Auriea Harvey 
'The Mystery v5' (2021)
3D Model (Variable)
657 x 524 px (minimum)
Edition: 200
Digital Version 01


About The Work:
This object has been created in the context of Feral File. The Bardo: Unpacking the Real is an international exhibition featuring artists from Vienna, Rome, Los Angeles, and New York that quantifies the ephemeral as it relates to the liminal landscape of sculptural art in the digital age. The exhibit examines, 1) the real and (un)real in digital sculpture; 2) questions about what it means to view and collect digital sculptures; and 3) the role of NFTs (in this case, Bitmark NFTs) in the creation of the featured artists’ work.

Created as a talisman to help us refocus on what matters most in our lives, Auriea Harvey’s “The Mystery [v5-dv1]” is a digital sculpture that also serves as a memento mori—a type of still-life from Western art history that is a reminder of both beauty and death. The discrete images that make up “The Mystery [v5-dv1]” can be seen as symbolic; for example a skull (bone), a face (nature), a rose (beauty), and a braid (death). The composite image of the sculpture rotates in a timeless way, as if it is waiting for the viewer to “use” the object (which may be digitally printed by the collector) to give it a new life. Multiple file formats also allow the purchaser to make use of the sculpture in the ways that feel most meaningful to them. Notably, Harvey’s work is a form of self-portrait; she has used her own face as a basis for the sculpture, thereby inserting the face of an African-American woman into the an art historical narrative dominated for centuries by white men and creating new allegories with this refiguration, thus updating sculpture both digitally and socially.

About The Artist:

AURIEA HARVEY
b. 1971, Indianapolis, IN
Lives and works in Rome, Italy

Auriea Harvey is an artist producing simulations and sculptures that bridge physical and digital space. After plumbing the depths of net art and video games, she has now turned her attention to 3D modeling, printing, and mixed reality. The work is presented as sculptures that blend digital and handmade production. Harvey is half of the artist duo Entropy8Zuper!/Tale of Tales/Song of Songs, known for their pioneering works in Internet art, video games, and XR. Harvey’s work can be found in the permanent collections of the Walker Art Center, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, MUDAM Luxembourg, and Rhizome’s Net Art Anthology. Her videogames and VR works have had international success, including exhibitions at the Tinguely Museum, Basel; the Victoria & Albert Museum, London; the New Museum, New York; Brooklyn Academy of Music, New York; and ZKM, Karlsruhe. Harvey is the recipient of a Creative Capital grant and a winner of the Independent Games Festival Nuovo Award. She is represented by bitforms gallery, NYC.

The Collector Receives:

1. A GLB file for web browser  and Android device viewing. This is the display copy of 'The Mystery v5' (2021). This file retains all textures and materials. 

2. A USDZ file for archival purposes. This file retains all textures and materials and displays AR on iOS devices. 

3. A high resolution STL file for 3D printing. Suitable for FFF or SLA printers.

4. A high resolution VRML/WRL/X3D file with 1000000 polycount with the texture baked as the model's vertex colors.

5. An archival DAE file  of 137472 polycount 

6. An OBJ file of 137472 polycount

7. Index.html file to post the model on a web server.

8. Google model viewer (https://github.com/google/model-viewer)
Used for viewing 3D model in web browser.

9. Single screenshot image and single render in PNG format to represent the work on a platform or for documentation

10. Additional environment image file in HDR format

11. PDF booklet describing use of all the files

12. A PDF Artist Statement

12. This TXT file document


Preventative Conservation Notes:

Although it is essential for this version of 'The Mystery v1' to be viewed in a browser, no specific browser is essential to the work, nor the model viewer. The only essential element of 'The Mystery v1' is the 3D Model, with all retained features, as seen in GLB file. 

Collectors are encouraged to retain a full digital collector's package for this work, obtained from Feral File at the time of purchase. Collectors are encouraged to download and preserve the digital collector's package on at least two external hard drives of their choice, stored in two separate geographic locations. Files should be migrated to new external hard drives every 3-5 years.

Display:

Collectors should be mindful of all components included in this package, so that they may avoid distorting the work. Under no circumstances can the file(s) contents be edited. 

Copyright:

The Artist or their estate retains copyright of the work, and of all images of the work. The Artist retains the raw files.

Transfer of Ownership:

See the terms and conditions of Feral File. http://feralfile.com
