In this 2020-21 reCAP issue, we have been highlighting some of our creative faculty and their explorations into art and their submissions into competitions and exhibits.
Assistant Professor of Architecture, James F. Kerestes, recently participated in an exhibition of digital objects for the A+D Museum in Los Angeles, California titled “One Object at a Time”. Curated by Ebrahim Poustinichi, the exhibition was experienced through an online Virtual Reality (VR) platform called Sansar (a social VR/PC multi-player real-time game platform). The digital world consisted of 27 objects from a select group of architects and designers such as Greg Lynn, The Bittertang Farm, Ferda Kolatan, Ibañez Kim, Bair Balliet, Young & Ayata, and others.
James’ object, titled “Untitled No. 1”, is a speculative composition taken from a larger body of research currently in development. The object strives to explore the origins of complexity within architectural geometry and the coupling of objects with shared and opposing characteristics. The work draws inspiration from a wide range of influences and representational genres, such as the surrealist paintings of Polish artist Zdzislaw Beksiński, the evolutionary models of William Latham, the representation of the macabre in horror films, and even from the aesthetics of black metal music. Variation in the composition’s silhouette and texturing seeks to invite a multiplicity of readings relative to scale, materiality, and resolution.
By James Kerestes
Assistant Professor of Architecture