The “Populations” cycle of objects is based on mathematical algorithms strongly correlated with the reality of living nature. The form and parametric topology were created using tools designed for building and analyzing urban systems, with the final shape given by the mechanized process of spatial printing.

Populations & DePopulation, general view

Populations, objects, 2016, 12 × Ø120×20 mm: Petri dishes, 3D print (PLA)

The cycle consists of 18 3D prints placed inside Petri dishes – laboratory vessels designed for the cultivation of microorganisms. The source of the form was the division of the plane by the Voronoi tessellation, and its complement – the physical record of the process. The moving printing head left a trace of its movement in the form of thin fibers, creating a unique network of connections between the object’s points. The digitally generated and “soulless” artwork is rooted in mathematical theories relating to the structures of nature, with each detail representing a record of the process resulting from the physical nature of the material and tool – a spatial network created as a side effect or artifact of the technology used.

Populations, graphics, 2016, 500 × 700 mm: print on paper

The significant aspect of 3D printing is the semantic change that occurs during the preparation of the virtual model. The developing form changes its meaning depending on the stage or context in which it is placed. Preliminary, geometrical structures without reference points do not allow the observation of spatial relations. The presented graphics evoke biological phenomena, but they were created as one of the first stages of “Populations” (a graphic representation of the analysis results) and determined the object’s topography. Extracted from the process and exposed, they are, however, an important comment and interpretation vector.

DePopulation, object, 2022, Ø160×280 mm: glass, MDF, 3D print (PLA)

“DePopulation” is a kind of reversal of the process, playing against it. Unlike analytical and systematically generated “Populations,” the object was created based on demiurgic interference. At first contact with the object, it becomes obvious that we are dealing with a representation of urban tissue. However, a closer analysis leads to the conclusion that the proportions are not only unrealistic but would create a space entirely unsuitable for living and existing. The intuitive perception is replaced by a sense of unreality or even a dystopian vision. The ambiguity of the title, in this context, refers not only to futuristic considerations but also to a dialogue with earlier works.

Video report from the Numeric Art exhibition in Przestrzeń Sztuki WL4, Mleczny Piotr, Gdańsk, Poland, 1st–31st of October, 2022.

LOCATION: Mleczny Piotr, GDAŃSK, POLSKA