ARTFEED — Contemporary Art Intelligence

Carla Gannis reimagines Bosch's triptych with emoji in Chicago exhibition

exhibition · 2026-04-22

Carla Gannis displayed her work, The Garden of Emoji Delights, at Kasia Kay Art Projects in Chicago from October 17 to November 15, 2014. This large digital print, measuring seven feet by thirteen feet, is inspired by Hieronymus Bosch's The Garden of Earthly Delights and features thousands of Apple iOS emojis. Gannis used a mix of translation methods like direct swaps and creative substitutions, including unique touches like emoji-yellow bodies. The piece references the 2010 Emoji Dick project, which turned Moby-Dick into emojis and is archived by the Library of Congress. Sabin Bors' exhibition text examined the work through Takashi Murakami's Superflat theory, critiquing it for misinterpreting the concept’s relationship to consumerism while also connecting Erwin Panofsky’s insights on Bosch’s ambiguous art. A 3D-printed sculpture adding to the emoji theme further illustrates how emojis can evolve in meaning based on collective understanding.

Key facts

  • Carla Gannis's The Garden of Emoji Delights was exhibited at Kasia Kay Art Projects in Chicago from October 17 to November 15, 2014.
  • The work is a digital print triptych replicating Hieronymus Bosch's The Garden of Earthly Delights using Apple iOS emoji, measuring seven feet tall by thirteen feet wide.
  • Gannis used translation strategies including direct swaps and creative substitutions, with custom-designed elements like profile views and emoji-yellow bodies.
  • Emoji originated in Japan in the mid-1990s and gained popularity in the U.S. after Apple included an emoji keyboard in 2009.
  • The 2010 Emoji Dick project, a translation of Moby-Dick into emoji, is archived by the Library of Congress.
  • Sabin Bors's exhibition text linked the work to Takashi Murakami's Superflat theory, though the article critiques this as a misreading.
  • Erwin Panofsky's analysis of Bosch's painting is referenced, highlighting its enigmatic nature.
  • A 3D-printed sculpture accompanied the print, offering a more mysterious interpretation of Bosch's themes.

Entities

Artists

  • Carla Gannis
  • Hieronymus Bosch
  • Takashi Murakami
  • Erwin Panofsky
  • Sabin Bors

Institutions

  • Kasia Kay Art Projects
  • Library of Congress
  • Harper & Row
  • artcritical

Locations

  • Chicago
  • United States
  • Japan
  • New York

Sources