Immersion, immersion, immersion. That’s what contemporary artists hope to accomplish nowadays, and what visitors expect. Some artists are masters at bringing their creative minds to life, such as art collective Chim Pom. Digital artists, however, have a bit of a harder time making their work immersive. That said, it is by no means an impossible task if you have the right tech and some complementary music.

“Eternal Art Space,” a nine-day exhibition inside the Panasonic Center in Odaiba, is the latest showcase of digital art, technology and sound. Produced by the people of MUTEK.JP in collaboration with Panasonic and Disguise, it brings to Tokyo some of the most sophisticated works of art for the first time ever in a space where you can truly surround yourself with the works.

The experience includes screenings of works by eight artists. Watching them all takes about 50 minutes. The works vary in length but they all showcase the latest technologies to a tee.

Akiko Nakayama & Eiichi Sawado, The Morphology of Freely Rising Deformable Bubbles (Photo: Shigeo Gomi)

Deconstructing and Recreating the Organic

The works of “Eternal Art Space” are diverse. Each work has its very own theme and agenda. However, two stand out thanks to their exploration of nature, or more broadly, the organic.

Akiko Nakayama and Eiichi Sawado’s The Morphology of Freely Rising Deformable Bubbles is a beautiful collaboration between a painter and a music composer. Nakayama, who performed at the opening ceremony of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, films colorful bubbles at a micro-level to which Sawado attaches music. As the work unfolds, the images become more and more akin to interstellar universes; the smallest bubble bursting becomes a supernova.

Following Nakayama and Sawado is French digital artist Maotik’s Flow. It recreates ocean waves based on real-time data from around the world. Looking closely, the waves are made of small particles but their movement and colors feel extremely real, like you’re right there under the waves.

Cao Yuxi and Lau Hiu Kong, Dimensional Sampling

Where Will Technology Take Us Next?

Three other works test the very boundaries of current technology: Refik Anadol Studio’s Machine Hallucination – Space, ISS, Hubble which explores the possibilities of working with artificial intelligence; Elevenplay and Rhizomatiks’ Infinity Flow 2022 which experiments with light and computed created dances; and Cao Yuxi and Lau Hiu Kong’s Dimensional Sampling which is as digital art as you can get with endless references to technology and cyberpunk. Dimensional Sampling is the longest work, spanning about 10 minutes.

One of the most surprising outcomes of visiting and experiencing Eternal Art Space is how emotional some of the works are. There are times when the music and the visuals come so close to being something recognizable without quite being exactly what they are. This is perhaps the true goal of digital art: seeing the works move below your feet and around you in a way that makes you feel strangely organic.

Check out the “Eternal Art Space” website for more information on each work and to book your tickets.

Top and feature image credit: Sabrina Ratté, Floraria II