A first-of-its-kind exhibition by a team of artists and scientists has blurred the lines between life and science fiction as the in-vitro cerebral organoid or ‘brain’ of Alvin Lucier performs a new and continuous symphony inside the Art Gallery of Western Australia. 

Artists Guy Ben-Ary, Nathan Thompson, Matt Gingold and neuroscientist Stuart Hodgetts met with Alvin in 2018, three years prior to his passing, and discussed the creation of what would be a groundbreaking mix between art and science. 

“Despite his frailty, Lucier’s revolutionary spirit remained as powerful as his groundbreaking works from the 1960s that had first inspired us,” Mr Ben-Ary says.

He says Revivification is more than just a tribute to Alvin, it’s an attempt to create a direct extension of his biological life, and a “radical reimaging of immortality through art”. 

“Lucier’s surrogate performer doesn’t merely exist – it creates. It embodies Lucier’s experimental spirit while forging its own path,” he says.

The dark room is lined with large brass metal plates, thumping and creating an array of sounds, all sourced from a small dish in the middle of the hallway. The dish contains neuronal cells growing as a 3D cerebral organoid on a suspended mesh multi-electrode array from Alvin Lucier – and it is constantly changing. 

“This moves us to a post- corporeal future where creative tools aren’t separate from the biological body,” Mr Ben-Ary explains. 

“The relationship between Lucier’s original cells and his surrogate performer suggest an undeniable interconnectedness, a collective memory that bridges human experience and living material.”

Mr Hodgetts says visitors should aim to visit the exhibit more than once, as the organoid will possibly have adapted and changed since opening. 

Revivification is open until August 5.