Lightscape, a new film-based installation by artist Doug Aitken, considers our landscape of diversity, creating a vulnerable and humanistic portrait that chronicles the search to find one’s individuality in a world of continuous transformation. In this work, Aitken creates a modern mythology propelled by music, film, and architecture. It follows multiple characters in a Robert Altman–esque structure, taking us on a journey that explores a landscape in the midst of extreme change—from the deep ecology of vast deserts and desolate mountainscapes to futuristic robotics factories and the digital realm. The diverse cast of Lightscape mirrors the landscapes its characters occupy. Natasha Lyonne is seen in a nocturnal high-rise in an existential sequence. Urban crump dancers move through automated factories, their bodies driving and twitching in response to their mechanized surroundings. A migrant worker speeds through the desert at escape velocity. We are thrust into seemingly disparate worlds, with each character on a different journey, but as the narrative progresses, the stories interconnect. Lightscape is a visual poem. Music lies at the core of the film, featuring a unique collaboration with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. It includes original recordings—conducted by Gustavo Dudamel—of iconic minimalist composers and artists such as Philip Glass, Steve Reich, Meredith Monk and original scores by Beck & LA LOM and Doug Aitken. The visual and sonic landscapes shift gears as the characters’ narratives develop, ranging from hardcore techno to haunting compositions. At The Shed, Lightscape evolves into an immersive installation designed as a seven-screen artwork. Implementing an ever-shifting mix of sight and sound, Lightscape functions as a living project. During its run at The Shed, a series of ongoing live musical performances will activate the space, blending the Lightscape installation with live improvisations. Incorporating performance and the musical culture of New York, the artwork itself becomes a hub for collaboration, turning The Shed into a site for active artistic experimentation. Lightscape is an artwork for our times and about our times. Like a fragmented mirror, the film is immersive—we fall into it, and follow the different characters who gradually converge to create a larger worldview: one of connectivity, struggle, hope, and embracing what our new horizon may bring.
Audience Role
Viewer.
Ages: All ages
Content Advisories
Interaction Advisories
Mobility Advisories
Tags
About The Shed
The Shed is a new cultural institution of and for the 21st century. We produce and welcome innovative art and ideas, across all forms of creativity, to build a shared understanding of our rapidly changing world and a more equitable society. In our highly adaptable building on Manhattan’s west side, The Shed brings together established and emerging artists to create new work in fields ranging from pop to classical music, painting to digital media, theater to literature, and sculpture to dance. We seek opportunities to collaborate with cultural peers and community organizations, work with like-minded partners, and provide unique spaces for private events. The Shed was designed to break with the traditions that separate art forms and audiences. By minimizing social and economic barriers to entry, we offer a warm, welcoming space for innovation and dialogue. Embracing technology, we work with creative thinkers and partners to create transformational digital experiences on-site and online. Using our flexible infrastructure and operational capabilities, we can produce performances, exhibitions, events, and gatherings of almost any type in expansive, multiuse venues that allow for social distancing. Driven by our belief that access to new art and ideas is a right, not a privilege, we present engaging experiences and forge deep bonds between our artists and audiences. As an independent nonprofit that values invention, equity, and generosity, we are committed to advancing art forms, addressing the urgent issues of our time, and making our work impactful, sustainable, and relevant to the local community, the cultural sector, New York City, and beyond.