Bokeh
mpkoz
Michael Kozlowski's Bokeh brings together algorithmic artistry and the highest standards of physical craftsmanship to create sculpture, lighting, and digital works, each a unique meditation on light, form, and the quiet mystery of human perception.
The Works
Bokeh presents sculptures, lighting, and digital works that invite performative interaction to reveal the quiet mystery of what floats beyond the frame.
16 Oct 2024 at 4:00 PM
Bokeh lamps
20 Unique Works
Bokeh lamps are ~11.5 x 19.0” in dimensions. Measurements may vary slightly based on design. Materials: wood, acrylic, paper, lightbulb.
21 Oct 2024 at 4:00 PM
Bokeh digital works & sculptures
300 Unique Works
Bokeh wall sculptures are ~12.25 x 19.25” in dimensions. Materials: wood, acrylic, paper.
Bokeh mural sculptures
2 Unique Works
Bokeh mural sculptures are ~37 x 68” in dimensions. Materials: wood, acrylic, paper. Digital artwork included.
Bokeh names uncertainty: the way light refracts, the way a moment escapes, the way a life slips past, a gentle blur around the edges. It's the deliberate absence of clarity, the soft surrender of sharpness to light's trembling weight.
About the works
Bokeh lamps
RELEASING ON 16 Oct 2024 at 4:00 PM
Crafted as twenty distinct pieces of sculptural lighting, each work comes with a complimentary digital artwork. These creations explore the fluid relationship between light, form, and space, responding to movement and perspective. They invite interaction, transforming both the room and the viewer's experience with every glance.
Bokeh digital works & sculptures
RELEASING ON 21 Oct 2024 at 4:00 PM
At the heart of the collection lie three hundred unique digital artworks, generated by the base algorithm that informs every physical piece. Collectors will have the rare opportunity to acquire one of thirty exclusive wall sculptures, each a tangible expression of its digital counterpart. These sculptures, sold after the digital auction on a first-come, first-served basis, embody the connection between the digital and the material, merging code and craft.
Bokeh mural sculptures
These two mural-sized wall sculptures, generated by the algorithm that powers the entire Bokeh collection, offer a sweeping exploration of light, form, and perspective. At this grand scale, each sculpture reveals new dimensions as the viewer moves, the interplay of shapes shifting and evolving with every step. Available only through private sale, collectors are invited to inquire about acquiring one of these rare works. Those who do will have the unique opportunity to either co-curate the final design with Michael himself or allow the algorithm to generate a work of pure chance, adding an element of unpredictability to the process.
The process
“The pieces in Bokeh are all part of this bigger dialogue I have with systems— they aren't just static objects; they're meant to pull you in, get you to move around and see them differently depending on your angle. To me, that's what real interactivity is—creating something that kind of forces you to engage with it, to perform. It's not just about looking at something, it's about participating.”
Michael Kozlowski
Where algorithm meets light: the craft of Bokeh
Bokeh lives in the tension between algorithm and hand, between digital code and physical manifestation. Kozlowski's hand-built generative algorithm doesn't stop at the screen; it moves beyond, generating the precise instructions to shape sculptures and lamps. Wood, paper, aluminum, Perspex—each material bears the mark of the algorithm's designs, each cut line followed to perfection. But the work doesn't end with a machine. Each piece, whether sculpture or lamp, is assembled by hand—4 hours for the small sculptures, 8 for the lamps. It's a process of patience, turning data into form, light into presence.
But there is always the unknown—serendipity as the final collaborator. Acrylic, the original material of choice, proved elusive. But by accident, Kozlowski turned to paper—a print lying nearby from a previous test—and it became the unexpected key to unlocking the structure of these pieces. Bokeh is a collection shaped as much by memory as by material. In film school, Kozlowski toyed with time, pulling apart its threads through the camera lens. And when a frosted acrylic sheet, sent to him by mistake, arrived, it triggered something—a return to that fractured world of shifting light and softened edges, where perception bends and blurs. This, too, found its way into Bokeh, a mistake turned method.
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The artist
Michael Kozlowski (mpkoz)
b. Kalispell, MT
Lives and works in Seattle, WA
Michael Kozlowski (mpkoz) is an American media artist and designer based in Seattle. His artistic practice revolves around real-time graphics, mixed reality, and interactivity. He explores the evolving landscape of digital media as it transitions from two to three dimensions, incorporating live or prerecorded two-dimensional video and physical interaction, processing and transforming them in real time. Kozlowski's work encompasses video, digital sculptures, and software applications. He has exhibited internationally, with notable presentations in Mexico City, London, Berlin, Buenos Aires, New York, and Los Angeles. Michael Kozlowski pursued his education at the School of Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California.
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