Fertile Void. Quantum Paradoxes and the Physics of Living Matter seeks to interrogate quantum science as an approximation, scale, translation, and condition of a potentially multiplicitous physical reality, one that understands the combination of energy and matter as more than the sum of its parts. In this spirit, four artists of the Studio Quantum residency 2023 have created works that delve into quantum concepts from four distinct fields, each reaching towards a particular cosmology of technology, science, and embodiment. These works are situated in the Sylvia Wynter Foyer, the Gunta Stölzl Foyer, and the Lili Elbe Garden.

The four artistic engagements with quantum are inserted into the current HKW exhibition Forgive us our Tresspasses / Vergib uns unsere Schuld. The presence of the works that translate, aestheticize, and narrativize quantum physics also fundamentally question the exceptionality of trespassing, implying that from a quantum perspective, everything is acting in convergence at all times, and not all is what it may seem. The artworks thus transgress binary notions of inclusion and exclusion, and indeed, of physical space, as they work with the sonic, the spiritual, and the virtual as technologies of a quantum realm.

Studio Quantum is an international events and artist-in-residence programme from the Goethe-Institut, exploring emerging quantum technologies through the lens of art. Artistic explorations of the synergies between art and technology as well as impressions and learnings from the international residencies are an integral part of the showcased works. 

Fertile Void is a cooperation between Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) and the Goethe-Institut Irland / Studio Quantum, with contributions from the JUNGE AKADEMIE of the Akademie der Künste,  Schering Stiftung, Universität der Künste, Berlin and Trinity College Dublin. The project is part of Berlin Science Week. With thanks to Quantum Delta, ZKM, ITAS (KIT), Science Gallery London, King's College and Zeitgeist Irland 24, an initiative of Culture Ireland and the Embassy of Ireland in Germany.  

With works by Amy Karle, kennedy+swan, Edy Fung, and Ìfẹ́olúwa Ọ̀ṣúnkọ́yà. All works are supported by the Goethe-Institut Irland as part of the Studio Quantum residency programme and by the Goethe-Institut and Haus der Kulturen der Welt (Berlin) as part of Fertile Void.

 

Amy Karle, Quantum Resonance (2023) from Sketches of Quantum Concepts (2023). Courtesy of Amy Karle

Amy Karle, Quantum Resonance (2023) from Sketches of Quantum Concepts (2023). Courtesy of Amy Karle

Amy Karle 

Entangled Horizons (2023–24), multi-media installation, five 50 × 50 cm prints, video (loop), 8' 28" 
Sylvia Wynter Foyer

In this multisensory collection of quantum art, Amy Karle charts the invisible architectures that bind subatomic realms to cosmic expanses. The work, presented in the context of Fertile Void and simultaneously in orbit, destined to be embedded on the Moon,* makes porous the boundaries between the quantum field, humanity, and the vast expanse of the universe.

Adapted from Karle’s Echoes From The Valley of Existence (2024)**, this generative video was developed using quantum principles and quantum-inspired imagery, where the fluidity of reality is reflected and multiple states coalesce and diverge in perpetual flux. The immersive soundscape, rooted in quantum physics, resonates with the human body on a cellular level, creating a visceral connection between the human and the quantum realm—embodying the entangled relationship between technology and life.

Karle’s Sketches of Quantum Concepts (2023) further probes paradoxes of quantum principles and leverages pulsar timing array data visualization to illuminate possibilities of communication across vast distances in both space and time.

Each of these works emerges from the same foundational quantum principles, offering distinct yet interconnected iterations. Together, these works illuminate the artist’s prototyping of a doorway into the quantum fold, recalibrating our understanding to recognize ourselves as living embodiments of quantum principles and cosmic processes. As these works are experienced in person and simultaneously in space, the concept of entanglement becomes literal, offering a meditation on how human identity, technology, and the cosmos are inextricably linked.

All works made by Amy Karle are supported by the Goethe-Institut Irland as part of the Studio Quantum residency, 2023.

*Artworks in this exhibition were included in Amy Karle’s Retrospective For The Future (2024), marking the first known solo artist exhibition in space and on the moon and the first artist retrospective in space and on the moon. This historic endeavour is part of Interstellar’s 1Gb Aspire 1 on Intuitive Machines 2 (PRIME 1) Launching on Space X Falcon 9 in collaboration with NASA, Interstellar, and partner Lonestar’s ‘Freedom’ mission, set to launch for the moon late 2024–early 2025.

**Media and creative technology solutions developed in collaboration with Sefa Sagir and Bartosz Wyszynski; sound design in collaboration with Sefa Sagir; data and network engineering, Wiktor Krokosz; sponsorship from LifeShip; support from Sapporo International Art Festival 2024; and support from Studio Quantum and Goethe-Institut Irland.

The artist thanks all those who made these artworks possible through their support, knowledge, and contributions.

Edy Fung

Picocosmos (2024), installation, DIY FM-radio transmitter, hand-blown glass, optical fibre, copper, plastic, electronics, vinyl of lambda sign, photo, paper, prints, handheld FM receivers, sound of randomly emitted single photons (loop), 46'
Sylvia Wynter Foyer

Picocosmos (2024) is a live-transmission sculpture that broadcasts the sound of single photons at 87.7 MHz to the universe. But what exactly is a single photon? In search of understanding, Edy Fung asked physicists to sketch out what a photon looks like. According to quantum mechanics, the moment a photon is emitted—when an electron falls from its excited state back to its ground state—it is considered random, inherently spontaneous, and unpredictable. The behaviour of single photons offers immense potential for applications like quantum cryptography and key distribution. Nevertheless, photons suitable for quantum communication are extremely ephemeral, existing on picosecond timescales before being lost.

The future data of our civilization may be recorded on these fleeting memory units, perhaps reiterated through quantum repeaters. Picocosmos conceives translating picosecond-old photons into radio pulsars—searchable, durable, and capable of travelling vast distances between planets and galaxies. This self-built sculptural device adds a new dimension to satellite-based quantum communication networks. Quantum memory from single photons at 894 nm, stored in warm atomic cesium-133 vapour (in conjunction with atomic clocks), are transduced into an audio signal, which is then encoded onto an FM radio signal and broadcast openly across the universe at frequencies between 30 and 300 MHz. On the receiving end, information about the photons can be retrieved, along with their sound—something that cannot otherwise travel or be accessed in outer space. Can we dream of democratizing quantum computing and communication, much like radio technology flourished through grassroots movements and communities 100 years ago? 

In the exhibition, Fung displays audible real-time with FM radio receivers. The sound explores the inaccessible, invisible, and intangible—the very essence of quantum properties. What emerges seems in opposition to post-humanist approaches: an art form that utilizes scientific explanation but does not benefit from seeking to decentre the anthropocentric and rather serves as a relatable translation capable of human understanding and sensing. Reflecting the human condition, the sonification of photons incorporates folk influence and portrays photonic data slowed down between 69 and 13889 times more than real time. A limited number of envelopes with liners tinted with pattern-free photonic randomness adorn the installation with a photocopy of Spiral of Lightning in a Thunderstorm (1886) by Charles Moussette attached inside and an invitation to write a quantum encrypted message to be transmitted to the universe.

Picocosmos is made possible through data from the Institute of Optical Sensor Systems at the German Aerospace Center. 

Commissioned by the Goethe-Institut Irland as part of Studio Quantum 2023

Edy Fung, study of live-transmission and speculative device with self-built electronics. Courtesy of Edy Fung

Edy Fung, study of live-transmission and speculative device with self-built electronics. Courtesy of Edy Fung

kennedy + swan, shut up and calculate! (2024), video still. Courtesy of kennedy + swan

kennedy + swan, shut up and calculate! (2024), video still. Courtesy of kennedy + swan

kennedy+swan

shut up and calculate! (2024), two-channel video, 4K, sound, 8'. Courtesy of the artist
Gunta Stölzl Foyer

In their new two-channel video shut up and calculate! (2024), kennedy+swan refer to Heisenberg’s retroactive glossing over the paradoxes of quantum mechanics that became known as the Copenhagen Interpretation. Under the pressure of rising global tensions, physicists decided not to talk about the ‘magical’ aspects of quantum physics but to focus on its practical applications. They proposed to rather shut up about these troubling implications, and to just ‘calculate’ without further questions asked. As artists, the duo poetically returns to what mid-century scientists left behind: the paradoxical effects of quantum mechanics on our reality that are inherently incompatible with our traditional worldview. How can diametrically opposed states such as alive and dead exist simultaneously in superposition? How can one particle communicate its state to another seemingly faster than the speed of light? And why can the mere act of observing a system change its reality? These unresolved questions inspire kennedy+swan’s new video: Schrödinger’s cat floats between the North Pole, a bourgeois apartment, and the wild nature of Ireland, philosophizing about his own paradoxical states of consciousness. Through this journey, kennedy+swan create metaphors for the ambivalent feelings that the quantum world leaves us with.

Commissioned by the Goethe-Institut Irland as part of Studio Quantum 2023

Ìfẹ́olúwa Ọ̀ṣúnkọ́yà

Agents of Èṣù’s Quantum World (2024), installation, mixed reality
Lili Elbe Garden

Agents of Èṣù’s Quantum World (2024) is a multiplayer VR experience where participants assume the role of quantum bits (qubits), collaboratively forming a quantum circuit through their interactions. This circuit is processed, and its outcomes reshape the performer’s environment. In this project, participants embody Èṣù, the orisha (deity) of crossroads and non-determinism, becoming creators of quantum algorithms. Like Èṣù, they navigate endless possibilities before making a choice. The project delves into the individual’s role as an active agent in a sea of possibilities, influencing the world around them. In a society driven by hustle culture, it poses the question: what happens when the ‘performance’ of life no longer guarantees future rewards? Can insights from the orisha Èṣù and Ifá texts provide guidance for navigating uncertainties in emerging technologies? By extending performance beyond the stage into daily life, the project explores how quantum processing might shape the future, with our actions influencing technological progress.

Collaborators:
3D Character Artist: Tolu Akinyotun
Dance Performer: Samuel Udoh
Rara Performer: Ayoola Mayowa Esusupo Oyo
Sound Design: Noah Okwudini
Portrait: Telmo dos Reis

Special thanks to Virtual Human Computer Interaction Lab (VHCI) Lagos, Imisi3D, Studio 44 MocapLab, Atelier Mondial Basel, Dr Tunde Adegbola, Dr Sola Olorunyomi, Dr Adeduntan, Baba Idowu Esuleke, Priscillia Uzomah

Commissioned by the Goethe-Institut Irland as part of Studio Quantum 2023. With support of Studio Quantum, the Goethe-Institut Irland, the Goethe-Institut Nigeria, Trinity College Dublin, and CONNECT - The Science Foundation Ireland Research Centre for Future Networks and Communications, Spatial Affairs at the House of Electronic Arts (HEK) Basel, metaLAB (at) Basel.

Agents of Ẹ̀ṣù's Quantum World (2024). Courtesy of Ìfẹ́ (Skodo)

Agents of Ẹ̀ṣù's Quantum World (2024). Courtesy of Ìfẹ́ (Skodo)