Humans +. The future of our species
CCCB (Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona)
Barcelona, Spain
Cyborgs, superhumans and clones. Evolution or extinction? What does it mean to be a human today? What will it feel like to be a human a hundred years from now? Technological capabilities are increasing at a rapid pace—should we continue to embrace modifications to our minds, bodies and daily lives, or are there boundaries we shouldn’t overstep?
Human+ explores potential future trajectories of our species by considering both historical and emerging technologies, as well as their cultural and ethical contexts. What does it mean to be human today? From Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) to human digital remains, our lives are mediated and defined by our tools and scientific discoveries. However, this exhibition is not a blind celebration of technology, but is intended to present a range of imagined and real possibilities, allowing visitors to make up their own mind about the preferred future of the human species.
The exhibition, designed by Indissoluble, explores the boundaries of what it means to be human—boundaries of the body, boundaries of the species, boundaries of what is socially and ethically acceptable. Should we enhance ourselves, or seek to modify our descendants? Are we approaching a singularity of human-machine hybridization or de-skilling ourselves through our ever-increasing reliance on technological extensions of the body? Is extended human longevity a wonderful aspiration or a dire prospect for the planet?
The exhibition design’s aim is to create a neutral environment that doesn’t compete with the artistic pieces exhibited in it, but that it’s, at the same time, flexible enough to adapt to its different formats. The solution is a fully black coated interior that’s only interrupted where artistic pieces are shown. There, white colour appears as vertical or horizontal planes, as well as furniture. The transition between different chapters is also done with a high contrast thanks to the white coloured floor and walls and to the diffused light ceiling that generates an surrounding light box.
First presented at the Science Gallery Dublin in 2011, HUMAN+ re-emerges now featuring many additional works, and accompanied by both a full event series and a new catalogue.
VISIT THE EXHIBITION HERE
Embryo III © Steve Barrett 2019
Client:
CCCB
Data:
7 october 2015 – 10 april 2016
Direction:
Juan Roberto Vásquez
Project direction:
Jordi Miró
Design:
Miriam Ribuffo
Photography:
Pablo Pariente