DATAFALL

DATAFALL: Orchard Central X Refik Anadol Studio

   

 

DATAFALL: Orchard Central X Refik Anadol Studio is a treasured addition to the collection of art installations at Orchard Central and will be on display from 29 May 2023, 11am to 10pm daily. It is Orchard Central's first digital artwork among six other installations exhibited throughout the mall including Yayoi Kusama’s Let's go to a Paradise of Glorious Tulips, Inges Idee’s Tall Girl and many more.

Read on to find out more about DATAFALL: Orchard Central X Refik Anadol and Orchard Central's collection of art.



Established in 2014 by Refik Anadol, a pioneer in the aesthetics of data and machine intelligence, Refik Anadol Studio produces enthralling and immersive media art intended for anyone, any age and any background. The award-winning studio has been engaged by leading tech companies, groundbreaking researchers and cutting-edge thought leaders to produce projects that have been shown in over 50 cities, spanning six continents, and experienced by millions of ardent fans. 

 

 

 

Refik Anadol Studio comprises artists, architects, data scientists, and researchers from diverse professional and personal backgrounds, embracing principles of inclusion and equity throughout every stage of production. 



Refik Anadol Studio’s public art for Orchard Central, DATAFALL, focuses on various distinct layers of the interrelatedness between institutional, natural, and cultural memories of the city in a suite of AI Data Sculptures and interactive installations. An immersive sensory experience of continuous movement, interaction, beauty, and growth, DATAFALL is a three-dimensional “data waterfall” that visualises natural, urban, and cultural patterns and forces at work in and around Singapore in an art piece inspired by fluid dynamics. The fluidity of the visual patterns and the vertical shape of the piece not only will perform a natural phenomenon through digital simulation but also represent the many interlocking layers of nature, humanity, and technology in our age of new media and machine intelligence. This artwork is curated by Tay Swee Lin.

 

 

 

CHAPTER I : SINGAPORE NATURE DREAMS 

 
The first chapter of the installation, DATAFALL: Singapore Nature Dreams, seeks to reconnect the citizens with natural patterns by utilising natural color schemes and visual archives of nature in Singapore.  This experience can be considered both a radical visualisation of an alternate dimension of the natural world, and of our digitised memories of nature. 
 

CHAPTER II : SINGAPORE URBAN DREAMS 


This chapter uses millions of publicly available images of busy urban centres of Singapore where citizens come together to continue their daily routines, focusing specifically on typical urban spaces and landscapes. The content is used to train a generative adversarial network (GAN) to identify and learn patterns of Singapore’s urban scenery. 

 
CHAPTER III : SINGAPORE CULTURE DREAMS 


This chapter paints with Singapore’s publicly available institutional archives and visual memories of its most frequently visited landmarks. Creating an illusion of architectural multi-dimensionality and emphasising our embeddedness in history, this chapter presents an entirely new and poetic way of connecting to the city. 
 

CHAPTER IV : WINDS OF SINGAPORE 


Wind of Singapore manifests an exciting approach to harnessing data of wind, temperature, humidity, rain, and solar radiance collected from Singapore in a “living artwork.” Refik Anadol Studio synthesise this raw data into ethereal data pigments, and eventually into a representational form of cinematic movements with the help of custom software. 


CHAPTER V : DATA WATERFALL 


As part of this large-scale public artwork, Refik Anadol Studio created an interactive chapter which will invite the visitors to physically engage with Singapore’s collective memories when they move around the DATAFALL. As the constant data input – representations of movement, social interactions and space – gets transformed into a hallucinogenic large-scale LED screen, the audience will become physically connected to the artificial thinking process.
 

CHAPTER VI : FLUID DREAMS


What would a machine mind dream of after watching all the news about Singapore incessantly? The final chapter of the artwork presents an AI-based artistic speculation to answer this question by using Singapore-focused RSS news feeds as its building blocks. It showcases a masterful utilisation of cutting-edge AI technologies and data analysis, while suggesting a curious merging between reading and experiencing the news. 

Discover more on the six art installations displayed throughout Orchard Central below. 

Starting from the ground level, we have Nutmeg Grove by Michele Righetti, located near the Taxi Stand. Italian artist Michele Righetti crafted a vibrant metallic sculpture inspired by the nutmeg seed's colours and patterns, commissioned by Orchard Central to celebrate Orchard Road's heritage. 

 
Next to it we have D.88 Istana Park by Gary Carsley, located at the Side Entrance. The artwork is a composite image made up of prints taken from the flora in Istana Park, which holds some of Singapore's oldest trees. Calibrated print intensity creates a unique movement in space, transporting shoppers into a virtual canopy.


We can't miss the iconic Tall Girl by Inges Idee, located at the Level 1 Discovery Walk. With its exaggerated proportions and specially treated details, this larger-than-life figure at an impressive height of 20 meters pays homage to the architectural marvel of the mall, offering captivating perspectives and enhancing the visual allure of the shopping experience.


Located at Level 4 Atrium Void is Cloud Prototype No. 1 by Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle. Cloud Prototype No. 1 is a titanium sculpture modelled after an actual cumulo-nimbus thundercloud. Using numerical data from the University of Illinois, Manglano-Ovalle digitally sculpted the storm system, reflecting climatic events and the impact of globalisation on our cultural and political climate.


At Level 11 displays Let's go to a Paradise of Glorious Tulips by Yayoi Kusama. A vibrant and lively polka-dotted installation featuring a whimsical orchard with colourful tulips emerging from the ground, alongside the Ohayo-girl and her dogs. This gloriously interactive piece of work is a delightful and serene retreat for shoppers.

The art piece underwent restoration at Kusama Studio in Japan in May 2022 to ensure meticulous maintenance of the sculpture. The restoration process was carefully carried out with utmost attention to detail to preserve the art piece's value and integrity and will be back at Orchard Central in Q3 2023. Regular restoration work is crucial to ensure the continuous upkeep and preservation of this valuable artwork. 


Lastly on Level 12 roof garden, you can find The Stair, The Clouds and The Sky by Victor Tan. Witness the captivating reflection of oneself in the man walking up the staircase artwork, surrounded by "floating clouds" of human-like sculptures frozen in various dynamic movements. Breathes of breeze bring them to life, captivating viewers and immersing them in these mesmerising moments.


Yearning for more captivating art? Stay tuned to find out more about the various art installations at One Holland Village, our upcoming new mall set to welcome you in Q3 2023.

Don't miss out on the artistic wonders awaiting you!
 
Address: 
Orchard Central  
181 Orchard Rd, Singapore 238896