Revivification

Revivification is an extraordinary immersive exhibition combining sound and cutting-edge biological innovation to bring to life the musical genius of a deceased composer.

Four years in the making, Revivification delivers a historic first: the in-vitro (external) ‘brain’ of the late composer Alvin Lucier (1931-2021) creating a new work in real time, as a live performance over the duration of the exhibition.

It is developed by artists Guy Ben-Ary, Nathan Thompson and Matt Gingold with neuroscientist Stuart Hodgetts based at the University of Western Australia (UWA), who have individually spent 25 years pushing boundaries in the biological arts.

The physical realisation of Revivification began in 2020 when Alvin Lucier donated his blood for the project. His blood was sent to Harvard Medical School where his white blood cells were reprogrammed into stem cells – the fundamental building blocks of Revivification, using a process called Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell (IPSC) technology. Then, the Revivification Team transformed (differentiated) Lucier’s stem cells into cerebral organoids: three-dimensional structures that resemble a developing human brain.

Alvin Lucier stood among the giants of 20th-century experimental music. He transformed how we think about composition by shifting focus from traditional musical elements to the physical properties of sound itself. His work with brain waves, echolocation, and room acoustics blurred the lines between music, science, and art – an approach that spoke to the artists and researchers at UWA.

At the heart of the installation stands a sculptural object that encapsulates the incubator housing Lucier’s ‘in-vitro brain’, living outside, and beyond his body (the term ‘in-vitro’ comes from the Latin for ‘in glass’).

Lining the walls are 20 large, curved brass plates that are both sculptural and the source of the immersive sound environment. Each of the plates is directly connected to the neural activity of Lucier’s brain organoid. As the ‘in-vitro brains” signals pulse through transducers and actuators, they strike the brass, creating complex, sustained resonances that fill the space with sound.

At its heart, Revivification is more than a tribute to Alvin Lucier – it is a direct extension of his cellular life, and a radical reimagining of artistic immortality.

Using Lucier’s own donated blood cells and stem cell technology, we have been able to create mini brain organoids. These are three-dimensional structures that resemble a developing human brain. This transformation (from his own blood to a tiny lab grown brain – living outside of, and beyond his body) creates a ‘surrogate performer’ – a living, autonomous entity that through its agency continues his artistic journey.

Nathan Thompson

Artist

About the Revivification Collective

The Revivification Team, comprising artists Guy Ben-Ary, Nathan Thompson, and Matt Gingold, alongside neuroscientist A/Prof Stuart Hodgetts, is a pioneering collective that spent over two decades pushing the boundaries of art, biotechnology, and creative expression.

Connected through their association with SymbioticA, the internationally renowned Art & Science Collaborative Research Laboratory, the members have operated and collaborated at different times within this unique research environment that enables artists to engage with scientific tools and methodologies within cultural context.

Their collective work investigates threshold spaces where art, science, and emerging technologies converge. As internationally recognized leaders in bio-robotic art, their projects have been featured at premier venues worldwide, including the Venice Biennale, Museum of Old and New Art, Ars Electronica, Mori Museum to name a few. Their contributions to the field have earned prestigious accolades, including multiple awards from Prix Ars Electronica and the Japan Media Art Festival.

The team’s practice is characterized by a subversive approach to biotechnology, challenging conventional understandings of life, sentience, agency, and the relationship between humans and technology. Their critically acclaimed works explore the transformative possibilities of bio-robotics, neural networks, and synthetic life while raising questions about consciousness, embodiment and artistic agency.

The Revivification Collective uses their cross-disciplinary expertise to problematize emerging technologies by proposing contestable futures. Their work initiates public engagement with critical questions surrounding technology, ethics, and the evolving definition of life in an age of unprecedented biotechnological advancement—creating experiences that are simultaneously thought-provoking, aesthetically compelling, and philosophically challenging.