KAWS & acute art launch monumental AR sculptures in 12 locations around the world

KAWS has collaborated with acute art for the launch of expanded holiday, a series of augmented reality (AR) sculptures that will be publicly exhibited in 12 major cities and locations of six continents from 12 to 26 march 2020. using cutting-edge technology, this project represents a new exhibition model that transcends the physical world and reduces transportation and travel for a global art world. besides the public exhibition, the launch also includes an AR collectible edition and open edition for lease, which are available via acute art’s new platform for collecting and trading AR art. all images courtesy of KAWS and acute art

acute art, a VR & AR art production platform that has previously collaborated with artists such as marina abramović, olafur eliasson, and jeff koons, has teamed up with brooklyn-based KAWS to take his work to the virtual sphere. titled expanded holiday, the collaboration demonstrates the enormous potential of AR and conveys a sense of mischievous humor through the juxtaposition of physical and virtual worlds. the global launch, which takes place today, 12 march, 2020, comprises three components: a public exhibition and two editions. the exhibition features 12 monumental AR sculptures available for audiences in major cities and locations in africa, asia, australia, europe, middle east, north america, and south america (scroll to the bottom of this article for exact locations).

‘when I realized the quality that could be achieved and experienced in AR, I was immediately drawn to its potential,’ says KAWS. ‘I have been creating objects and exhibiting works in public spaces throughout my career, and this allows me to expand on that in a whole new arena. the possibilities of locations and scale are endless, and I’m excited to start a new dialogue in this medium.’

additionally, the collectible edition and open edition for lease are available via acute art’s new platform for collecting and trading AR art. companion (expanded) is an edition of 25 AR sculptures (1.8 m), which can be acquired via the acute art website. owners are able to place, capture, and document these AR works at different locations using the acute art app, while they can also choose to keep their sculptures private or make them publicly available for anyone who has downloaded the app. last, the open edition titled, at this time (expanded), consists of AR sculptures (45 cm) in three colorways for time-based acquisition, available via the app. audiences can keep the works for seven or 30 days at a time and can share their experiences through social media.

‘the emergence of a new medium always gives rise to new possibilities for art,’ explains daniel birnbaum, artistic director of acute art. ‘each epoch seems to have its key artists in whose work a novel encounter between technology and artistic creativity crystallizes. today’s immersive media create entirely new possibilities for the production and distribution of art and the arrival of AR can even be said to give rise to a new immaterial art form. with this project KAWS breaks new ground but also returns to his beginnings. with roots in public interventions as well as late emanations of pop art, KAWS has created new global audiences. there is no artist more talked about today than KAWS.’

project info:

name: expanded holiday

artist: KAWS

collaborator: acute art

editions: acute art app

locations of public sculptures: doha (mia park – museum of islamic art) qatar, hong kong (observation wheel) hong kong, london (millennium bridge) UK, melbourne (national gallery of victoria) australia, new york (brooklyn museum) US, new york (times square) US, paris (the louvre pyramid) france, sao paulo (ibirapuera park) brazil, seoul (dongdaemun design plaza) korea, taipei (national chiang kai-shek memorial hall) taiwan, tanzania (serengeti national park), tokyo (shibuya crossing) japan

exhibition duration: 12 – 26 march, 2020