New Museum's 'Ghosts in the Machine' Explores Art and Technology from 1950s to Present

The New Museum in New York showcased 'Ghosts in the Machine', curated by Massimiliano Gioni and Gary Carrion-Murayari, until 30 September 2012. This exhibition investigated the convergence of art and technology, highlighting historical collectives from the 1950s to the 1970s, such as New Tendencies, the Independent Group, E.A.T., GRAV, Gruppo T, and Group Zero. Among the featured pieces were Peter Roehr's Film–Montagen I–III (1965) and Richard Hamilton's reimagined installation Man, Machine and Motion (1955/2012). Henrik Olesen's Some Illustrations to the Life of Alan Turing (2009) critiqued Turing's homophobia. While contemporary artists like Seth Price and Mark Leckey were represented, young female artists were notably absent. The exhibition drew on Gilbert Ryle's concept of 'ghosts in the machine' and Marshall McLuhan's theories. Melissa Gronlund reviewed it for Afterall.