Are high technology and empathy compatible? They seem to come from different sides of the human brain. Technology deals with science, facts, and numbers, while empathy is the ability to understand and share another person’s feelings or perspective.

This exhibition shows the Chilean-born artist Guillermo Bert bringing the two together in novel and powerful ways. He uses three principal tools, all of them uncommon in most art production: QR codes, 3-D imaging, and laser engraving.

Of special interest to textile enthusiasts is the Encoded Textiles series, weavings include QR codes that literally embed the story of the weaver into the work so that anyone with a smartphone can see and hear them.

Other pieces utilize 3-D imaging - the artist creates life-size images of workers whom he has met, allowing us also to meet them face to face from a unique perspective. Media images today often show migrants and refugees, but Bert uses laser engraving to transfer them onto unusual surfaces, such as wood panels that mimic the look of some of the earliest “high technology:” the rectangular panels that encoded instructions for the first mechanical looms in the 19th century.

Museum Hours:
Wednesday - Sunday, 11am - 6pm

Fee:
General Admission $15
Students with valid ID $10
Seniors $10
Children under 12 yrs old FREE
MOLAA Members FREE

More information note: no info yet on closing date