Ambiguous Cut Into Space of Conjecture (AT) by Herwig Weiser; ultrasonic generator 500W, 8 PZT-piezoceramic elements , plexiglass cylinder/ 60*8cm, motor , PLC Industrial Electronic , 50*3W Led’s/Lenses and various electrochemicals

Click here to see the exhibition online

Following the groundbreaking international new media art exhibition Synthetic Times, a 2008 Beijing Olympics Cultural Project, the National Art Museum of China presents TransLife, the next installment of the Media Art China series, now instituted as a triennial, slated to open on July 26, 2011, in Beijing.

Amidst the global challenges of climate and ecological crises that threaten the very existence of humanity, the exhibition TransLife reflects on the whereabouts of humankind in relationship to nature through an unique perspective and philosophical speculation, calling for citizen participation in facing these imminent challenges with artistic imagination to advocate a new world view of nature and a retooled humanist proposition.

Autoinducer_Ph-1 (UK) by Andy Gracie; Medium: Mixed media installation

The exhibition is structured by three thematically related components that gradually progress from the discovery of new sensorial potentials that extend our cognitive capacities to the emergence of multiple life forms to biodiversity and an exploration of the symbiosis of cohabitation, revealing emerging concepts of life and provoking contemplation on the biosphere. In doing so, the exhibition also strives to reassess the historical roots and epistemological foundation of the current ecological and environmental predicament, interrogating the notion of subjectivity inherent in the project of modernity and the anthropocentrism derived from that tradition.

Banana Poetry (HR) by Ines Krasić; Installation (work in progress)Autoinducer_Ph-1 (UK) by Andy Gracie; Medium: Mixed media installationNemo Observatorium (BE/NO) by Lawrence Malstaf; PVC cylinder, Styrofoam particles, 5 fans, armchair

The exhibition’s architectural design starting with the first floor of the museum and extending to the third and the uppermost floors resonates with exhibition’s thematic construct in which the progression from the sensorial experiences of the individual to the recognition of the multitude of life phenomena and, finally, to the attention to life-sustaining ecosystems echoes with the emotional and perceptual evolution from micro-worlds to a macro-universe, making the curatorial concept an organic and symbolic physical presence.

TransLife will bring to the Beijing audience an unparalleled roster of 53 artworks by over 80 artists and artist collectives from China, Korea, Japan, Singapore, the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, The Netherlands, Latvia, Ireland, UK, Finland, Belgium, Norway, Serbia and Australia. 40 works will be included in the theme exhibitions and 13 works will be installed in the “Weather Tunnel” special project.

E-Static Shadows (LV/SG/GB/DE) by Zane Berzina (LV, DE, GB) & Jackson Tan (SG, GB) ;woven analogue e-textile system with integrated micro-electronics

The exhibition will occupy three galleries on the museum’s first floor and the entire space of the museum’s 3rd and 5th floors, totaling over 4000 square meters.

The cutting-edge Chinese architect MA Yansong will design a large installation for “Weather Tunnel” in collaboration with emerging artists from a selection of leading art schools in an open area of the museum.

The 300 page plus exhibition catalogue will consist of a collection of scholarly texts contributed by world-renowned authors (Bruno Latour, Arjen Mulder, Chris Salter, Peter Sloterdijk, Eugene Thacker, and a curatorial text by ZHANG Ga) to elaborate on the exhibition’s themes and their philosophical ramifications, along with color illustrations of works in the exhibition. The catalogue will be co-published by NAMOC, The Liverpool University Press and the Foundation for Art and Creative Technologies in UK and distributed globally.

(To see more photos click the next page)

15 Minutes of Biometric Fame (NL) by Marnix de Nijs; Interactive installation with camera robot (custom camera, camera dolly and software), LCD screen and projectionBit.

Bit.Flow (DE) by Julius Popp; Installation -Stainless Steel, Pumps, Valves, Tubes, Custom Liquids, Custom Software, Electronics

Knight of Infinite Resignation (CA) by Diane Landry; sound sculpture with automation

Nemo Observatorium (BE/NO) by Lawrence Malstaf; PVC cylinder, Styrofoam particles, 5 fans, armchair

Nomadic Plant (MEX) by Gilberto Esparza; Video documentary of the organism living in a contaminated river. Also the robot can be show.Bit.Flow (DE) by Julius Popp; Installation -Stainless Steel, Pumps, Valves, Tubes, Custom Liquids, Custom Software, Electronics