An emissary is defined as a person sent on a mission, usually secret, as an ambassador or diplomatic representative. Artist Ian Cheng, with his technologically elaborate art simulations that make up “Emissaries,” being presented at MoMA PS1 from April 9 to Sept. 25, has inadvertently positioned himself as special agent to the art world. 18 MARCH 2 0 1 7 EXPLORE YOUR BORO An Emissary in the Art World Immerse yourself in a “video game that plays itself” at MoMA PS1, where an artist’s trilogy of simulations will be shown. By LORA GRILLO Cheng’s assignment: to test our perceptions and how we connect emotionally to a changing environment. “What I’m trying to do in ‘Emissaries’ is stage a fight between agents governed by narrative goals and agents governed by reactive instincts,” Cheng said. “I’m trying to get you to see stories as an influencing force in an ecosystem on the same level that gravity, heat and time are influencing forces. “Emissaries,” he added, “is a trilogy of simulations about cognitive evolution, past and future, and the ecological conditions that shape it. It is composed of three interconnected episodes, each centered on the life of an emissary who is caught between unraveling old realities and emerging weird ones.” The exhibition is curated by Peter Eleey with associate Jocelyn Miller. For those unfamiliar with the artistic concept of simulations, Cheng’s work looks like an animation projected onto a wall. The graphics are similar to those in a video game. But unlike in a movie, what happens is not predetermined; and unlike in a video game, no one is “playing” it. Instead, the beings in the simulation act according to a program that Cheng created. “A viewer can observe it like they observe nature, but they do not directly manipulate it,” Cheng said. “Like nature, they can take pleasure in the unfolding indeterminacy of the ecosystems, or they can choose to closely follow a character
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