Ryoji Ikeda

Based on data visualisation, rhythm, light and sound, his installations explore the invisible dimensions of the universe and the limits of perception with almost mathematical precision.

Ikeda lives and works between Paris and Kyoto. His artworks and musical performances have been seen and heard in museums and events all around the world. Inspired by the architecture of the museum, the exhibition at Amos Rex marks Ikeda’s first solo show in Finland. On display are five installations, including two new works based on the artist's direct experience of the space.

Completed between 2019 and 2023, the works in the exhibition are all part of a broader continuum dealing with the universe of data and the limits of perception. Each work occupies its own space and enters into dialogue with the scale and shapes of the museum and its visitors. The viewer can approach the works as analytical information networks or immerse themselves into the artist’s expanding space-sound continuum purely through sensory experiences.

Ikeda's artistic roots date back to the 1980s and 1990s, when he was active in the electronic music scene as a DJ, sound engineer and composer. In the 2000s, the artist's expression expanded into the field of visual art, and now involves audiovisual installations and concerts, acoustic performances and large, site-specific and spatial works. In addition, he creates object and print works and recordings as well as light and sound works. As an artist and composer, Ikeda works serially and systematically. Some of his projects and series of works that he has been working on for years, or even decades, are still ongoing (e.g. datamatics 2006–, spectra 2001–, micro|macro 2015–).

An exploratory approach has permeated Ikeda's artistic production since his earliest compositions, which were constructed as experimental soundscapes based on sine waves and white noise. He also draws inspiration from major scientific research projects, and has collaborated with various professionals in the fields of physics and mathematics. Some of the works on display at Amos Rex are based on data collected from the masses of material generated by NASA, the Human Genome project and CERN, among others.

Ikeda interprets scientific methods of categorizing data, using blocks of data to orchestrate audiovisual rhythms and compositions. Whether a pixel, sound wave, space or data, Ikeda sees them all as part of the composition process. His works turn the invisible into the visible, bringing into the experience sonic frequencies that we rarely encounter in museums.

The exhibition is curated by Terhi Tuomi.

Please note:
• The artworks feature rapidly flickering images, the first artwork of the exhibition contains rapidly flashing strobe lights.
• There are loud and high-pitched sounds in the exhibition.
• It is dark in the exhibition.