The exhibition Pe Lang, Johanna Bruckner, Jennifer Merlyn Scherler – Swiss Media Art offers from 01.04 – 21.05.2023 an array of works by the prize-winning artists of the Pax Art Awards 2022.
The main prize-winner is Pe Lang who has already made a name for himself in the Swiss media art scene with his impressive kinetic installations. His works are characterised by compositions in which the always visible mechanical elements help to create a magical and poetic effect. The new large-scale immersive installation presented at HEK is part of a science fiction universe conceived by the artist and revealed publicly for the first time.
The two newcomers are Johanna Bruckner and Jennifer Merlyn Scherler, who both create video works integrated in various installation elements. Johanna Bruckner imagines the future of humanity and the increasing integration of robotics and artificial intelligence in the most intimate aspects of everyday life. Simultaneously, Bruckner reflects on the evolution of the concept of gender and what identifies us as human beings, questioning whether the parameters of such identities can be shaped. Jennifer Merlyn Scherler’s video works explore popular culture driven by social networks, a culture that the artist often embodies by playing different roles and personas. Scherler’s new installation puts a particular emphasis on the desire for a return to nature as a strategy to overcome current ecological and pandemic crises.
The prize money granted by the Pax Art Awards enables artists to develop new works, which are viewable by the public at HEK, for the first time.