Optical Animal, co-founded by Max Nova, is going to be the featured artist for Times Square Arts' Midnight Moment series in October.
Max Nova is an Adjunct Instructor of “Live Video Performance Art” at New York University’s Open Arts Program. Optical Animal is a Brooklyn based digital arts collective founded by creative duo Max Nova and JR Skola. Since 2008, they have found a home in creating unique experiences that employ new ideas and technology, while remaining firmly rooted in the ancient human love for storytelling. Optical Animal has presented video and projection art at events and festivals around the world including Mutek IMG in Montreal, Art Basel in Miami, Adelaide Festival in Australia, NXNW in Toronto, and the Westbeth Gallery in New York City. Work by Optical Animal has been commissioned by the Museum of Modern Art, the New World Symphony, Microsoft, Intel, Sony, Calvin Klein, Christian Louboutin, and the New York Times, among others. Named after a vision his father had in a sweat lodge, Max Coyote Nova has been telling stories since childhood. In addition to creating both narrative and abstract video artwork, Nova composes and performs classical piano music and dabbles in quantum physics as a hobby.
A new version of their project, Projection Napping, is going to be exhibited on electronic billboards throughout Times Square nightly from 11:57pm to midnight all month in October. "The concept for Projection Napping grew out of a desire to locate a more human, and more interpersonal realm for the medium of projection mapping. Jumping off of a play on words, the project dives into an exploration of sleep, the need for rest, and the line we draw between private and public space. We invite the audience to contemplate sleep as a universal, basic need shared by all living creatures, and to celebrate the pure joy that is taking a nap." - Optical Animal
Photo credit Optical Animal
