Watch the video documentation in 2D / 360 (YouTube) / 360 (Vimeo).
(RE)ROOTING, 2021
an immersive work by Jo Ho
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(RE)ROOTING embodies the way the memory of a place is passed on and transformed through our imagination and the tools we use to capture moments in time. Beyond the physical boundaries that the architecture of the National Gallery facade, visions of Singapore’s past and present are transformed into undulating pixel-scapes.
These transformed images were created by machine-learning, which learned the visual patterns of chosen datasets: artworks in the permanent collection of the National Gallery, photographs from the archival library, and images of present-day Singapore.
Images are then generated by the machine that had never existed before, but somehow feel familiar. The results can be uncanny, non-linear, and also beautiful—similar to how we remember past events through archived media and filtering them through our own experiences and imagination.
To (RE)ROOT is to connect back to yourself, your community, and the world. It is also my attempt to rebuild a foundation in my home country in which I had not properly lived for 20 years. The memories I have of Singapore seemed similar to the procedures of creating this piece with machine learning: consuming archived photographs, finding patterns in these fragments of the past, and applying them to my own understanding of the place in which I was born.
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Visual Artist: Jo Ho
Sound Artist: W. Y. Huang
Audio Mastering: Safuan Johari
Technical Set-up: Hexogon Solution
Production: National Gallery Singapore
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Announcements
National Gallery Singapore Media Release
National Gallery Media Release PDF
Referenced in
National Arts Council Annual Report FY 2020
Jo Ho interview with Vogue Singapore
Articles
The Business Times: Up close and personal with art
Yahoo!News: All the lights guiding you through downtown Singapore for ‘Light to Night’ fest
Artjam: Light to Night Festival
We Go Native: A Comprehensive Guide to the Installations at Light to Night 2021
The Wacky Duo: Light to Night Festival 2021: Lightshows and Art Installations
Bakchormeeboy: Singapore Art Week 2021: light to Night Festival 2021
Mothership: Top 5 must-see attractions at the Light to Night Festival 2021
L’OFFICIEL: 4 Highlights of Singapore Art Week 2021
SG Magazine: What’s on at the returning Light to Night Festival 2021, happening this weekend
brunchstory: 싱가포르 라이트 쇼 Light to Night Festival 2021
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