“Is this all there is? Might there be an aesthetic beyond where some things haven’t been tried?” This is the question posed by AI art pioneer, Mario Klingemann; the tools he uses to explore this possible new ground are data sets, code and complex machine learning algorithms known as neural networks.
A self-taught programmer, Klingemann creates machine models which he then trains on selected data sets ranging from online-sourced porn to old master portraits, electron microscopes to machine parts. Once set up, these models generate new images autonomously, creating what is currently referred to as AI-generated art. Working with figurative visual input, Klingemann produces distorted, unsettling portraits such as The Butcher’s Son, winner of the Lumen Prize Gold Award 2018. In media walls or installations such as Memories of Passerby I, meanwhile, viewers can observe a continuous stream of AI-generated images.
An important part of Klingemann’s research centres on digital cultural archives; he has worked with prestigious institutions including The British Library, Cardiff University and New York Public Library, and is Artist in Residence at Google Arts and Culture. He received the British Library Labs Artistic Award 2016 and is currently collaborating on projects with the digital arts incubator, ONKAOS. Klingemann is a regular speaker at international arts and technology conferences, and his creations have been exhibited across the globe including at MoMA, the Metropolitan Museum of Art New York, the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg, and Centre Pompidou Paris.
Represented by Onkaos
