The Bardo: Unpacking the Real is an exhibition that quantifies the ephemeral as it relates to the liminal landscape of sculptural art in the digital age. The exhibition examines the real and (un)real in digital sculpture; questions what it means to view and collect digital sculptures; and investigates the role of NFTs in the creation of the featured artists' work. Named after an afterlife concept in the The Tibetan Book of the Dead, The Bardo explores the possibilities of what sculpture can be, and how it can be viewed. The exhibition takes the idea of a sculpture to the next level by reinventing how sculpture can be seen and collected, and featuring different innovations around the notion of ownership. The Bardo: Unpacking the Real exemplifies the creativity, enthusiasm, and energy (both human and electromagnetic) that reflects this historic time in art history. Julie Walsh

Feral File  The Bardo: Unpacking the Real

Martina Menegon's &ldquo;it's a matter of perspective&rdquo; was inspired by simulation theory-the idea that we are living in a computer simulation-and Zhuang Zhi&rsquo;s concept of transformation in &ldquo;Butterfly Dream.&rdquo; In this story, Zhuang Zhi wakes up and recalls he had a dream of a butterfly. He then wonders whether he is a human dreaming of a butterfly, or perhaps a butterfly, dreaming he was human. Combining these ideas led Menegon to create an artwork that reflects the fluidity of self by presenting a continuously moving 3D scan of her body. On the screen, dozens of bodies flow in a dynamic state of motion, with a new one generated each second as an old one is deleted. In this way, the avatar&rsquo;s sculptural form and movement are predetermined by a set of codes and constraints written into the program. The 3D clones exist in a liminal state, at once mysteriously attached and repelled by each other as they search for meaning. As Menegon says, &ldquo;I'm in the perspective of me, but there are multiple me's.&rdquo;