For the gallery’s booth, Tarraubella will be unveiling a captivating installation titled Secret Life of Flowers (2018-2024), designed to evoke the enigmatic atmosphere of a sci-fi laboratory. On display will be 20 meticulously selected flowers, each subjected to the watchful eye of surveillance cameras that monitor their life cycle in real-time. Surrounding these floral specimens, a striking arrangement of screens will be mounted on the walls, displayed like intricate mosaics that reveal footage capturing the gradual decay of the plants over time. This thought-provoking artwork serves as a profound metaphor for the performativity that permeates our daily lives. ‘We are all performing in certain ways for cameras. When you go onto the street, there are security cameras, but you are also always posing for your own cellphones and Instagram,’ notes Tarraubella, highlighting the pervasive nature of our self-representation and the expansive database of images that many of us create and almost instinctively make available for public scrutiny.
Aside from delving into the complex relationship between technology and data, several artists exhibiting at the fair are also reflecting on these themes in a broader, more poetic context. ‘When people think of datasets, they may think of it more in a scientific way like a clearly defined group of numbers. But for an artist like Jesse Stecklow, data is everywhere. Language is data too,’ explains Lucas Casso, founder of the Berlin-based gallery Sweetwater, who will be showcasing Stecklow’s innovative work in the Positions sector. The Los Angeles-based artist will present a subtle yet evocative installation of objects thoughtfully inspired by the concepts of light and time. This installation builds upon familiar forms that have characterized his artistic journey over the past decade.
