SymbioticA

Carl Scrase

FURTHER INFORMATION

Country of origin

Australia

 

Website:

www.carlscrase.com
www.seri.net.au

Is our empathy on the rise?

BiographyScrase

Carl “Synchronicity” Scrase (born Sept 12, 1983) is an Australian Artist, Activist, Writer and Social Entrepreneur. He studied Fine Art at Monash University, graduating in 2008.


Carl received early recognition for his meticulously patterned found-object sculptures and psychedelic collages. During this period he showed extensively around Australia, having his first commercial solo art show in 2009 at the reputable John Buckley Gallery in Melbourne.He took part in the inaugural Splendid Arts Lab in 2009 and was commissioned to make an iconic 14 meter high Sculpture for the 2010 Splendour in the Grass music festival, the sculpture has since toured to Lismore and Perth.


Carl's creative practice became notably more cross disciplinary in 2010, with large scale works for Next Wave Festival and Art Month Sydney. Carl further expanded his creative practice late in 2010, when he denounced the title artist, in favour of the title ‘social engineer’. 2011 saw Carl develop the Social Engineering Research Initiative (S.E.R.I.), co-found the Wemakeus Collective, take part in the prestigious Young Social Pioneers program and become politically active as a media team member of Occupy Melbourne.


2012 will see Carl heading up #F12 Occupy Art – International Day of Creative Action and potentially running for Mayor of Melbourne.


Research Project


Melbourne based artist/activist/writer/social entrepreneur, Carl Scrase is at SymbioticA researching recent findings that suggest some people become more sensitive to social pain with a bacterial toxin that boosts inflammatory cytokine. In particular a cytokine called IL-6 that seems to boost activity in the brain region involved in empathy (Neuroimage, vol 47, p881).

Carl will be keeping a video diary throughout his time at SymbioticA. He will be musing and mussing over the links between science, art, memetics, politics, psychology, society and life in general.

 

Funding

S.E.R.I. has been awarded both the Freedman Foundation Travelling Scholarship and CAL Cultural Fund for residency at SymbioticA. This project has also been made possible by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts its arts funding and advisory body.