New Realism / Altered Reality Video Artists
João Pedro Oliveira
João Pedro Oliveira is a distinguished composer and holder of the Corwin Endowed Chair in Composition at the University of California, Santa Barbara. With a diverse background encompassing organ performance, composition, and architecture, João Pedro Oliveira's musical journey has had remarkable achievements and global recognition.
His educational foundation was established in Lisbon, where he pursued studies in organ performance, composition, and architecture. Driven by a deep passion for music, he furthered his academic pursuits by completing a Ph.D. in Music at the University of New York at Stony Brook.
João Pedro Oliveira has showcased his talent and versatility across various genres and mediums throughout his prolific career. His musical portfolio spans various forms, including opera, orchestral compositions, chamber music, electroacoustic music, and experimental video. He skillfully blends traditional and contemporary elements, creating captivating and innovative compositions that resonate with worldwide audiences.
Brit Bunkley
Brit Bunkley is a New Zealand-based artist and videographer known for his multifaceted practice encompassing the creation of large-scale outdoor sculptures, installations, and the production of mesmerizing moving and still images. Using a combination of 3D modeling, video editing, and image editing programs, Bunkley constructs captivating visuals and architectural designs that push the boundaries of possibility.
Bunkely explores the theme of "new realism/altered reality," in his recent video works, "Dear Hart, How They Dream, How We Dream" and "The Peaceable Kingdom," captivate viewers with photorealist dreamscapes that include hybrid Père David's deer and explorations of animals inhabiting human architectural spaces. These videos shed light on the extraordinary Père David deer, officially extinct in the wild but reintroduced in China and found in captivity worldwide. Bunkley's thought-provoking work delves into the complex relationship between humanity, nature, and our altered reality.
Bunkley has received notable recognition for his work including a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship and the prestigious Rome Prize Fellowship. In 2012, he was an award winner at the Moscow Museum of Modern Art for the "Now&After" Festival. Bunkley's artwork has been showcased extensively internationally, including screenings at renowned venues such as the White Box Gallery in NYC, Rencontres Internationales Paris/Berlin, the Athens Digital Arts Festival, and File Sao Paolo. Video works, such as "Ghost Shelter/6," have been featured at prestigious festivals such as Oberhausen Short Film Festival, Docfest Kassel, and Jihlava IDFF.
Bunkley's sculptures and video work has also been exhibited in both group and solo shows, making a lasting impact on diverse audiences. Notable group exhibitions include "Stories of Rust" at Tauranga Art Gallery in New Zealand and "Green Around" in Taipei, Taiwan. Solo exhibitions have taken place at prominent venues like the Sarjeant Gallery in Whanganui, New Zealand, the Institut für Alles Mögliche/Stützpunkt Teufelsberg in Berlin, The Rabbit Room in Napier, New Zealand, and Scott Lawrie Gallery in Auckland, New Zealand. His works have also been featured in significant art competitions, including the "2021 National Contemporary Art Award" at Waikato Museum in New Zealand and "Visions in the Nunnery" at Bows Art/Nunnery Gallery in London.
Bunkely divides his time between New Zealand and the United States, where he shares dual citizenship.
Tianyu Qiu
Tianyu Qiu, born in 1988, is a visual artist, curator, and designer currently based in New York and New Jersey. His artistic practice revolves around the construction of narrative, fictional, and dystopian worlds that provoke reflection on our contemporary era and popular culture. With a multidisciplinary approach encompassing both physical and digital mediums, Tianyu is fascinated by transforming the interplay between objects and images in space, aiming to engage audiences on intellectual and emotional levels. His installations and animations draw inspiration from diverse sources such as pop culture, social and political events, technology, and computerized imagery.
Tianyu pursued his education in the arts, earning a BFA in theater from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He furthered his studies with an MFA in Fine Arts from Parsons, the New School of Design, where his exceptional talent was recognized with the President Scholarship. In subsequent years, Tianyu showcased his artistic vision and curatorial skills by exhibiting and curating at the renowned Pingyao International Photography Festival in China in 2017 and 2018. Motivated by his passion for creating immersive experiences, he established Yolk Studio LLC in 2018, a platform dedicated to exhibition curation, design, and production.
In addition to his artistic endeavors, Tianyu holds a significant role as a Senior Consultant in digital experience for Deloitte, where he leverages his expertise to shape innovative digital strategies and enhance user experiences.
Fragmented Reality, a captivating video series of four pieces, is a testament to Tianyu's creative vision. Each video bears the title of a specific location, with satellite maps imported from Google Earth, highlighting major political events that garnered international media attention, albeit with varying political agendas. The narratives surrounding these events have been shaped differently by different media outlets, raising questions about the subjective nature of our legacies, religions, and politics. While satellite maps are often perceived as objective representations of reality, Fragmented Reality prompts viewers to contemplate the extent of their knowledge about these places and the potential hidden motives behind the seemingly "free" tools offered by corporate entities and governments. Through a fictional dystopian lens, Tianyu's work explores the intricate connection between our perceived reality and the underlying forces that shape it.
Tianyu Qiu's artistic practice is a testament to his ability to merge art, technology, and critical inquiry, urging viewers to question the narratives they encounter and engage with the complexities of our contemporary world. With a commitment to pushing boundaries and sparking dialogue, he continues to shape thought-provoking experiences that challenge our understanding of reality and its multifaceted dimensions.