Whether you consider it sculpture, installation, performance or photography, if you see the art of Berndnaut Smilde in person, don’t blink – his artwork only exists for a moment. In a relatively normal room or hallway a small cloud seems to materialize from nothing. As quickly as it emerges, though, the cloud dissipates and is gone. Very carefully controlling factors such as temperature and humidity, Smilde creates these small man-made clouds and photographs them. His work playfully disrupts normal indoor spaces, bringing a part of the visual language of the outdoors within. In this way, his artwork transforms the space it works in, infusing a sense of mystery into otherwise banal spaces.
