Memo Akten^TR

Memo Akten is an artist, musician and computer scientist from Istanbul, Turkey. Thinking of technology as an extension of the body, he explores the intersections of science and spirituality through computing. He synthesizes images and sounds while creating experimental films and large-scale responsive installations and performances. Fascinated by nature and the human condition, he draws inspiration from biology, artificial intelligence, computational creativity, fundamental physics, neuroscience, human perception, consciousness, rituals and religion. Akten is inspired by the human’s capacity to dig deeper while uncovering the poetry of nature. He obtained a PhD in Artificial Intelligence/Deep Learning and expressive human-machine interactions from Goldsmiths University of London, and is an Assistant Professor of Computational Arts at University of California, San Diego (UCSD). His thesis investigates deep learning models as an artistic medium for new modes of performative and creative expression, naming these models “Deep Visual Instruments”. Akten received the Prix Ars Electronica Golden Nica for his work Forms in 2013. He has exhibited and performed internationally at venues such as The Grand Palais (Paris, France), The Barbican (London, UK), Moscow Museum of Modern Art (Moscow, Russia), Shanghai Ming Contemporary Art Museum (Shanghai, China), and many more.

Photo credit: Hanna Radek