In Nanjing, China, the Deji Art Museum has marked a historic moment with the opening of “Beeple: Tales from a Synthetic Future,” the first solo museum exhibition by digital art pioneer Mike Winkelmann, known worldwide as Beeple.
The retrospective exhibition carefully charts Beeple's evolution, from his early sketches for “Everydays” to kinetic works like “Human One” and the ambitious “S.2122.” Beeple also unveiled a new kinetic sculpture titled “Exponential Growth,” commissioned by the museum. It is an exhibition that spans the career of an artist who has become a lightning rod for the possibilities of digital creativity.
Curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist of Serpentine Galleries, the exhibition bridges the past and the future, reflecting Beeple's ability to capture the ever-changing Internet zeitgeist with staying power. Whether it's his dystopian musings on climate change, his absurdist visions of pop culture, or his ritual practice of creating art daily, Beeple's work feels immediate and lasting. Key pieces like “S.2122,” a sculpture updated in real time by the artist, challenge the very idea of what art can be: dynamic, living and evolving.
“The concept of a work of art as a living organism is a major shift in art right now,” Olbrist says. “It goes beyond the finite nature of traditional paintings and sculptures to something dynamic and evolving. Beeple's 'Human One' and other kinetic sculptures embody this idea: they continue to change and evolve, like a living organism. This aligns with broader trends in art, where artists use artificial intelligence, organic materials or participatory methods to make works that grow, transform and interact with their environments. “It is a departure from traditional, static art forms and opens up new possibilities for how art interacts with the world.”
The exhibition is bigger than just Beeple. Following the lead of select artist exhibitions at Beeple Studios in Charleston, SC, the Deji Art Museum's inclusion of “Digiverse,” an open call for emerging digital artists, signals its commitment to building the future of art. As Beeple says: “This is not just a milestone for me, but what's next for all of us.”
Located in one of the most frequented shopping malls in China, the Deji Art Museum aims to bring digital art to the masses by making it accessible and reaching the market where it is found.
“In Nanjing we attract audiences from all over China and internationally. Last year, the city received 123 million visitors and we also have more than one million registered university students,” explains ai Lin, director of the Deji Art Museum. “By placing our exhibitions in the Deji Plaza shopping centre, we aim to attract people who might not have planned to visit an art museum. Our goal is to make art accessible and unexpected: to bring art into people's lives in new and engaging ways.”
We caught up with Beeple at the exhibition opening in Nanjing to dive into the exhibition, the power of memes, and much more.
nft now: Can you tell us about your new article, “Exponential Growth,” and your plans for it?
Beeple: “'Exponential Growth' was commissioned in conjunction with the museum's flower exhibition. I wanted to create a 21st century vision of what a flower or still life could be. The piece continually shifts and blends between different colors and video layers, creating endless variations. Mathematically it will never look the same again. To me, this reflects the nature of a flower: always changing, growing, decaying and looking different depending on the light. “technology allowed me to explore those ideas in a way that traditional media couldn’t.”
“technology allowed me to explore those ideas in a way that traditional media couldn't.”
BIPLE
What was it like to select nine pieces from Everyday among 6,000 images to present in this exhibition?
Luckily, I didn't have to do that: the museum curators took care of it. That's why we have curators, right? It would be difficult for me to narrow it down because there are 6,400 items per day and of those, only about 150 are available to collect. The museum selected pieces based on what resonated with them, and sometimes their choices surprised me. Some were not the ones I would have chosen because I have favorites or personal preferences. It’s interesting to see what resonates with others and the lines they draw between the works.”
What inspired you to explore humanity's interactions with nature and climate in your work?
For me, technology will eventually address many climate challenges, but people often don't think long term. For example, sea level rise over the next 40 years appears solvable compared to the rapid growth of ai. That's the lens I'm coming from. With ai and the speed at which technology evolves, there are more important things to worry about. I reject the idea that technology and nature are in a zero-sum game in which one has to be harmed for the other to prosper. That is a very simple way of looking at your relationship and does not reflect reality. My work aims to explore that balance and the idea that these two forces can coexist.
“The concept of unresearched ideas spreading rapidly and reaching mass audiences will have enormous consequences for humanity in the future.”
BIPLE
How do you see memes in relation to your artwork?
I don't think of my work as memes, but rather as commenting on them. For example, if I include a Pepe meme in my work, I use it and comment on it instead of trying to create a meme itself. That being said, I try to create images that are visceral and powerful enough to go viral, but there is always that extra layer of feedback. The concept of unresearched ideas spreading rapidly and reaching mass audiences will have enormous consequences for humanity in the future. I think we are just at the beginning of that phenomenon. Memes are part of that conversation and I find it fascinating to explore them in my work.
What is the concept behind your dynamic piece, “Human One,” and how does it evolve over time?
From the beginning, the concept behind “Human One” was that it would continue to change and evolve throughout my life. Each iteration is essentially like starting the artwork from scratch, except for the box and the person walking: it is remade each time. It's a journey through time, almost like a piece of software, which I find exciting. I believe that in the future, more art will be dynamic, evolving, and an ongoing conversation, unlike the finite, frozen-in-time statements of traditional sculptures or paintings. I don't have a giant roadmap planned; I'm discovering it as I go, which keeps it interesting. For example, this exhibition is the first time “Human One” has sound and I will continue to add new features and change them over time. There is also trust with collectors: they don't know what the piece will become, which is a new type of relationship. In the past, when you bought a painting, it was static. Digital art allows us to break those rules and explore evolving forms.
An example is the small stickers on the backpack of the “Human One” figure: each sticker represents a museum where the piece has been displayed. That idea came from Ryan, the collector-owner. He suggested adding stickers to reflect his journey and I thought that was a great idea. This type of collaboration with collectors is new in digital art. It makes the process more dynamic and engaging, and also keeps the work interesting and engaging for me.
How does digital art enhance inclusion and accessibility in the art world?
Digital art can empower institutions to showcase a wider variety of voices. For example, if you were curating a group exhibition of 100 traditional artists, you would have to deal with shipping paintings from all over the world, customs issues, insurance, art handlers, etc. It is a huge logistical and financial task. But with digital art, you can curate a global group exhibition in a few days: just send the files. Even with the need for screens, the logistics are much simpler. This allows museums to present thousands of artists during the same period when they may only show a few traditional ones.
At my studio events, we showcase work from hundreds of artists from around the world, including many emerging artists who have never before exhibited their work in public. It's easy to forget how much that means to people, and I think we'll see museums embrace that inclusivity more in the future. Digital art has barely begun to scratch the surface of its potential to democratize and diversify the art world.
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