Automatic, granular movements that Hastie and, arguably, all artists, make without conscious effort - such as cleaning their paintbrush - fall behind in favour of representation of the subject, experimenting with styles, and creating concepts.

With this, Painting no. 230 represents the symbiotic relationship between human and machine as the artist’s body is enhanced, or extended, into the robot arm. The brush strokes, although painterly, are calculated and consistent, revealing the robot’s obedience to instruction.

Use of the robot arm simultaneously adds to the human body as a physical entity whilst highlighting the unconscious demands of art creation, such as movement, instruction, and decision-making that take place in the moments between idea and execution.