bosch's garden of earthly delights gets reinterpreted for the digital age

SMACK COMPLETES A MODERN-DAY GARDEN OF EARTHLY DELIGHTS

an internet troll finds eternal punishment strapped to a hashtag-shaped pillory while a figure in an astronaut’s helmet floats in a paradise of self-obsession. these are just two of the otherwordly characters that inhabit SMACK’s contemporary interpretation of ‘the garden of earthly delights’, originally painted by hieronymus bosch between 1490 and 1510.

the central panel of SMACK’s modern-day triptych was first created in 2016, commissioned by the MOTI/museum of the image (now the stedelijk museum, breda, the netherlands). now, the digital art studio has completed the other two panels — eden and hell — as part of a group exhibition presented by matadero madrid and colección SOLO.

SMACK, SPECULUM: eden, 2019. courtesy of colección SOLO.

from sound art to artificial intelligence

the garden of earthly delights exhibition brings together works by 15 international artists: SMACK, mario klingemann, miao xiaochun, cassie mcquater, filip custic, lusesita, la fura dels baus-carlus padrissa, mu pan, dan hernández, cool 3D world, sholim, dustin yellin, enrique del castillo, dave cooper and davor gromilovic.

each artist has offered their own unique perspective on bosch’s 15th-century masterpiece, which is housed in madrid at the prado museum. they’ve also used a variety of media including artificial intelligence, sound art, digital animation, painting, sculpture and installation, resulting in a diverse range of eye-catching artworks.

SMACK, SPECULUM: paradise, 2016. courtesy of colección SOLO.

in one section, spanish artist filip custic has condensed the history of humankind into a video installation called ‘HOMO -?’ while US artist cassie mcquater has harnessed 90s video games for ‘angela’s flood’. in another part of the exhibition, lusesita evokes both tenderness and revulsion with a triptych of ceramics and textiles. there’s also digital surrealism by sholim and pencil drawings by davor gromilovic that offer alternative visions of bosch’s original gardens. discover all 15 artists’ works on the exhibition website here.

the garden of earthly delights exhibition is on view at nave 16, matadero madrid until february 27, 2022. there’s also an accompanying 160-page book, published by colección SOLO, which explores all the featured artworks, their relationship with the original, and the enduring fascination of the garden of earthly delights.

SMACK, SPECULUM: hell, 2019. courtesy of colección SOLO.