Listen to critically acclaimed artist Es Devlin, Acute Art’s Director Daniel Birnbaum and author and journalist Farah Nayeri as they discuss the life and work of artist Hilma af Klint, the process of choreographing large-scale public artworks and the interrelations of the digital and physical. The discussion coincides with the launch of Outernets Arts presentation of The Temple, an exhibition that invites visitors into the spiritual world of the Swedish artist and mystic Hilma af Klint.

The talk took place on Friday 11 December, 2022 at Outernet Arts, London.

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Es Devlin is a critically acclaimed artist and designer who creates large-scale public art works and stage sculptures that combine light, music and language. Devlin has made touring stage sculptures in collaboration with Beyoncé, Kanye West, Adele, U2, The Weeknd, Lorde, Pet Shop Boys, and the Royal Opera House in London. Devlin also designed the London Olympics closing ceremony in 2012 and the opening ceremony of the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Daniel Birnbaum is director of London’s Acute Art, a laboratory exploring art and technology. He is professor of philosophy at the Städelschule in Frankfurt and a contributing editor to Artforum.  From 2000 to 2010 he was rector of the Städelschule in Frankfurt and director of its Portikus gallery. Between 2010 and 2018 he was director of Moderna Museet in Stockholm. In 2009 he was director of the 53rd Venice Biennial.

Farah Nayeri is a journalist, author and podcast host based in London. She writes on culture for The New York Times, and has just published a nonfiction book titled Takedown: Art and Power in the Digital Age. Her CultureBlast ​podcast features hour-long interviews with personalities from across the world of culture (Emma Thompson, Nile Rodgers, Nan Goldin, Elif Shafak, and Wayne McGregor).

Hilma af Klint (1862 – 1944) is one of Sweden’s most prolific artists, known for her large-scale abstract and occult paintings. Widely regarded as a major artistic innovator and visionary, in 2018 a large survey at the Guggenheim Museum in New York became the best-attended exhibition in the history of the institution.