Bio
JAMES IRWIN is an Artist, PhD researcher at Kingston School of Art, Associate Lecturer at UAL and Digital Media Tutor at the Royal Academy Schools. He works with web technologies, AI systems and digital sound and image to investigate the notion of a vital life force inherent within digital media. Web projects include: Evolution Towards a Digital Composting, Blackbird SuperRare Space (2024), surfacecollider, Oral Publication Edition 11 (2024), You’re in a Computer Game, Max!, skelf.org.uk (2020), SurfaceCollider (23032020), www.annkakultys.com (2020). Solo exhibitions include: Listening to Xanax, Gossamer Fog, London (2018), Binary Translations, Space In Between, London (2013) and Hopeless Communication, Space In Between (2011). Group exhibitions include: The Terminal: Human Shaped Whole, Anonymous Gallery, New York (2021), Terms and Conditions May Apply, Annka Kultys Gallery, London (2018), Home Alone, Dateagleart, London (2018) and How the mind comes to be furnished, Space In Between (2016).
His work expresses a concern with closeted forms of subjectivity that start and end within the human body. In response, he produces recombinant bodies from digital hardware, software and human wetware, which emerge collectively through the computers screen and speakers as the audio-visual output of live code often manipulated by user interaction. As a means of testing embodied affective registers, he makes kin with the internet, smartphones and computers, amongst other cyborg technologies to embrace synthetic digital sounds and images that make us feel things.
Current Research Statement
My research tracks the resuscitation of dead, flat digital sounds and images through the latent potential of electronic systems. If silicon-based life is evolving, and we are forced to widen biocentric definitions of what constitutes living matter, then what do we look and listen for to identify digital life? Which processes provide digital media with vitality? Through web-based artworks, artificial intelligence and computer generated sounds and images, my practice-based research works to probe at the aesthetic potential for silicon-based system-objects to inherit, from us, a life-like force.
I take a cybernetic approach throughout. When making digital sounds and images, I mine the black box of the machine for flickers and tendrils to hook onto as pathways of emergence to follow. In this sense, vitality is characterised by how it is channelled as visual and audio output through computer displays and audio speakers. These are the surface effects of complex underlying processes and interactions. I’ve chosen the text-based language of computer programming to form and shape these electronic entities. Working in this way allows me to work with the building blocks of digital life in a similar way to how biological life can be modified through genetic engineering. I see the use of code in this context as intrinsically physical — code embodies matter in action. As scripts compile within machines, chains of physical processes are enacted that bring about the emergence of electronic beings as tangible, sensory forms through digital sounds and images. There is no software. The artworks that emerge can be seen as the flowering or fruiting of these inner, hidden workings; outward facing signifiers of inner electronic vitality. Like mushrooms to mycelium networks.
I work according to a cyborg methodology. As I work, the boundary between my body and the machine dissolves. In place of discrete, separate entities, a recombinant body is formed that merges human wetware with different forms of hardware, their mechanisms, and their combined intelligence. Within this cyborg body a transaction occurs between the wetware and hardware that channels the production of electronic life. At this vital time within the development of Artificial Intelligence, this research uses the critical time and space offered by Contemporary Art to meditate on the inter-complexities of our relationship with machines. The carbon-silicon-based artworks that emerge from the project are born from these ways of working.
CV
James Irwin
b. 1980, Lincoln, England.
Lives and works in London, UK
Education
- 2018–Present, PhD in Fine Art Practice, Contemporary Art Research Centre, Kingston School of Art.
- 2008–2010, MFA Computational Studio Arts, Goldsmiths College, London (Distinction).
- 2001–2005, BA (Hons) Fine Art, University of Newcastle Upon Tyne (First).
Solo Exhibitions
- 2018, Listening to Xanax, Gossamer Fog, London.
- 2013, The RGB Spectrum, 313 Kingsland Road, Space in Between, London.
- 2013, Binary Translations, Space in Between, London.
- 2011, Hopeless Communication, Space in Between, London.
- 2010, Monument to the Alphabet, Goth on Bus, London.
- 2009, 10, Goth on Bus, London (with Everything is Number).
Online Exhibitions
- 2024, Evolution Towards a Digital Composting, Blackbird SuperRare Space.
- 2024, surfacecollider, Oral Publication Edition 11, oral.pub.
- 2023, surfacecollider, New Art City Festival 2023.
- 2022, surfacecollider, Six Minutes past Nine @ New Art City.
- 2022, To Spawn a Door in the Land of Broken Mirrors, New Art City Festival 2022 (online space curated by Nacoca Ko).
- 2022, Elsewhere Node (Notes on Antidepressants), HOAX Publication (https://hoaxpublication.org)
- 2020, SurfaceCollider (23032020) Stay at Home, online exhibition with www.annkakultys.com
- 2019, Jessie Jetpacks, web-based project @ skelf.org.uk (Curated by Jessy Jetpacks).
- 2018, The Edge, web-based project @ skelf.org.uk (Curated by Claire Undy, with text by Laura Davidson).
- 2017, Spread the Virus, web-based project @ dateagleart.com (Curated by dateagleart and Bob Bicknell-Knight).
- 2017, Skelf Art Feast, Digital Partner of the Art Licks Weekend 2017, Art Licks, London.
- 2016, Could Ecopsychology cure my Cyberchondria, online residency with Space In Between, London.
Curatorial Projects
- 2020, You’re in a computer game, Max!, @ skelf.org.uk
- 2019, SuperHumanCorpoation: An Exploration of Digital Nature (Part 3) with Brenna Murphy and Jamie Sutcliffe @ isthisitisthisit.com
- 2017, SuperHumanCorporation: An Exploration of Digital Nature (Part 1) with Rowena Harris and Nicholas O’Brien @ spaceinbetween.co.uk and across the SIB Instagram feed.
- 2017, SuperHumanCorpoation: An Exploration of Digital Nature (Part 2) with Andrew Benson and Laura Davidson @ spaceinbetween.co.uk and across the SIB Instagram feed.
Selected Group Exhibitions and Events
- 2023, Python Glossolalia, Live Noise Night @ Telegrafia, London (curated by Ryan Jordan).
- 2021, The Terminal: Human Shaped Whole, Anonymous Gallery, New York. Curated by Jason Isolini with Offsite Project.
- 2019, Swayze Effect, Platform Southwark. (Curated by Agorama).
- 2019, Humdrum, The Store, Dulwich College. (Curated by Bruce Ingram).
- 2018, Terms and Conditions May Apply, Annka Kultys Gallery, London. (Curated by Bob Bicknell-Knight).
- 2018, Home Alone, Dateagleart, London.
- 2017, Summer Exhibition, Royal Academy of Arts, London.
- 2017, ColLive, Space In Between, London (Collaborative project with composer Catherine Cheung and Silk Street Sinfonia).
- 2016, Technonatural, Gossamer Fog, London.
- 2016, This Frontier so Familiar, so Strange, Article, Birmingham.
- 2016, How the mind comes to be furnished, Space In Between, London (Collaborative project with Lilah Fowler).
- 2016, Jumpcut, artists film night at the Averard Hotel, London (Curated by Saturation Point).
- 2015, Generator | Systems, Logic and the Analogue Art of Programming, Kaleidoscope Gallery, Sevenoaks (Curated by Saturation Point).
- 2015, Flat Art, William Benington Gallery, London.
- 2015, Dialogues at London Art Fair, Space In Between, London with Grey Area, Paris.
- 2014, Head Grammar (Project LALO), Transition, London and Weekend, Los Angeles.
- 2014, Fabric (curated by Janne Malmros), Oriel Sycharth Gallery, Wrexham.
- 2013, Alter // Shift // Control, Bermondsay Projects, London.
- 2013, Let’s Pluck the Bird, Limoncello, London (with Irwin / Robinson).
- 2013, First@108 Public Art Award, Royal British Society of Sculptors, London.
- 2012, RBS Bursary Award 2012, Royal British Society of Sculptors, London.
- 2012, Joint Ventures, Space In Between, London.
- 2012, Art Licks, ICA, London.
- 2012, System of Objects, Departure Foundation, London.
- 2012, Microcosm, Departure Foundation, Ellington Building, Leeds.
- 2011, Presence Absence, Kingsland Road Studios, London.
- 2010, Grey Area, Centre for Creative Collaboration, London.
- 2010, A Tender Cut, Fold Studios, London.
- 2010, The Middle of Nowhere. Objects and Actions in the Abyss, Departure Gallery, London (with Everything is Number).
- 2010, Goldsmiths MFA, Kinetica Art Fair, P3 Gallery, London.
- 2009, The Fleet Rises, Departure Gallery, London.
- 2007, Wrecking Ball, 2-10 Hertford Road, London.
- 2007, On Growth and Form, Redwire Gallery, Liverpool.
- 2007, On Growth and Form, Permanent Gallery, Brighton.
- 2006, Coals to London, Nolias Gallery, London.
- 2005, Degree Show 05, Hatton Gallery, Newcastle.
Workshops
- 2024, Building Collaborative Datasets for Fine-Tuning in Stable Diffusion (2 workshops building datasets and fine-tuning SD LoRA models), Digital Training Sessions, Arebyte Gallery, London.
- 2024, AI Image Generation for Beginners (2 workshops introducing image generation in Stable Diffusion), Digital Training Sessions, Arebyte Gallery, London.
- 2024, Prompting Images of Digital Life (2 workshops exploring image generation in Stable Diffusion), BA Fine Art, Kingston School of Art.
- 2023, Prompting Images of Digital Life (image generation in Stable Diffusion), Digital Training Sessions, Arebyte Gallery, London.
Artists Talks, Academic Conferences and Lectures
- 2024, Artists Lecture, RA Schools Lecture Series, Royal Academy Schools.
- 2024, 2nd Symposium on Digital Art in Ireland, University College Cork (When Code Becomes Image: Tapping the Digital Black Box for Signs of Life).
- 2023, Artists Talk, BA Fine Art, Kingston School of Art.
- 2022, Online Artists Talk, Six Minutes Past Nine (Culmination of Six Minutes Past Nine Residency in New Art City).
- 2020, Online Artists Talk, Various MA Courses, Birmingham School of Art.
- 2018, Artists Talk, MA Illustration and Visual Media, London College of Communication (UAL).
Awards
- 2018-2024, Funded Studentship, Kingston School of Art.
- 2013, First@108 Public Art Award (Finalist), Royal British Society of Sculptors.
- 2012, Royal British Society of Sculptors Bursary Award.
- 2008–2010, Professional Preparation Masters Scheme, Arts and Humanities Research Council.
Residencies
- 2024, Foreign Objekt, Deep Objekt [0]: Agency at the Computational Turn (organised by Sepideh Majidi and Reza Negarestani).
- 2022, Six Minutes Past Nine Residency, New Art City (online).
- 2019, Agorama Art and Technology Residency, Raven Row, London.
- 2014, ESXLA, Los Angeles, USA.
Reviews
- February 2018, ‘Gossamer Fog: James Irwin Listening To Xanax', letsmakelotsofmonet.com
- February 2016, ‘Space In Between Presents Collaborative Exhibition by James Irwin and Lilah Fowler : How the Mind Comes to be Furnished’, Widewalls.
- February 2016, ‘How the mind comes to be furnished: James Irwin & Lilah Fowler’, Elephant Magazine.
- 30 January - 5 February 2016, ‘James Irwin & Lilah Fowler’, theguardian guide, p.36.
- June 2013, ‘Binary Translations’ 4* review by Eddy Frankel, Time Out.
- September 2011, ‘Hopeless Communications’ review by whatwherewhen.com.
- June 2011, ‘Presence, Absence’ review by Alex Tieghi-Walker, Aesthetica Blog.
Interviews
- 2023, Video Walk Through with Sammie Veeler for New Art City Festival 2023
- 2021, ‘Artist Interview: James Irwin’, Post-Art Clarity
- 2016, ‘How the mind comes to be furnished: James Irwin & Lilah Fowler’, Traction Magazine.
- 2015, Interview with Saturation Point's Laura Davidson, saturationpoint.org.uk
General Publications and Exhibition Catalogues
- 2018, Isthisit? Issue 5.
- 2012, RBS Bursary Awards 2012, Exhibition Catalgue (text by Sarah Kent).
- 2012, ‘Autocue’, Art Licks Magazine Issue 7.
- 2010, Kinetica Art Fair 2010 Catalogue, Kinetica.