An Art Review of "Can't Help Myself" by Sun Yuan and Peng Yu

source: https://www.guggenheim.org/artwork/34812

An artwork titled “Can't Help Myself” created by Sun Yuan and Peng Yu in 2016 is a kinetic sculpture where a robotic arm continuously sweeps up a red liquid. It is found in the Guggenheim Museum in New York City. This large robotic arm is enclosed in a clear acrylic wall for the viewing of the visitors. This sculpture is incorporated with visual-recognition sensors that detect the fluid that has strayed too far, and sweep it back in its original place. This action of the robotic arm results in a smudge of red liquid on the floor and splashes on the acrylic walls. This robotic arm has been moving continuously since 2016. This kinetic sculpture represents our current society which is controlled by machines, and the metaphorical reality of machines and humans.

There are thirty-two movements performed by the machine, reflecting the artists’ intent to animate it. These movements make the machine come alive, touching the hearts of the viewers. It is isolated inside the acrylic glass making it look lonely, and miserable in the eyes of the viewers. The smudges, and the splashes of red liquid inside the space is a bit disturbing as the brush does not cleanly sweep up the red liquid back in its place. 

  The continuous movement of sweeping the red liquid back in its place is the controversial representation of violence involved in the borders, ranging from migration to political agendas. As the borders are monitored by surveillance technologies such as infrared technology that detect people or vehicles from crossing the border. In this act of surveillance, violating it is inevitable that leads to bloodshed of those people who wanted to cross the border whether it’s for their survival or life opportunities. This is especially true in the U.S. - Mexico border. The Human Rights Watch (2024) has reported where almost 10,000 have died crossing the border since 1994. 

  Comparing it with another artwork of Sun Yuan and Peng Yu titled “Old Person's Home” both featuring controversial issues challenging the governance of the current politicians. This artwork can be directly interpreted as “mocking” the world leaders. However, “Can't Help Myself” focuses on the tragic reality of people from poor countries, and how technology was used in our current society. The uniqueness of this artwork is that it incorporates modern technology in an isolated space, and the elusive use of the red liquid, and movements for portraying a controversial issue. 

REFERENCES:  Human Rights Watch (2024, June 26). US: Border Deterrence Leads to Deaths, Disappearances: Biden Administration Should Address Loss of Life. Human Rights Watch. https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/06/26/us-border-deterrence-leads-deaths-disappearances