MACHINE LEARNING ART PROJECT IN VIRTUAL REALITY

This project is a result of merging traditional art pieces with digital art techniques. First, an extensive bank of referential material has been assembled by the two collaborating artists, each borrowing from colleagues in their respective countries. Next, a pair of independent algorithms was developed to feed on these bases, process them, mold them, and forge something new.

The subject of exploration here is mental health. From the themes brought into focus by the referenced painters to the way the final presentation is conceptualised, mental health is a running thread. Though, perhaps, a more illuminated topic in Western Europe, discussing mental well-being remains a taboo in Ukraine, with mental illness carrying a consistent stigma across the board. The way both participants cultivated each a unique visual environment to inhabit their shared virtual reality reflects both the disparity of cultural and unity of human experiences.

Surface thoughts are something constant and mundane, our loyal satellites. They matter so little, carry so much - and vice versa, simultaneously, always. A mercurial vortex concealed beneath the layer of our skin, inside the labyrinthine cradle of our skulls; laying under our feet like a dormant volcano, a lost city, a hidden treasure. A sleeping mine you triggered by one step too far.Similarly, mental illness is a constant presence. Those who live with it can never really forget. But its noise, paradoxically, often blends into the background of one’s life. Never seen, made to be hidden, yet always right there, under the surface. All you have to do is look.

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in collaboration with  Oliver Jenkins (X-89)

Digital Art Observatory Residency project in partnership with British Council