RAFAËL ROZENDAAL
Anti Social
September 8 - October 14, 2017
Rafaël Rozendaal, Abstract Browsing 17 03 01 (Pirate Bay), 2017. Jacquard weaving. 79 x 57 inches.
Postmasters is very pleased to announce Anti Social, Rafaël Rozendaal's third solo exhibition with the gallery.
Stretched like paintings, six new large-scale weavings comprise the show. Each derives from 'Abstract Browsing,' a Chrome extension
designed by the artist. This free software plugin transforms content-filled web pages into vibrant, geometric patterns, devoid of
information. The resulting non-arbitrary abstractions of well-known websites, like Google, the Pirate Bay, and Reddit,
simultaneously reveal unusual, unhuman compositions and the scaffolding of the web.
Surfing the web is fast and fluid. Weaving is antithetically slow and process-based—what the artist describes as
"mechanical painting." Rozendaal selected weaving as the medium for these works because of the relationship between computer
programming and the loom: The Jacquard Loom inspired Charles Babbage to incorporate perforated punch cards in his analytical engine.
Thus, the loom could be considered the first computer.
The publication of Rozendaal's first major monograph, Everything, Always, Everywhere (Valiz, 2017) coincides with the exhibition.
Accompanying the book is 'Here Hear,' a new app by the artist that translates vision into melody. Using color contrast and edge
detection, the phone's camera recognizes shapes, adding brightly colored animations with corresponding audio tones to the world
around you.
Rafaël Rozendaal (b. 1980, Netherlands) is Dutch-Brazilian artist who uses the internet as his canvas. His websites attract 50
million visits per year. His practice also consists of installations, lenticular paintings, tapestries, drawings, writings,
lectures, and a podcast. He is the creator of BYOB (Bring Your Own Beamer), an open source DIY curatorial format. In February 2015,
his work was presented in Times Square as a part of the Midnight Moment exhibition series, and in 2012, his website Much Better
Than This was presented on the world's largest LED screen in Seoul Square. Recent exhibitions include the Centre Pompidou,
Stedelijk Museum, NIMk Amsterdam, MU in Eindhoven, Bonniers Konsthall in Stockholm, Casa França-Brasil in Rio de Janeiro, Valencia
Biennial, and the Internet Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, as well as Het Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam, where he curated an
exhibition of screensavers.
Rafaël Rozendaal
Anti Social
2017
installation view
Rafaël Rozendaal
Anti Social
2017
installation view
Rafaël Rozendaal
Anti Social
2017
installation view
Rafaël Rozendaal
Abstract Browsing 17 -3 06 (Flickr)
2017
jaqquard weaving
57 x 100 inches
Rafaël Rozendaal
Abstract Browsing 17 -3 05 (Google)
2017
jaqquard weaving
57 x 100 inches
Rafaël Rozendaal
Abstract Browsing 17 03 04 (Google Docs)
2017
jaqquard weaving
57 x 100 inches
Rafaël Rozendaal
Abstract Browsing 17 -3 01 (Pirate Bay)
2017
jaqquard weaving
79 x 57 inches
Rafaël Rozendaal
Abstract Browsing 17 -3 02 (Google Image)
2017
jaqquard weaving
79 x 57 inches
Rafaël Rozendaal
Abstract Browsing 17 -3 03 (Reddit)
2017
jaqquard weaving
79 x 57 inches