Artist Statement
École des Arts Décoratifs, May 16 – 21
Juried artworks
On the occasion of the ISEA2023 Symposium ‘Symbiosis’ that it co-organizes, École des Arts Décoratifs hosts an exhibition.
Aiming to think simultaneously about spirituality, technology and living together, the exhibition is made of contemplative installations in different modalities, from interactivity to meditation.
The Altars for Cosmic Talismans by Lucile Olympe Haute compose a space of recollection of the different facets of the same life form. The staged discs can be approached as material experiments, waste from a drink production or ritual objects. They invite us to question what we believe in, our collective values and their influence on our relationship to the world, the ways we collaborate with, care for, cultivate or exploit other living things.
The installation-play Spectral Plain by Guillemette Legrand and Vincent Thornhill proposes to immerse oneself in a world that has undergone a geomagnetic reversal, in search of a new energy alignment. The journey ends around a campfire, around which the representation of a multi-species energy network is built. Spectral Plain is powered by a cosmic radiation sensor and a predictive language model (GPT-3) that was developed from a technical and mythological understanding of electromagnetic energy.
The exhibition gives rise to several activations: visits in the presence of the artists, Cyberwitches Coven performance (bilingual), Cosmogonic Tours in Spectral Plain performance, discussion “Penser-rêver à l’École des arts décos, réinventer nos relations” by Eugénie Zuccarelli (in French). This exhibition is supported by EnsadLab and the University of Nîmes.
Works:
- Lucile Olympe Haute: Altar for Cosmic Talismans.
Stage designer: Olivier Lellouche. Thanks to Mial Watkins. Cultivation of the big Cosmic Talismans with Jeanne Mainetti. Supported by Coalition Cyborg and Université de Nîmes. - Guillemette Legrand & Vincent Thornhill: Spectral Plain
In collaboration with Isaac Clarke, Zach Furniss, Mārcis Lapiņš, Filip Setmanuk, and Jim Zweerts. Supported by the Creative Industries Fund NL, V2_Lab for the Unstable Media (NL) and Stimuleringsfonds and Cultuur Eindhoven (NL). - Selection of thesis and projects from École des arts déco
Curator: Lucile Olympe Haute
Facilitator: Eugénie Zuccarelli
Steward: Christophe Pornay (EnsadLab)
Tuesday May 16th, 5-9 pm: Vernissage in the presence of the artists and performance Cyberwitches Coven
Cyberfeminism exhibition tour: May 17, 6-8 pm. Visit of the exhibition in the presence of the artists (Lucile Olympe Haute, Guillemette Legrand and Vincent Thornhill). Discussion ‘Thinking-dreaming at the School of Decorative Arts, reinventing our relationships’ with Eugénie Zuccarelli. [in French!]
May 19th, 5-7 pm: Performance Cosmogonic Tours in Spectral Plain and visit in the presence of the artists
https://www.ensadlab.fr/symbiotic-rituals
- Lucile Olympe Haute (FR) https://lucilehaute.fr
- Guillemette Legrand (FR) uses multidimensional installations, playable game environments, performances, films and textile making to mythologise the machine gaze, and materialise different imagination of the human-machine continuum. Guillemette is one half of the practice Legrand Jäger. [source: https://v2.nl/people/guillemette-legrand] https://studiolegrandjager.com/projects
- Vincent Thornhill is an artist and designer; a PhD researcher at KU Leuven / LUCA School of Arts, Belgium; and educator in the Information Design Masters at the Design Academy Eindhoven, NL. Through his practice he conducts a re-reading of digital image technology, focusing on ideals and values present within digital image processing algorithms. Vincent’s work takes the form of performative presentations and video installations, with recent exhibitions including: A/D/O, New York; Bureau Europa, Maastricht; V2_ Lab for Unstable Media, Rotterdam; and the Istanbul Design Biennial. https://www.sictdoctoralschool.com/vincent-thornhill