The River

Aitken’s artwork The River (2022) consists of three figures standing together on a desertscape, gazing towards a central core. In The River, commissioned for Noor Riyadh, the artwork takes the shape and form of human figures that are void of identity, regionality and definition. Inside these forms we see light, movement and energy. The figures appear together like a landscape of the mind running parallel to our physical landscape.

The three shimmering statues, composed of transparent white resin with hollow interiors, are filled with glowing lights and emit a soundtrack. The pulsing lights brighten the space with an ever-changing, dynamic dance. Echoing through the installation is an audio composition that Aitken composed that moves in sync with the light, creating a mesmerizing multi-sensory experience.

Aitken remarks “We live in a new age, one of total connectedness, in which screen space has become ostensibly equivalent to the actual environment.” This artwork explores how we navigate a world of continuous change, where we may go and how we can face the future. This bizarre developmental change propels us into unknown territory, a new frontier for which we are unprepared. It is a visualization of the passages of ideas, pulses of emotion and surges of connectivity. Individuals are in many ways singular like a beacon or lighthouse, yet without connections and dialogs we are isolated. This work explores the connecting point of community and the act of exchange.