Plenty of artists use paint to create colorful images, but Turkish artist Refik Anadol uses data. The Istanbul native began experimenting with the use of technology and art when he moved to the West Coast seven years ago to earn his second master's in fine arts at the University of California Los Angeles. Since graduating in 2014, he's been running his own studio in L.A.
In October, Anadol will host his first major retrospective, “Infinite Space,” at the Artechouse gallery in South Beach. Artechouse, which opened during Art Basel Miami Beach last year, is bidding farewell to its inaugural installation, “XYZT: Abstract Landscapes” by French digital artists Adrien M & Claire B, to make room for Anadol’s work. “Infinite Space” is on display at Artechouse’s location in Washington, D.C., but will make its way to Miami in the fall for a run through spring 2020.
“Infinite Space” is made up of two key sets, Anadol says. The focal piece is Infinity Room, and six other works cover gallery walls outside of that space.
The idea for "Infinity Room" came to the artist in 2013 when he was at UCLA. It wasn’t until 2015 that his vision became a reality. “And since then, it hasn’t stopped. It’s been traveling all over the world and has touched every continent — except Antarctica,” he quips.
The artwork itself is “supersimple,” he says. Once guests open the door to the room, they'll feel as if there's no floor or ceiling. Everything is mirrored. The idea is for the spectator to feel as if there’s no gravity. “People can explore the feeling of infinity, the feeling of borderless time and space, all from the lens of a technological algorithm,” Anadol says.
Guests will be immersed in the exhibition from the moment they enter the gallery, he says. “People will be able to explore all the data paintings and sculptures [on display], but they will also be able to be a part of the work. They will be a part of the 'Infinite Space.'”
The exhibition explores memories and dreams through the mind of a machine. “I’ve always been inspired by the transformation of our human emotions into data. We’re leaving incredible amounts of data behind us. Our memories and emotions become data, so then I take this data and make sculptures and paintings with this information," the artist says.
“I was always inspired by technology as a means of communication,” he adds. “It’s all about the understanding of how our communication has changed after technology was invented and creating a language between human and machine.”
Anadol uses datasets from human memories, photographs of Mars, cultural archives, and sea surface activity as the basis for his data sculptures and paintings. “I try to capture the motions inside datasets and make the invisible visible,” he says.
“I hope it inspires people to ask questions, I hope it helps people to calm down and relax, and I hope it gives people some awe-inspiring several hours to just go through the space.”
“Infinite Space.” October 5 through spring 2020 at Artechouse, 736 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; artechouse.com. Admission costs $17 to $24 via miami.artechouse.com.