Markus Vogl

In silico et in situ proposes to take art out of the gallery and into the environment by creating site-specific art installations manifested through the use of technology. The process for these site-specific sculptural interventions is as follows. I start by by sourcing unique natural or urban forms via 3D scanning and 3D modeling. The source material may have some historical or cultural narrative associated with it or may be aesthetically unique. The scanned object site is documented via 360 degree photography for reference. The source material scan is then manipulated in 3D software. These 3D virtual sculptures are then physically manifested through the use of 3D printing in a variety of materials. The scale of the 3D prints are rather small due to the constraint of the printer bed size – so I will refer to them as miniature artworks. These 3D prints are then placed back into the natural or urban environment to create a site-specific installation. The narrative of the source material is intricately linked with the artwork, converging in the creation of a contemporary re-contextualization of culture.

For the Fulbright-Q21/MuseumsQuartier Artist-in-Residence, I propose to create In silico et in situ – Wien, a GPS art treasure hunt version of the project which would include posting the GPS coordinates on my website (and/or printed to hand out at MQ) so one can wander through Vienna and discover the miniature artworks. Vienna with its rich history has many Verborgene Schaetze" and this project could highlight hidden places (and things) to discover. As part of the project, 360 degree photographs of the spaces where the geotagged objects are located will be taken. Documentation photos will also be taken of the miniatures in their new homes. These photographs will also be exhibited on the project website to allow for a wider audience to explore the geocached locations throughout Vienna in virtual space. It would be my hope to exhibion documentation of the project sometime towards the end of the residency (dependent on availability of RaumD).

To form a concrete follow-through of my vision of the project, I propose the following examples:

I could 3D scan an element of an architectural building also built by Fischer von Erlach. Let’s say the original Schoenbrunn. This miniature could be brought to the MuseumsQuartier to “re-historize” the stables he designed, that are the foundations of the MuseumsQuartier.

Or to take this thought even further, could I locate one of Arik Brauer’s (an opponent of the MuseumsQuartier concept) Buddy Bears and reintroduce 3D miniaturized replications of them to the quartier?

Or in reverse could I scan the “Enzis | Enzos | MQ Furniture” and introduce a miniatureversion to a corresponding locale?

Infinite possibilities for historical and cultural discourse present themselves and could be discovered in a treasure hunt all over the city of Vienna. The project would result in technologically re-contextualized fragments of time, space, cultural and historical significance acting as a catalyst for timely conversations in a contemporary art context.

As with many research based art projects, the research is absolutely experimental in nature and tries to discover if the combined use of contemporary technology, the fact that they are taken out of the historical and cultural context and the re-placement into the urban landscape in combination with the geo art caching treasure hunt constitute a narrative rich project that will interest art enthusiasts at large.

Another project that has been developed during the residency is a derivative of a project that we have been working on since 2011, called iheart [i<3]: #iheartwien is a city-specific street installation and an interactive social media project by //benitez_vogl while Markus Vogl is a Fulbright fellow and Artist in Residence at MuseumsQuartier/Q21 in Vienna, Austria. The 3D printed lifehearts with #iheartwien on them are scattered throughout the city via street art.
We are also making 3D hearts available for people to use in photographs of places or with things they love while in Vienna. We ask that people use the hashtag #iheartwien when posting these photos on social media so we/others can find them. The hearts as well as other 3D printed artefacts from Vienna are also available at the street art passage vending machines at MuseumsQuartier.