Two innovative artworks by artists Xin Liu and Eunjo Lee, developed during an online artist residency with the LAS Art Foundation and in collaboration with Google Arts & Culture Lab, delve into the realms of philosophy, psychology, and artificial intelligence. These digital creations can be experienced on the Google Arts & Culture website.
Xin Liu’s artwork, titled “nom nom,” employs neural networks to simulate vibrant ecosystems, drawing upon research by Google researchers Blaise Agüera y Arcas and Alexander Mordvintsev as well as the concept of Neural Cellular Automata (NCAs). This unique project investigates how collective intelligence emerges from the interaction of millions of small particles, forming a dynamic and living ecology. Liu describes her exploration as a portrayal of intelligence disseminated across countless neural networks, responding to their environment rather than existing as a singular consciousness.
Eunjo Lee’s piece, “In Your Eyes, Before My Own,” merges ancient philosophy with modern technology. Through a process she terms “techno-alchemy,” Lee combines hand-drawn sketches with 3D motion capture to create a digital environment that integrates elements of linguistics and psychology. By using tools like Nano Banana and Veo, she transforms sketches into 3D assets and incorporates Korean Hangul phonetics, reflecting the interconnectedness akin to the Buddhist philosophy of Indra’s net, which suggests every entity reflects all others.
The residency aimed to support artists in exploring digital world-building and the simulation of life systems. Both artists were chosen for their exceptional technical skills and imaginative approaches to frontier AI research, resulting in these groundbreaking works.
These projects, “nom nom” and “In Your Eyes, Before My Own,” can be viewed online via Google Arts & Culture and the LAS Art Foundation’s website, offering a glimpse into how technology and creativity can expand our understanding of life and consciousness.