Suspended Animation: Six Artists Explore Digital Bodies at Hirshhorn

The Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, D.C., is hosting "Suspended Animation," a collective exhibition curated by Gianni Jetzer, which will be open until March 12, 2017. This showcase features six artists—Ed Atkins, Antoine Catala, Ian Cheng, Josh Kline, Helen Marten, and Agnieszka Polska—who investigate the interplay between the physical body and virtual identities through the medium of computer animation. The phrase "suspended animation" refers to mechanisms that decelerate essential functions, mirroring the concept of virtual body substitution in digital art. This exhibition stands in contrast to larger solo presentations by Robert Irwin, Linn Meyers, and Barbara Kruger. Highlights include Ian Cheng's "Emissary in the Squat of Gods" (2015) and Agnieszka Polska's "I'm the Mouth," as well as Ed Atkins's "Warm, warm, warm spring mouths."