Archive
2021
KubaParis
When I think of you I shiver in awe
Location
Forum Arte BragaDate
16.12 –10.03.2022Curator
Despoina TzanouPhotography
Marco MendezSubheadline
When I think of you I Shiver in Awe presents a series of figurative, yet abstract landscape works by Manolis D. Lemos resulting from a shared emotional expression and a reflection on earth and sea, blurriness and the future. The works depict semi-recognizable earth views and visions created through an artificial intelligence tool, which has been originally designed and "trained" by the artist in collaboration with theoretical computer scientist and MIT professor Constantinos Daskalakis and his team at the MIT Computer Science and AI Lab since 2018. The artist now introduces photographs of Greek landscapes taken by himself, a large set of his expressive drawings, along with other learning material to the AI, in an attempt to mediate and output images of feeling through the use of a deep learning algorithm. The generated image relies on and is affected by this exact training process, which functions as a central gesture. The image is then transferred on primed and treated linen canvas and is partially oil- painted by the artist who completes or balances the composition and expands its expressive and hybrid qualities. Through this open and collaborative cycle of production which is of political importance to the artist, Manolis D. Lemos aims to blur ideas of authorship, moral responsibility, poetic gesture and emotional expression in a way that embodies a vision that is essentially personal.Text
The passing of time left its marks
and was never to be the same again
The image of you came to mind
and how I wasn't ready to let go
- at least not yet -
How can this room be so asphyxiating?
but still, I preserve the vivid little details
mashed and blurred in my head
I wonder what it would be like to live on the highest point
and be surrounded by the sea
Closer to you
I would be able to understand
your upset skies and troubled waters
I wonder when you cry
if anyone would stop to ask if you are alright
or if they would just admire the river of tears you created
In constant movement
I lay here still
I find companionship in staring at the clouds
and playing the game of finding figures within your sky
It makes me feel safe to pretend having an angel above watching over me
The night gets darker and the fog makes my eyes heavy
I dream of finding the meaning of love
and when I think of you I shiver in awe
I bury my letters for you in the wet soil
and hope my words might reach your core
x
(Despoina Tzanou)
Despoina Tzanou