Freja Andersson

”For ten years
I filmed war memorials
performed at graves, marble and memories

Saved the surfaces
in my bodily memory
the numbers and names, in my books
the people passing by, in my cameras

Then, in 10 seconds,
you created a similar scene
at my prompt

A space where
my body will never move around
feel the cold stone
learn how to walk the stairs

There is no smell
no sound
nothing to touch

Repeat!”

In the multi-media installation I suggest the title “In the Absence of Stone” or “Fragments of Forgotten Grounds”, Freja Andersson examines our collective public representation of war, using AI as a tool in the process. This exploration also delves into the relationship with the tool itself, and how it’s used.

The installation consists of three intertwined artworks running simultaneously, each looping at its own pace:

In the two-channel video work A war memorial in Europe, in the style of high-contrast black-and-white, images of real and AI-generated spaces for war remembrance alternate in a stream where AI’s dreams and hallucinations intermingle with human presence. This work explores the aesthetics and politics of monuments, exposing their inherent power dynamics. It plays with the idea of memorials as fragments of memory and history, both real and AI-generated, existing in a space where physical grounds and digital landscapes blur and are easily forgotten or transformed.

Why juxtapose AI-generated war monuments with filmed ones? presents diverse responses generated by various AI tools and models. Each response invites the viewer to consider the implications of AI's interpretation of memory and history, questioning how technology reshapes our understanding of memorialization. Through this juxtaposition, the work challenges us to explore the evolving narrative of remembrance in a digital age.

In the two-channel sound work For My AI Clones, eight AI-cloned voices of the artist echo her thoughts, drawing us into her notes and hallucinations throughout the creative process. This auditory realm immerses the listener in a surreal exploration of identity and replication, blurring the line between human and machine. The cloned voices weave a tapestry of memory and experience, inviting the audience to engage with the complexities of authorship and the influence of AI on personal narratives.

The distinction between AI and human experience is blended in this contested realm of creative control.

About Freja Andersson

Freja Andersson moves between physical, virtual, digital, and memory spaces. Between epochs and frames on a roll of film. Her body, with all its senses, is her tool – constantly discovering in interaction with camera, pen, projector, keyboard and software. The outcome, with all its shifting parts, intertwines in installations, performances or multi-channel works, where details are, and are not, interchangeable. She often works collaboratively with other artists, and the audience may play an active role. Sometimes, the workshop format or text broaden the context.

Freja holds an MFA from Stockholm University of The Arts and works from her studio in Malmö. She has exhibited at Studio Galleria in Warsaw, Moderna Museet in Malmö, Fotografiska Stockholm, and Skissernas Museum in Lund.

Visit Freja Andersson's artist page - www.frejaandersson.se