1. Have you heard about this?
Russell Grenning
A little quiz –whatdo the 19th
centuryDutchpainterVincentvanGoghand Perthacademic
ProfessorStelarchave incommon?
Ears – yes,ears.
PoordementedvanGoghslicedoff hisleftearwhile Professor Stelarchasgrownan extraone on his
leftarm.
The good professordescribeshimselfasa “performanceartist”andwhat a busychap he iswhat with
hisfeetonthe ground,hishead above the clouds,hisnose tothe grindstone,hisshouldertothe
wheel,hisfingeronthe pulse,hiseye onthe ball andhisthirdear onhisleftarm. He likestobe
knownsimplyasStelarcalthoughthe fuddyduddyCurtinUniversityif Perthinsistsonlistinghim as
ProfessorStelarcStelarcwhere he isaProfessorinthe HumanitiesFaculty’sSchool of Designand
Art. Yesfolks,againyourtaxesat work.
He wasborn SteliosArcadiouinCyprusin1946 and hisownmodestbiographyannounces,“Stelarcis
a performanceartistwho hasvisually probed and acoustically amplified hisbody.He hasmadethree
films of the inside of his body.Between 1976 and 1988 he completed 25 body suspension
performanceswithhooksinto theskin.He hasused medical instruments,prosthetics,robotics,Visual
Reality systems,theInternetand biotechnology to explorealternate,intimateand involuntary
interfaceswith thebody.”
Nowisn’tthat interesting?There ismore andthisiswhere we getto hisnew ear.
It tookhima decade tofinda medical teamto performthe twosurgeriestogrow the ear and finally
three Americansurgeonsperformedthe workforthe “Discovery US”TV show.The teampartly
constructedthe ear using “biocompatiblescaffolding”commonlyusedinplasticsurgerythenitwas
transplantedtohisarm whenStelarc’sowncellswere grownsoitbecame afunctioningandfeeling
part of the arm.
Nowhe is lookingforfundingthe complete thisprojectwhichwill connectthe earto the internetvia
a wirelessminiature microphonesopeople canlistenthroughawebsite afterthe earislifted sothat
it protrudesfurtherfromhisarm.His firsttestinsertingamicrophone didn’tworkashe developed
an infectionbutnowhe isconfidentitwill be all systemsgo.
He has some jollyinformative YouTube presentationsandInaturallycockedanear, both actually,to
theminthe vague hope of understanding.If youimagine thatIcouldn’tbelieve whatIheardyou
wouldbe right.
The extra earhas beengrowingsince 2007 andis now a permanentpartof hisbody.It will be made
to lookmore realisticby makingalobe fromhisstemcells. Iwonderif he wantsto expressthe
feminineside of hiscomplex artisticpersonalityhe willattacha single dropearring.

2. He has done verynicelythanksverymuchoverthe yearsfromthe publicpurse getting,amongother
things,a three-yearfellowshipfromthe AustralianCouncil forthe Artsin1995 and appointmentsat
universitiesaroundthe world. In1998, he was Artist-in-ResidenceinHamburg,Germany.Well,we
all knowaboutthe Germans,don’twe? He was appointed SeniorResearchFellow andArtist-in-
Residence atthe Universityof WesternSydneyin2008.
He evenwonthe “ArsElectronica Golden Nica” inthe “Hybrid Art” category in2010 inAustriaandI
am ledto believe thatisveryprestigious.
Perhapsoddly,MelbourneUniversityawardedhimanHonoraryDoctorof Laws in2008 – I know real
lawyersandjudgeswhohaven’tscoredthathonourbut,as far as I am aware,theydon’thang naked
fromthe ceilingwithhooksintheirbodies –or grow extraears forthat matter.Mind you,quite a
fewof themcouldbe otherwise describedas “performanceartists”.
But Stelarcismost definitelynotaselfishperson.
“The ear is not forme. I’vegottwo good earsto hear with,”he hasannounced. “It’sforpeoplein
otherplaces. They will be able to hearthe soundsof a concert,whereverI am,whereveryou are.
Peoplewill be able to trackthrough a GPS aswell, wherethe ear is.”
I wonderingwhatsort an unsettlingroarwouldbe heardwhenhe shovesacotton budin itfor some
essential upkeep.
He doesadmitthat thislatestproject is“somewhatdisturbing”andthatit couldbe a shock,evenfor
him,to lookdownhisarm and see anear.
“It is interesting,becausesometimesyou are sitting at homeat nightand the light comeson and
then you look down and there’san ear on yourarm. It is interesting because,of course,you don’t
imaginethat you could speakinto yourear or you don’timaginebeing aboutto literally hand your
ear overto someoneelse to examine,”he said.
I do wishhimluck – it wouldbe awful if failure compelledhimtotake the vanGogh ear option.