Emergence Lab

A transparent cubic framework is created using a plug-in system of 216 laser-cut acrylic glass strips. Countless image fragments are painted onto the surfaces of this basic structure, forming six different images from six orthogonal viewing directions.
In order to avoid disturbing reflections within the stripes and to create the appearance of a solid glass object, the sculpture floats in a special silicone oil that has the same refractive index as acrylic glass.

Its title refers to a phenomenon called emergence. Emergence refers to properties that arise from the interaction of the parts of a system without these properties occurring in its parts.
At first glance, the Emergence Lab imitates this phenomenon: through the reorganisation of the image fragments, the individual image emerges as a new property that can barely be guessed from the previously visible accumulation of image fragments.
However, the emergence of the Emergence Lab can be found in particular on a deeper level: Through the interplay of objectifiable components such as optics, material physics and technical planning, a work of art is created that as such can no longer be reduced to its physical components.

Art in general can thus exist without contradiction alongside the natural sciences, as something physical whose subjective meaning is not to be found in its physical parts.