Nimbus – Berndnaut Smilde
Berndnaut Smilde is a Dutch artist who uses a mixture of photography and installation, but is perhaps best known for creating indoor clouds. In the artist’s own words, the ‘Nimbus’ series “present a transitory moment of presence in a specific location”, something which is underlined by their existence only in photos. In the video below the artist explains that he prefers not to have an audience; rather than a performance piece which would perhaps hold the process at its centre, for Smilde it is the impact and the idea that he wants to pull into focus, thus it is the image that is the true exhibit.
To create the clouds, Smilde requires a very cold and damp space in which he then pumps warm water vapour into the air. He explains that this creates a sort of barrier that holds back mist from a smoke machine. The resulting effect is a short-lived cloud, suspended momentarily within spectacular interior locations.
It’s incredibly low-fi, but it creates such an exciting visual experience. I’m sold.
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