Below are notes on perceive(light), my curation for the perceive() group show presented at the Art Blocks house from Marfa Weekend in November 2022 to May 2023. perceive() was curated in collaboration with 0xTechno with perceive(color) and Plutonium F. with perceive(form).
A certain fascination I’ve always had with code-based art is how inherently human art techniques can be replicated by a machine. What appear to be sweeping brush strokes or subtle detail work done by hand are in reality the result of a mathematical algorithm compiled and interpreted as lines of machine code. Beyond being technically impressive, this type of work can be powerful: a computer’s engineered interpretation of source material tends to be imperfect and nuanced when you look at the details.
Often, the artist does not attempt to imitate human movement but rather replicate the human experience. Replicating human technique has its limits, but there are no limits to what feeling a piece of art can evoke. An algorithm whose original goal is to evoke a particular feeling can be perpetually iterated on to create new feelings, ones that end up being intrinsically digital.
Perceive(light) showcases projects that are doing just that. I selected projects that apply the concept of light in a way that evokes the ethereal. This feeling is almost indescribable, but in a sense it is as if you are.
Light Beams and Aithérios are the most quintessential examples of an almost indescribable feeling, one akin to being by that single ray of sunlight breaking through the clouds while darkness surrounds you otherwise: heavenly beings in both projects move across the screen, shrouded in an aura of light, just barely out of touch. The viewer is merely an onlooker, met with a curiosity that cannot be answered.
Haywire Café pushes you forward: more dynamics come into play, the movement feels more intentional and coordinated, and answers begin to emerge from the chaos. It beckons the indeterminacy of looking for something, but not knowing what.
Himinn and Flux serve as the backdrop to the scene, the former being the traditional view of where heavenly bodies might reside and the latter serving as the digital counterpart to this view.
Showcased works:
Flux (2022), Owen Moore
Light Beams (2021), Jason Ting
Himinn (2021), Sarah Ridgley
Aithérios (2021), Jorge Ledezma
Haywire Café (2022), Jess Hewitt