Neil Harbisson

Neil Harbisson
Neil Harbisson interviewed by Stephen Sackur.
Born (1982-07-27) 27 July 1982
Education
Known forPerformance art, Body art, Cyborg art
Notable work
  • Cyborg Antenna, Transdental Communication, Solar Crown, Sound Portraits
Awards
  • 2018  Guinness World Record
    Guinness Book of Records
  • 2016  Tribeca X Award
    Tribeca Film Festival, New York
  • 2015  Futurum Award
    Futurum, Monaco
  • 2014  Bram Stoker Gold Medal
    Trinity College, Dublin
  • 2013  Focus Forward Grand Jury Award
    Sundance Film Festival, USA
  • 2010  Cre@tic Award 2010
    Tecnocampus Mataró
  • 2009  Phonos Music Grant
    IUA Phonos, Spain
  • 2005  Best Performing Story
    ResearchTV, UK
  • 2004  Innovation Award 2004
    Submerge (Bristol, UK)
  • 2004  Europrix Multimedia Award
    Vienna, Austria
  • 2001 & 2010  Stage Creation Award
    IMAC Mataró, Spain
Websitecyborgarts.com

Neil Harbisson (27 July 1982) is a Catalan-raised British-Irish cyborg artist and cyborg rights advocate who has described himself as the world's first legally recognised cyborg with The Guardian calling him the world's first cyborg artist. International attention grew after he received permission to appear in his UK passport photo with an antenna implanted in his skull, a device he considers a new sensory organ. His artistic and activist work centres on expanded perception, the development of artificial senses and the rights of people with technologically extended bodies.

Since 2004, Harbisson has used his antenna to perceive colour—including infrared and ultraviolet—through audible vibrations transmitted via bone conduction. The device can also receive images, colour data, and signals from external sources, including the internet.

In 2010, he co-founded the Cyborg Foundation, an organisation dedicated to defending cyborg rights, supporting people seeking to extend their senses, and promoting cyborg art. In 2017, he co-founded the Transpecies Society, which advocates for self-design and recognition of individuals with non-human identities or sensory systems.