2022
BIG DATA (networking the artworld)

About the exhibition

This exhibition presents the BarabásiLab, a scientist and artist collective led by the physicist and network scientist Albert-László Barabási (*1967, Cârța, Romania) at Northeastern University in Boston, MA, USA. 

BarabasiLAB BIG DATA (networking the artworld) opened on September 24, 2022 at Postmasters Gallery, 484 Broome St., Soho, NYC and closed on October 29, 2022. 

The exhibit primarily focused on art networks and connections between individuals within the artworld, along with their influences. NFT artwork was also showcased in this exhibit along with data sculptures, digital prints and paint rollers. 

The paint rollers used in this exhibit is a personal project of Barabasi, rooted in his childhood in Transylvania, where he regularly worked with his grandfather, an interior painting contractor. One of the tools he used in the 1970's and '80's in Transylvania were the paint rollers that generated patterned interior walls. In the past decades, the use of paint rollers has virtually vanished even in Transylvania, thanks to changing tastes and the emergence of affordable wallpapers. Barabasi has decided to research the history of paint rollers in Transylvania and Hungary, and turned paint rollers into a data art medium that allows him to map data and information onto large surfaces. The paint rollers used by Barabasi are 3D printed, and uniquely designed for each project.

Photo credit: Nikita Treptsov

IMAGES

– The Philanthropies No. I through No. X shown in the exhibit. Photo Credit: Emma Schwartz
– Foundation Genesis which captures the preexisting social network between NFT artists.
– Follow The Money which focuses on the investigation into the art space, and unveils the complex flow of money from foundations to all art institutions.
– The Billionaires artwork reveals not only how billionaires themselves connect artistic institutions, but also how they are connected through their family members. 
–  The paint rollers used in the Billionaire's artwork by Barabasi are 3d printed, and uniquely designed for each project.  

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