Installation Art

Eternal Garden (Capsule Review)

Laura Hess

06 Jan 2022 • 1 min read

A large, darkened room contains several LED screens — some are huge and curved, some are small and placed high up on the wall, close to the ceiling; some are set in a portrait orientation and others in landscape orientation. All of these screens contain brightly colored compositions of flowers and plants. They are otherworldly, animated photographs, although this is a static image. The floor and ceiling cast saturated reflections of these digital gardens. — Photo: VellumLA

[Original publication: No Proscenium, 8/31/21]

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In partnership with Vellum LA, StandardVision hosted an immersive pop-up exhibition of work by artist Maggie West. Eternal Garden was the vibrant result of West’s layered process: photographing flowers under colored lights and then transforming the time-lapse footage into an animated spectrum of digital floral landscapes; in turn, StandardVision’s production studio became a gorgeous, experiential LED garden.

While this presentation was a one-day-only event, StandardVision has long embodied a thoughtful, holistic approach for transforming public, urban spaces into more dynamic, humane, and inspiring environments. One example is contemporary video artist Kahlil Joseph’s experiential installation at the Webster (in collaboration with architects David Adjaye and Neumann/Smith), located at the Beverly Center. Best experienced at night, the installation is a prime example of the seamless fusion of art, tech, and architecture, which is StandardVision’s area of expertise.

And, due to open in October, Vellum LA is Los Angeles’ “first physical gallery for NFT-backed digital art.” StandardVision serves as Vellum LA’s tech partner, with artworks featured on specialized LED displays. Vellum LA’s goal is to “meaningfully situate the digital and crypto art communities within the context of art history, while also educating the public on the potential of NFTs to impact the future of art.” Once open, StandardVision may produce additional exhibitions with Vellum LA at their Melrose gallery space.

Experiential fans of all kinds would do well to add West, StandardVision, and Vellum LA to their radar; all three are sure to deliver compelling experiential work in the future.