teamlab's dazzling fusion of technology, art, & nature for 'museum without borders' in jeddah

in conversation with teamlab’s founder, toshiyuki inoko

A symbiotic fleet of blooming animals, an infinite void of light, and an all-encompassing blaze of fire invite an otherworldly, multisensorial immersion at teamLab Borderless Jeddah. The Japanese art collective’s first permanent museum in the Middle East is one that at first glance quietly melds into its historic urban context, but within, is an ephemeral array of digital innovation. 80 large-scale installations sprawl across an astounding 10,000 square meters of space, transforming its walls, floors, and momentary occupants into an ever-evolving, kaleidoscopic canvas.

As its name suggests, a boundless continuum is the driving concept. ‘This is a museum without borders… A museum without a map,’ shares Toshiyuki Inoko, founder of teamLab, at the inauguration. In Borderless Jeddah’s cosmos, rendered by complex cutting-edge projection-mapping and human interactive technologies, the physical and virtual morph into one and the human body dissolves into its surroundings. The journey unfolds across a sequence of interconnected spaces, fluidly traversed by each of the artworks in an unpredictable, cyclical display. With meditative wisps of air, swarms of butterflies that flourish and wilt, playful animal characters, the works are deeply rooted in nature, yet conceived with surreal, fantastical expressions.

Inside the hypnotic work, Forest of Resonating Lamps, immersed in the orange glow cast by hundreds of suspended Venetian glass lights, designboom sat down with Toshiyuki Inoko to learn more about his aspirations to bridge art, technology, and nature to create a bodily digital art experience and bring people together.‘We think people are meant to perceive the world through their bodies,’ he tells designboom.

image courtesy of teamLab

borderless jeddah unites art, technology, nature, and science

Across the Borderless World, Athletics Forest, Future Park, Forest of Lamps, and the EN TEA HOUSE, the works of teamLab Borderless Jeddah are all interrelated, in constant motion, interacting with each guest in new ways, and thus never the same. The journey unfolds across a labyrinthine sequence of interconnected spaces, fluidly traversed by each of the artworks in an unpredictable, cyclical display. With meditative wisps of air, swarms of butterflies that flourish and wilt, playful animal characters, the works are deeply rooted in nature, yet conceived with surreal, fantastical expressions. Here, visitors are invited to become part of the display, bearing the projections engulfing the museum’s walls, and to become catalysts. Their presence and movements subtly shape the artworks’ perpetual metamorphosis, through touch, movement, and even custom apps.

During our conversation with Toshiyuki Inoko, we discuss how this notion of borderless extends beyond the curation of the artworks, and the role it plays in removing distances between strangers, and between art and audience. ‘First of all, digital technology gives us an opportunity to create a transformative expression, something that is not static,’ he shares. The concept embraces the presence of others to to transform the world of art, inviting them to shape the experience and discover limitless expressions together.

image courtesy of teamLab

image © designboom

image © designboom

image courtesy of teamLab

image courtesy of teamLab

image courtesy of teamLab

image courtesy of teamLab

image © designboom

image © designboom

image courtesy of teamLab     

image © designboom

image courtesy of teamLab

project info:

name: teamLab Borderless Jeddah | @teamlab

location: Jeddah Historic District, Saudi Arabia 

in partnership with: Saudi Ministry of Culture