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Oct 2021
1h 8m

Wayne McGregor and Random International,...

RUSSELL TOVEY AND ROBERT DIAMENT
About this episode

New Talk Art!!! It's Frieze week in London and we are proud to collaborate again with BMW to bring you a special episode with leading choreographer Wayne McGregor and art group Random International to celebrate the world premiere of “No One is an Island”. We also meet with Superblue's Mollie Dent-Brocklehurst and BMW's Hedwig Solis Weinstein to explore this extraordinary art commission!!! 


Random International, Studio Wayne McGregor, Superblue and BMW i share a passion for pushing boundaries and exploring new territories. All are moved by similar questions about how future generations will interact with automated and digitised processes and environments whilst embracing reduction and sustainability.


No One is an Island is fuelled by science and explores electrified movement steered by advanced algorithms. It is a future-oriented reflection on how the human mind empathises with artificial intelligence and automated processes. The performance comprises sculptural, performative and musical elements. The centrepiece is a sculpture that experiments with the minimal amount of information that is actually necessary for an animated form to be recognised as human; and the fundamental impact created by subtle changes within that information. In its transition from robot to human likeness, the sculpture is accompanied by a live performance with dancers of Company Wayne McGregor who interact with the kinetics, further exploring the relationship between humans and technology and our capacity to empathise with a machine. The interventions of the dancers scored by Chihei Hatakeyama add a performative dimension to the sculpture, re-translating and celebrating the connection between human and mechanical movement.


“What I find inspiring about the partnership with Random International, Superblue, BMW i and myself is that we all come together from different knowledge sets, but convene in areas of shared interest. We are all fascinated by the potential of the human body, its relationship with and to technology but most importantly our desire to generate empathetic connections between people. This is a dialogue of inter-connectedness, exploration and surprise. We have no pre-determined road map – instead, we feed from one another’s expertise and ideas to push ourselves towards new horizons” – Wayne McGregor


"No One Is An Island" will be available to the public for viewing at Frieze London until 16th October, with daily performances at 3.00pm, 3:30pm, 4.00pm, 4.30pm, 5.30pm, 6.00pm and 6.30pm. The location is Park Village Studios, 1 Park Village E, London NW1 7PX. Register for your timed ticket slot at this link: https://emt.bmw-arts-design.com/exhibition-random-international?partner=mSSgv4ANIz


Follow @StudioWayneMcGregor and @RandomInternational on Instagram.


Special thanks to @BMWUK and @BMWGroupCulture for this extraordinary trip to see such inspiring art! And happy birthday to @BMWGroupCulture for 50 years of cultural engagement. We can’t wait to see more exciting projects…


For images of all artworks discussed in this episode visit @TalkArt. Talk Art theme music by Jack Northover @JackNorthoverMusic courtesy of HowlTown.com We've just joined Twitter too @TalkArt. If you've enjoyed this episode PLEASE leave us your feedback and maybe 5 stars if we're worthy in the Apple Podcast store. For all requests, please email talkart@independenttalent.com


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