When DCist first met Sandro Kereselidze in June, he eagerly told us about his vision of an art space that swam against the tide of selfie-friendly blockbusters. As the co-founder of the buzzy L’Enfant Plaza gallery ARTECHOUSE, Kereselidze has given the local art scene a space dedicated to dazzling digital art that encourages and requires interaction.
“When you just look at it, it’s beautiful. But as soon as you touch it, you transform it,” he said of its first exhibition, XYZT: Abstract Landscapes, a touring installation from French artists Adrien M and Claire B. This was art that asks you to engage with it, that isn’t complete without your participation.
For its new seasonal exhibition, Spirit of Autumn, ARTECHOUSE offers more colorful opportunities to interact—and a chance to create your own piece of the show.
“Our medium is interaction,” says Bill Saiff of NOIRFLUX, who developed part of the impressive, autumnal installation. That interaction will be more effectively lubricated by something that’s a first for area galleries: augmented reality cocktails.
Kereselidze himself conceived Spirit of Autumn. With a projection system installed by Russian firm SILA SVETA and interactive wall technology & graphics powered by French-German firm A-BLOK, this globally-sourced exhibition promises the same kind of 21st century dazzle that propelled XYZT, but with a mostly open floor plan and more colorful animations.
But I’m sure you’re wondering about those augmented reality drinks.
Spirit of Autumn, the cocktail, is a refreshing potion developed specifically for the show. It consists of chacha (a Georgian grappa that warms your innards like smooth moonshine) lemongrass, hibiscus, lime, and egg whites (aquafaba will be used to for a vegan-friendly alternative).
While such potent liquor may already induce a kind of augmented reality, the drink doesn’t stop at your gullet. With an app, you can point your smartphone at the seasonal cocktail, topped with an edible autumn canopy, and watch fallen leaves transform into a swirling mass that evokes what you’ll feel like after a few more glasses of this stuff.
It’s a good thing there are railings in the space, because it goes down like autumn candy.
As in XYZT, the digital artworks here respond to interaction, and in fact are not complete without it. While your entrance to the summer show suggested surveillance gone psychedelic, the open layout of this show conjures a descent into a digital future in which you suddenly face a clearing that offers a soothing simulacrum of nature.
One of the NOIRFLEX installations on the sides of the space evoke one running through a pile of leaves that seem to follow you; in another, a blank floor comes alive with swirling colors that follow your movements. Still, it’s best left up to the viewer to visit the space and learn for themselves how the various sensors respond to motion—and in some cases, sound.
Saiff and his partner Lorne Covington happened on ARTECHOUSE’s inaugural show XYZT and found that its user-driven digital installations were much like what they’ve been working on for years, having developed various forms of interactive video since 1979.
“Control is boring,” Covington says. ‘What I shoot for is for a piece to be like a good dance partner.”
By that measure, Kereselidze is the show’s producer and bandleader, his latest visual symphony assembled with the help of people with whom he has worked for years and others he’s recently met. “I recognize talent and I put it to use,” he says.
Like the user-generated leaves that populate the wall projections, it’s a nice metaphor for community. ARTECHOUSE showcases digital art, and while the app will provide augmented reality options even outside the gallery’s walls, this is not simply a virtual world; it’s the result of collaboration. As Covington says, “You can’t have interactive art without interaction.”
What’s next for ARTECHOUSE? Coming up on the gallery’s Fall slate is Kingdom of Colors, a Thanksgiving installation, and The Imaginary World of The Nutcracker. I can’t wait to see what they do with that holiday chestnut.
Spirit of Autumn runs from October 1—November 5 at ARTECHOUSE, 1238 Maryland Ave. SW. $12-$20 (cocktails are $12 at a cash bar). Buy tickets here.
