Palau de la Música exhibition uses AI to recreate nature that inspired building's design 

An exhibition using artificial intelligence to recreate the nature that inspired architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner opened in Barcelona's Palau de la Música on Tuesday. 

It is a collection of 41 works depicting unreal forms, created by the Lisbon-based studio, Entangled Others, which invite the viewer to discover the connections between nature, humanity and the architecture of the building.  

The exhibition features animations and prints, and also acts as a tribute to the architect 100 years on from his death. 

The artworks on display are those featured in the venue's graphics for the 2023-2024 season, Mercedes Conde, Deputy Artistic Director at the Palau, told the Catalan News Agency (ACN). 

The forms depicted in the works "are unreal," she explained, but are inspired "by natural forms found in nature, especially those that are not so well known, such as those that can be found at the bottom of the sea or those that are extinct." 

Humanity and nature 

Entangled Others, a duo based in Lisbon consisting of Argentine Sofia Crespo and Norwegian Feileacan McCormick, focuses on the fundamental connection between humanity and nature, which also happens to be the theme of the Palau's current season. 

The artists also take some elements of Domènech i Montaner's work, such as "the central skylight on the palace roof, which appears in some images," Conde said. 

"It is difficult to see specific elements of the architect, but you can sense them in the lights, shapes and colors," she added. 

The artists also took inspiration from "the flowers that devour the walls and the ceiling" and by the form of the turkey that appears in some of the building's decorations. 

This season marks the first time that the Palau has made use of AI for its visual material, but Conde insists that without "human manipulation there would be no way for the intelligence to work on its own." 

The exhibition runs until January 15 in the foyer of the Petit Palau. 

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