performing Rights Conference, London UK, 2006. All rights reserved.