Originally published online in The New York Times, October 2,1997.

An Electronic Artist and His Body of Work

Matthew Mirapaul

Eduardo Kac wants you to know that his blood was not boiling at theInternational Symposium on Electronic Art. The liquid was merely -- and,in this case, literally -- foaming.

Word circulated rapidly throughout the ISEA conference, held in Chicagolast week, that Kac's blood had boiled over during the premiere presentationof "A-Positive," an interactive work by Kac and Ed Bennett thatwas shown in the event's juried exhibition.

Only a few of the more than 1,000 artists, educators and curators whoattended the annual six-day conference, which concluded Saturday, wereactually on hand to see Kac (pronounced "katz") send blood fromone arm to a "biobot."

The device is designed to aerate the blood, forcing it to release oxygenthat will fuel a small flame. The process also triggers the release ofa glucose-saline solution into Kac's other arm.

"The blood flooded the main flask too soon," Kac explained."It had to go somewhere, and it started to go up. Because it was beingaerated, it started to foam and very quickly it flooded the burning chamber.We had to stop, pour the blood out, remove some of the parts and continue."

After an hour, Kac's blood eventually enabled a half-inch-high flameto ignite. This was an apt metaphor for an electronic-art conference thatseemed determined to move its critical focus away from chilly technologyand more toward the fevered energies of its human creators. In "A-Positive,"for example, Kac said he was striving to expand the concept of interactivitybeyond the customary pre-programmed responses.

"I've been very interested in creating situations that become multilogical,meaning that your stepping into the room alters the course of events,"Kac said. "Most interactive art that I have seen is still monological:you create the database or you create some buttons to push and ultimatelythe experience is circumscribed. I'm trying to create something that ismore indeterminate."

Kac, a Chicago artist and teacher, took only one stab at presenting"A-Positive" during the conference. He hopes it will be exhibitedelsewhere, with volunteers offering their arms to the work. A day afterthe work's unveiling, the chair where Kac had sat remained draped witha blood-splattered sheet, a trace of the biobot.

Matthew Mirapaul writes the Arts@Large column for The New York Timeson the Web.

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