Henry Driver: Immersive Responses

Henry Driver: Immersive Responses

Interdisciplinary artist Henry Driver – shortlisted for the Aesthetica Art Prize in 2016 – combines photography, film, digital imagery, games design and sculpture to create innovative artworks, often using VR and AR. Existing at the intersection of art and new media, each explores the speed at which technology is developing, shaping and dominating daily life.

The artist notes: “I find inspiration through current affairs, technology news, articles, texts and research studies. We are continuously becoming deeper immersed in technology, and the replication of this via the immersion of the viewer, is central to the communication and atmosphere of my work.”

2016’s shortlisted piece, entitled Odyssey, is an interactive installation which questions the definitions of virtual space and the illusory aspects of choice and action. It presents an endless hallucinatory dream of an unattainable horizon which the viewer is tasked with reaching. Yet with every action, the dissolving horizon slips further away.

Driver’s work has been showcased across the globe, in diverse locations such as London, Berlin, Melbourne, Copenhagen, Toronto and Sydney. Exhibiting at renowned festivals such as Channels Video Art Festival, Melbourne; MUTEK Festival, Montreal and Ikono on Air Festival, Berlin, the artist has established a dynamic international presence.

Exhibitions at prominent galleries including Tate Liverpool, Tate Britain and Whitechapel Gallery demonstrate the relevance of the subject matter, whilst numerous commissions including Seeing Things: Virtual & Mixed Reality for The Norfolk & Norwich Association for The Blind highlight the responsive nature of the medium.

In 2017, Driver’s Visions was shown in A Latent Reality at The Barbican, London, where the artist took part in the centre’s six-month accelerator programme, alt.barbican, an initiative highlighting innovative practice.

The practitioner has recently been shortlisted for a residency at the V&A, and upcoming events include Forte Festival in Portugal (30 August-2 September), where Driver presents Mimic, which has been showcased in Norwich, London and Montreal. The piece explores perceptions of reality, investigating the capacity of machines to articulate the wider world.

The Aesthetica Art Prize welcomes works across all genres, celebrating both established and emerging artists by pushing the boundaries of innovation. Closing for Entries 31 August. Find out more here.

Credits:
1. Videocube, 2015.
2. Visions, 2017.
3. Odyessy, 2014.
4. Mimic, 2017.