Berndnaut Smilde conducts elementary particles of water and smoke to create clouds riddled with sculptural complexity.  Suspended within spaces whose walls are dense with history, materiality, and architectural intrigue, Smilde creates an atmospheric artwork that would become ephemeral if not for the photographic documentation. Belonging to an ongoing body of work called the “Nimbus” series, […]

A studio visit with Rob Tarbell exploring his latest work with Matthew McLendon, curator of Modern and Contemporary Art of the Ringling Museum of Art. Failure to Appear 1 – 7 were created by encouraging and discouraging the flow of smoke and, ultimately, capturing it on the surface of paper. By exploiting aspects of silkscreen […]

For a fleeting moment, Dutch artist Berndnaut Smilde controls clouds, an intangible natural phenomenon, by pressing a single button on a remote control.  Triggering a smoke machine into an environment where variables like temperature, humidity and light are carefully monitored, Smilde creates a picturesque, billowing cloud that assumes a natural density and airiness in a […]

Installation Magazine: Your new body of work Smoke employs a complex, unusual and sophisticated method of taming and painting with smoke.  How did you develop this technique to achieve this unusual effect? Rob Tarbell: The smoke technique began around 2005 with a few ideas coming together to form a what if moment.  The first idea was a […]