Iconographies

About

Quayola’s 'Iconographies' are part of an ongoing project that analyzes Renaissance and Baroque paintings through computational methods. The artist transforms religious and mythological scenes into complex abstract formations, creating alternative versions of the old masterpieces by removing the paintings from their historical narratives. For this exhibition, Quayola will present his newest anodized aluminum engravings and Ditone prints which reimagine paintings by masters such as Botticelli, Rubens and Caravaggio. Considered in comparison with the originals from which they are derived, these new abstractions offer fresh insights into both.

Highly acclaimed for his immersive multi-channel video installations, animated painting, and large-scale sculptures, London based artist Quayola merges classical aesthetics with custom built software and computational methods to create new spaces of contemplation. Often using iconic paintings, stained glass windows, or frescos as source material, the artist re-contextualizes these masterpieces by transforming brush strokes, sculpture and architecture into algorithmically derived abstract geometry, moving image and sound.

Quayola was awarded the Golden Nica at Ars Electronica in 2013 for the project Forms with co-author Memo Atken. He has exhibited and performed his work internationally, including a project for the 54th Venice Biennale at the Italian Cultural Institute in London, and exhibitions at the National Art Center, Tokyo; Pushkin Museum, Moscow; Center for Fine Arts, Brussels; Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya, Barcelona; Victoria & Albert Museum, London; bitforms gallery, New York; and EMPAC, New York.