Introduction

Sun Rise | Sun Set brings together contemporary and 20th century artists to form a multi-layered response to the fast unfolding ecocatastrophe. The selected works permeate one another, creating small organisms and turning Schinkel Pavillon into a surreal landscape, highlighting the interconnectivity between humans, animals, plants, inanimate objects, technologies and non-beings.

The exhibition includes two works by Pierre Huyghe. This video tour focuses on the room in which Circadian Dilemma (Dia del Ojo) is installed. The work is part of a series of aquarium works in which the artist creates cyclically-oriented underwater scenarios. The landscape of the water basin is modelled on a Mexican cave and is populated by six fish of the species Astyanax mexicanus, along with microscopic bacteria and algae.

Circadian Dilemma (Dia del Ojo) forms an independent biosphere that reacts autonomously to the respective climatic conditions of its surrounding. The transparency of the dimmable glass panes is controlled by a geolocation program while the lighting conditions inside the aquarium are adjusted according to the weather and environmental data on site – taking account of wind, air pressure and temperature.