MFA Thesis Exhibition Set for Display in Fine Arts Center Gallery

Courtesy of Jonathan Cromer

Untitled: Swarm-Migration, 2016

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas Department of Art is pleased to announce void loop ( ) {, the MFA Thesis Exhibition of Jonathan Cromer, on display April 4-8 in the Fine Arts Center Gallery.

The Department of Art will host a closing reception on Friday, April 8, at 5:30 p.m. in the Fine Arts Center Gallery. All events are free and open to the public.

void loop ( ) { is an exhibition installation composed of sculptural, video and sound works that focus on survival through a series of non-linear events. Cromer uses metaphors that reference power, predation, migration, destruction and renewal, with each piece drawing parallels between humanity and the natural world. 

The coding function of the exhibition title “void loop” commands the microcontroller to infinitely loop all code following the function; in essence, mimicking the repetitions of a pulsing heart. The repeated code surrounding the “void loop” title is a basic call and response serial communication between the microcontroller and the sensors. Each piece in the exhibition is based on this action of summoning and responding.

Imagery and references used are sourced from Cromer's personal history, observations, and experiences. The work explores his inquiry in the blurred boundary between nature and artifice, inspired by the writings of Baudrillard on the “Simulacra and Simulation,” in which an image or object no longer references the original and becomes something new, entirely separate from the original.

Combining technology including Arduino, motors, sensors, and other computer components with found organic materials has allowed Cromer to fuse the natural with the synthetic and address the delicate balance between the two. An example of this in the exhibition is the simulation of a locust swarm that uses an organic log as a background for a holographic video projection of a grasshopper changing in color from green to brown. This paired with sound and other visuals provide partial information for the beginning stages of a swarm. Cromer then relies on the viewer to make his or her own connections with the work to complete the event within them. This ultimately creates a sense of artificiality and loss.