Doppelgänger and Zombies
An exhibition entitled Doppelgänger and Zombies will present new artworks created from 3D scans of masterpieces in David Roche’s 18th and 19th century collection of decorative arts objects.
The research and development behind Doppelgänger and Zombies are led by Dr. Rochus Hinkel, Associate Professor at the Melbourne School of Design and Co-Director of the Advanced Digital Design and Fabrication (ADD+F) research group at The University of Melbourne.
The works in Doppelgänger and Zombies are based on processes that critically and artistically explore and test the promises and potentials as well as the limitations and handicaps of digital technologies. Exquisite physical and digital artifacts are developed and fabricated, using 3D scanning and printing, CNC milling, 360 degrees photography, photogrammetry, digital modelling, rendering and image manipulation software, algorithms as well as augmented and virtual reality. As auctions played an important role in the assembly of David Roche’s collection, a selection of digitally crafted artworks will be offered during a live auction in the gallery.
Arts, crafts, design and fabrication have shifted dramatically in the Digital Age. From New Materials, Avatars, Crypto Currencies, GANs, Metaverse, and Non-fungible Tokens (NFTs), to Lidar Scanning, Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR and AR), and Additive Manufacturing – all are expressions of the potentials of 21st century’s digital technologies and platforms. These technologies enable the creation of bespoke artifacts and explicit archetypes, parallel and alternate realities, imagining and curating other versions and interpretations of our world, arousing awe and astonishment.
The work presents new ways of engaging with the original artifacts in the David Roche collection. Artworks include augmented reality Doppelgänger, which visitors can take home and view on their handheld devices within their private interiors – an offer that makes precious artworks available to everyone. Other pieces are based on digital crafting and the fabrication of physical pieces that are manipulated to play with a viewer’s perception and unravel new identities. The reanimation of historic artifacts relates to the idea of the zombie, understood as a fictional character that is part dead and part alive. Algorithms respond to sound compositions and animated point cloud spheres that unfold over time, allowing for new perspectives and stories related to the master pieces held in the David Roche collection. Limited editions are created as copies at 1:12. This is the scale of the 18th to 19th Century dollhouse, which shares the same historical period as many of the objects in the collection.
Doppelgänger and Zombies presents a collection of physical and digital artworks that are surprisingly playful, highly crafted, and based on the application of cutting-edge digital technologies for their fabrication and creation. Concepts and meanings are developed through an investigative and associative approach, using storytelling and a layering of ideas to enrich the works and help develop their meanings. Non-fungible Tokens (NFTs) place the works in the emerging world of block-chain secured digital originals.
The exhibition will be held from July 1 -23, 2022 at The David Roche Foundation, 241 Melbourne Street North Adelaide. Entry is free. No booking is necessary.
Visit the David Roche Foundation website for more information.