Jurgen Ostarhild's Digital Portraits at Noirmont Prospect

Jurgen Ostarhild, a German artist born in 1956, presented recent works at the inaugural exhibition of Galerie Jérôme de Noirmont's second space in Paris's 8th arrondissement, open from March to May 2002. Ostarhild's computer-generated portraits, part of his series "Überbabes," explore the human face through digital morphing, transforming photographic sources into idealized, cloned-like images. The exhibition also featured real-time video transformations. Ostarhild positions himself as a "Picture DJ," remixing images from media under a copyleft logic, and sells some works as virtual pieces viewable only on screen. Critic Paul Ardenne notes that while morphing is common in art and commerce (e.g., the film Final Fantasy), Ostarhild's contribution lies in rethinking the economy of digital imagery distribution, including internet-based sales, marking a step toward a "Numeric Civilization."