Hostage
"Hostage prototype 1.0" (2010) is a nano painting by Frederik De Wilde (BE). [Work distributed by V2_Agency]
Hostage prototype 1.0
The artwork consists of an ultra dark nano engineered material that absorbs all visible light and some invisible like infrared light. Ultra black nano engineered material represented as a black square, framed within a bigger square of white painted anodized aluminum and covered by a piece of Claryl Glass.
The artwork (of a series of four) makes reference to the works of painters like Yves Klein, Malevich, Reinhardt, et al. In contradiction to traditional paintings these artworks are made from atomic size particles using chemical vapor disposition, hence creating a Vertigo-esque black 'forest' of loosely vertically aligned carbon nanotubes. This bottom up technique is quite novel and reflects upon the transition from pigments to structural color, the spectral behavior and geometry of the nano object. Thinking out of the box (read art and the art world), one could equally think of these artworks as icons (attempts) for the 'dark' times we are currently facing (economics, social, ecological, et al) while on the other hand presenting a radical new constructive and (still) Utopic model to face the challenges of our time e.g. building our world anew atom by atom.
In general one could notice also a correlation between the limits of our perception and of space (interstellar space, our mind, et al) and what we currently can perceive (mediated through technology or not) and what we cannot perceive. This is the liminal point. The point where we only can imagine what lies beyond the black canvas or space; the unknown (also psychological intended). This is the true point where art & science collide and it is the passion to discover that binds both - seemingly different - worlds.
Hostage won the Ars Electronica [The Next Idea] Award 2010, and the Best European Collaboration Award 2011.
Carbon Nanotubes, Claryl Glass, wood, 2 Neon tubes with cable and sockets; (57cm x 57cm x 5cm).
Hostage 1.0 is a Nano Painting by artist Frederik De Wilde (BE), co-produced by Prof. Pulickel, Rice University, Houston, Texas and financially supported by the Flemish Ministry of Culture.
