Jon Rafman
Proof of Concept
Sprüth Magers
February 15 – May 3, 2025
The varied and ever-mutating aspects of digital culture and technologies are at the forefront of Jon Rafman‘s investigations. With the recent proliferation of AI, he has become even more interested in how technology has infiltrated and influences the ways visual media is both produced and consumed. Proof of Concept is an immersive installation that “reimagines television for the AI age.” While manipulated videos and large-scale fabric murals span the gallery walls and floor to fill the main exhibition space, it is the photographic images upstairs (not officially part of the show) that serve as an apt introduction to Rafman’s practice.
Proof of Concept, Installation view, Sprüth Magers, Los Angeles, February 15– May 3, 2025,Photo: Robert Wedemeyer
Since 2008, Rafman has perused Google Street View looking for anomalies — things that were strange, unusual and out of place. He was interested in what narratives can be inferred, what actions actually occurred, versus what might have been a performance for Google‘s cameras. A sense of the surreal permeates these images — pictures taken by a machine, like a mechanical flaneur. For example, in 828 Pavillion St, Dallas, Texas, USA, 2020 the Google cameras capture a man driving in a car extending his arm out the window to give the finger (presumably) to the Google apparatus. In another, 53128 Cl. 51, Medelllín, Antioquia, 2019, Rafman selects an image of a group of men playing cards on the hood of a truck. Devil and ghost-like figures, as well as other costumed characters pervade these views.
Proof of Concept, Installation view, Sprüth Magers, Los Angeles, February 15– May 3, 2025, Photo: Robert Wedemeyer
As computers become more active and even dominant in cultural production, Rafman has continued to mine this content. For his current installation, he has figured out ways to engage with and manipulate the AI. The exhibit actually starts outside the gallery where Rafman has installed life-size vinyl decals on the building’s facade. Here, viewers see iterations of characters Rafman invented and features on his MSM (Main Stream Media) Network, including Cloudy Heart, Iron Tears, Wicked Hatchet and Flux Arcana, many of whom have backstories, albums and subcultures, as well as followings on social media and all of which are generated by AI.
Proof of Concept, Installation view, Sprüth Magers, Los Angeles, February 15– May 3, 2025, Photo: Robert Wedemeyer
The interior of the vast main space is literally covered with fabric printed with abstract patterns, interior scenes, and occasional portraits, as well as different styles of graffiti. The setting resembles a college dorm room where every inch of space is covered with coveted memorabilia. In the center of this material abundance, is a couch in front of a large screen showing assorted looping videos featuring the various musical acts, advertisements and interviews that comprise his MSM (Main Stream Media) / RTM (Real Time Music) network. This main screen is augmented by numerous smaller monitors scattered throughout the installation. Rafman invites the viewer to sit (or stand) and to consume, or be consumed by the seemingly endless stream of far-out content that is reportage, as well as an ironic look at today.
Proof of Concept, Installation view, Sprüth Magers, Los Angeles, February 15– May 3, 2025, Photo: Robert Wedemeyer
While it is impossible to differentiate “real” from “fake” and the degree of manipulation in the moving images and soundtrack, the overall effect is disorienting enough to question intent, purpose, and ultimately the reason for this bombardment. But that may be the point. Rafman explores what is possible with this new technology — be it true or false — and sets the stage for viewers to contemplate the meaning of this unfiltered “reality.” The take away is both absurd and extremely disturbing, depending on one’s faith in AI.
Cover image: Installation view, Proof of Concept, all images courtesy of Sprüth Magers.
