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New Scientist recommends artist Philippe Parreno’s new work, Voices

The books, TV, games and more that New Scientist staff have enjoyed this week

By David Stock

15 January 2025

South Bank: Architecture & Design Dominic Bradbury Rachael Smith Batsford

Last month, I saw Philippe Parreno’s new work, Voices, which is at the Haus der Kunst gallery in Munich, Germany, until 25 May. The artist wants us to create a journey through rooms of light sculptures, heat lamps, speaker arrays, dancers and film screens, guided by a disembodied, AI-generated voice.

A film, El Almendral, forms the centrepiece: footage from a tiny plot in southern Spain is live-streamed into the gallery and sensors feed raw data to an algorithm to activate and change exhibits. It is a heady mix that raises questions about personhood, climate change and cultural iconography in…

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