We were introduced to the fascinating work of Gabriel Barcia-Colombo when we stumbled across his TedTalk "Capturing memories in video art" in which Gabe discussed his memorialization of friends via virtual and cellular means. His piece, Animalia Chordata, reads like a cabinet of curiosity displaying people trapped in glass jars, individuals who seemingly respond to one's presence; others are a little less humorous and a tad unsettling, like his DNA Vending machine which grants patrons the opportunity to purchase actual DNA samples. In all of his projects, Gabe explores and plays with capturing memories, the role of technology in society, the virtual and physical identities we create across platforms, and so much more.
In this episode, we speak with Gabe about his mixed-media, interactive work, his personal trajectory from cinema to digital art, his projects with Soethby', the reception and role of tech art in the art world, and the future of art and ownership.
-About Gabriel Barcia-Colombo-
Gabriel Barcia-Colombo is a mixed media artist whose work focuses on collections, memorialization and the act of leaving one's digital imprint for the next generation. His work takes the form of video sculptures, immersive performances, large scale projections and vending machines that sell human DNA. His work plays upon this modern exigency in our culture to chronicle, preserve and wax nostalgic, an idea which Barcia-Colombo renders visually by “collecting” human portraits on video.
Gabriel was commissioned to be the first digital artist to show work at the New Fulton Terminal Stop with the MTA Arts & Design program in New York City. His work has been featured in the Volta, Scope, and Art Mrkt art fairs, Victoria & Albert Museum as well as Grand Central Terminal and the New York Public Library. He recently received an Art and Technology grant from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art where he created "The Hereafter Institute," a company that questions the future of death rituals and memorials and their relationship to technology. His work is part of the permanent collection of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
Gabriel served as a member of the artist advisory board at the New York Foundation for the Arts, as well as the education committee member at the Museum of Art and Design. In 2012 Gabriel gave a TED talk entitled "Capturing Memories in Video Art," and in 2014 he gave another entitled "My DNA Vending Machine" and was awarded a Senior TED fellowship.
In 2016 Gabe founded Bunker.nyc a pop up gallery showcasing emerging art made with technology. Bunker became the first pop up digital art gallery to open in the Sotheby's Auction House in New York Summer 2017. Gabe is a New York Foundation for the Arts grant awardee and faculty member at the Interactive Telecommunications Program at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.
You can learn more about Gabriel Barcia-Colombo here
Follow Gabe @gabebc
Tweet him @gabebc
Cover art by Graydon Speace
