Towering mushrooms, polka-dot rooms and bright neon lights. Aesthetica rounds-up ten contemporary art experiences to visit during winter 2024. From major retrospectives of Yayoi Kusama and Keith Sonnier, to Tate’s huge exhibition about pre-internet creativity, this selection is devoted to immersive art in all forms.
Parallel Worlds – Gazelli Art House, Baku
Parallel Worlds opened in November, marking the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) in Baku, Azerbaijan. The goal was to pose “thorny questions” around what is natural and what is artificially constructed, riffing on one of the most popular trends of recent years: artists using digital technologies to create alternate visions of nature. It features electronic tree trunks, AI landscapes and simulated oceans, asking: “Can these ‘parallel worlds’ draw urgent attention to what we may be losing forever, or do the projects themselves run the risk of being a form of escapism from the reality of a ravaged planet? Do they represent a call to action, or a seductive distraction?” Featuring Marshmallow Laser Feast, Elnara Nasirli, Michael Takeo Magruder, Nye Thompson, Chris Levine and Recycle Group. Until 31 January.
The Distance of the Moon – Prada Rong Zhai, Shanghai
Shuang Li’s (b. 1990) work is deeply rooted in the contemporary digital landscape, and encompasses various artistic languages, including performance, interactive websites, sculpture, moving images and multimedia installations. Distance of the Moon stems from the artist’s experience growing up in China under the one-child policy, and delves into “the dilemma of communication in a highly mediated reality.” The exhibition unfolds by highlighting the complexities of maternal bonds; at the heart of the project lies a lost letter to Shuang Li’s mother, translated into a site-specific light and sound display. Until 12 January.
Lightscape – Marciano Art Foundation, Los Angeles
Doug Aitken’s (b. 1968) Lightscape is a large-scale multi-screen art installation created in collaboration with the Los Angeles Master Chorale and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Described as “a hallucinatory portrait of the contemporary world”, it accelerates through the diverse landscapes of the American West Coast like a sinuous, lucid dream. The characters of Lightscape are in constant motion, navigating a wild, beautiful and, at times, haunting modern existence. Music is at its core, shifting gears between original vocal pieces to works by iconic minimalists such as Philip Glass, Steve Reich and Meredith Monk. The soundtrack is augmented with ambient soundscapes composed by Aitken, Beck and others. 17 December – 15 March.
Living Structures – Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebæk
This ambitious group exhibition examines the interplay between architecture and nature, spotlighting contemporary firms who are using biology and biochemistry as a basis for organic design. It includes projects by visionaries such as ecoLogicStudio, Atelier LUMA and Jenny Sabin Studio, who work at the intersection of algorithms and nature. These studios are developing new methods to address issues of sustainability and climate, from incorporating photosynthesis into buildings, to inventing new materials and building components from local resources. Highlights include installations that mimic cellular growth and sculptures inspired by natural forms like coral reefs and tree canopies. Until 23 March.
Keith Sonnier – Dia Art Foundation, Beacon
This is the first posthumous institutional exhibition in the USA to celebrate Keith Sonnier (1941-2020), whose pioneering use of neon and industrial materials was integral to the emergence of Postminimal art. Spanning works from 1968-1970, a formative period, the show explores Sonnier’s ability to imbue hard, commercial materials with a poetic and playful energy. The exhibition features elements emblematic of Sonnier’s practice, like cloth, flocking, latex, neon, and satin – commonplace fragments found scattered about the home and the urban environment – which he combined into dynamic objects and installations. The exhibition sheds light on Sonnier’s enduring influence, showing how he radically reconsidered the haptic, spatial, and temporal dynamics of sculpture through materials, light and colour. Long term view.
Yayoi Kusama – National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
To enter the world of Yayoi Kusama (b. 1929) is to be surrounded by polka dots, pumpkins, mirrors and infinity rooms. This anticipated retrospective spans the artist’s prolific career, from her early paintings and sculptures to immersive installations, celebrating her indelible contributions to minimalism, pop art, performance and feminist art. There are nearly 200 works on show; highlights include a new iteration of Kusama’s famous and ever-popular Infinity Mirror Rooms, which challenges spatial perception by ingeniously using reflective surfaces to create the visual illusion of boundless space, and a fresh take on Narcissus Garden. Through bold repetition and a shifting sense of scale, Kusama explores themes of infinity, self-obliteration and the balance between individuality and universality. 15 December – 21 April.
Spectacular Diversions – Compton Verney, Warwickshire
Chila Kumari Singh Burman’s (b. 1957) electrifying solo exhibition, Spectacular Diversions, is a kaleidoscopic celebration of identity, culture and resilience. Drawing inspiration from her Punjabi heritage, feminist politics and the vibrant energy of Bollywood, Burman has created dynamic neon installations to light up Compton Verney this winter. The works reinterpret traditional South Asian iconography, with Hindu deities and mythological creatures mingling with animals and ice creams. Through colour and symbolism, Burman reclaims space and identity, celebrating diversity in all its forms. Until 29 January.
Electric Dreams – Tate Modern, London
What did “digital” art look like when there was no internet? Electric Dreams showcases how, between the 1950s and the early 1990s, artists used machines and algorithms to create mesmerising and mind-bending art – all before the widespread adoption of the the world wide web. It celebrates the early innovators of optical, kinetic and programmed art, who experimented with everything from motorised components to early home computing systems to create something brand new. This show tells the story behind today’s much-loved immersive sensory installations and controversial AI-generated works. Until 1 June.
The Soul Trembles – Grand Palais Éphémère, Paris
Chiharu Shiota’s (b. 1972) monumental yard-based installations transform gallery spaces into haunting, otherworldly environments. In this exhibition, covering over 1,200 square metres, the Japanese artist uses black and red thread to weave intricate webs that symbolise human connections, memory and the passage of time. Embedded within these webs are personal objects—suitcases, keys, and chairs—that serve as emotional anchors, prompting reflections on absence, displacement and shared experiences. This is Shiota’s is the largest-ever exhibition in France, comprising seven large-scale installations plus sculptures, photographs, drawings, performance videos and archive documents . 11 December – 19 March.
Lunar Ensemble for Uprising Seas – MACBA, Barcelona
Petrit Halilaj and Álvaro Urbano unveil 40 large-scale sculptures depicting aquatic, terrestrial and aerial creatures that do not exist in the real world. They swoop, swim and soar around MACBA’s expansive three-floor atrium, and are intended to offer creative interpretations of future states of evolution, including survival both underwater and in the sky. Each sculpture doubles as a musical instrument, producing sounds from music boxes and other DIY techniques. This immersive work is designed to address concepts of cohesion and disharmony among species; as such, their sounds do not easily harmonise, mirroring the complexity of creating perfect synchrony among species in the wild. Until 12 January.
Image Credits:
1. Installation view of Yayoi Kusama’s Chandelier of Grief 2016/18, Tate Modern, London Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts and Victoria Miro © YAYOI KUSAMA.
2. © Marshmallow Laser Feast, Poetics of Soil Fly Agaric I, 2024
3. Shuang Li, Demolition Lovers (2024). Exhibition views of “Shuang Li: Distance of the Moon”, Prada Rong Zhai, Shanghai. Photo: Alessandro Wang. Courtesy Prada.
4. Doug Aitken, Lightscape.
5. Jenny Sabin Studio Photo from the project Ada (2028-2029), Jenny Sabin Studio in collaboration with Microsoft. Photo: John Brecher and Jake Knapp for Microsoft.
6. Keith Sonnier, Dis-Play II, 1970. Installation view, Dia Beacon, New York, 2024. © Estate of Keith Sonnier/Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York. Photo: Don Stahl.
7. Installation view of Yayoi Kusama’ s Dots Obsession 1996/2015 at Kusama’s solo exhibition YAYOI KUSAMA: IN INFINITY , Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebaek, Denmark. YAYOI KUSAMA Courtesy of Ota Fine Arts © YAYOI KUSAMA
8. Chila Kumari Singh Burman, Installation view, Rich Mix 2023. Courtesy the artist.
9. Carlos Cruz – Diez, Environnement Chromointerférent, Paris, 1974/2018. © Carlos Cruz – Diez / Bridgeman Images, Paris 2024. Photo © 2023 Andrea Rossetti
10. Uncertain Journey, 2016/2021, Shiota Chiharu: The Soul Trembles, Taiwan, 2021 / Photo Guan-Ming Lin © VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn, 2023 © Adagp, Paris, 2024
11. Views from the exhibition Petrit Halilaj & Álvaro Urbano. Lunar Ensemble for Uprising Seas, 2024. Photo: Dani Pujalte
