Symbiotic Systems

Overview

Symbiotic Systems

 

27/9/2024 – 27/02/2025

 

The exhibition “Symbiotic Systems” at the Artemis Gallery Lisbon shows works by three artists: Diogo Gonçalves (1990, Portugal), Fragmentin (Artist Collective, Switzerland), kennedy+swan (Artist Collective, Germany)

A recurring theme throughout the exhibition is the intersection of the organic and the digital. All three artists explore how technology is no longer just a tool for representing nature, but and active agent in its transformation. Diogo Gonçalves’ exploration of light and energy in “Corpo escurecendo em movimento” resonates with kennedy+swan’s “Mixed Signals”, in which technology is used to reveal the hidden communication systems of plants and animals. Fragmentin’s work, particularly “Case Study I”, echoes these investigations by using artificial intelligence to simulate the future of infrastructure development, suggesting how digital systems might shape or disrupt the natural world. Together, their works challenge audiences to consider how technology is redefining our understanding of the natural environment.

In addition, both Fragmentin and kennedy+swan engage in a critique of artificial intelligence, a central theme in their respective bodies of work. Fragmentin uses AI in “Case Study I” to explore speculative futures, asking whether machines can ethically manage resources such as water. Similarly, in “in vivo • in vitro • in silico”, kennedy+swan confront the potential risks and ethical dilemmas posed by AI-driven innovations in biotechnology. These artists explore the question of how much control humans can – or should – retain over the technologies they
create.

Finally, the tension between reality and virtuality pervades the exhibition. Gonçalves’ digital bodies dissolve into particles, while Fragmentin’s glacial explorations in Data Core blur the boundaries between physical and virtual digital landscapes. Similarly, kennedy+swan’s augmented watercolours and virtual reality experiences transport viewers into a hybrid world where the often virtual digital and the physical merge. Each of these artists offers a unique perspective on the porous boundary between the tangible and the digital, revealing both the beauty and the anxiety that lie at the intersection of these realms.

Curated by Manuel S.Mendonça

Essay by Nina Roehrs, Specialist for Art in the Digital Age, Independent Curator