"Blas is a smart artist who is not served by this vein of digital creep-show maximalism. You cannot out-creep A.I. at this moment, and attempts to do so make the subject feel less, not more, threatening. Aesthetically the installation looks and feels like a tribute to the Jared Leto movie Tron: Ares (2025), which is not a complement."
"Cooper's oddball talking sculptures use A.I. to generate disjointed voice fragments, synthesized from the social media trail left by dead artists. Even though you have no idea whose life you are hearing about and whether or not the little biographical narratives connect to anything real, these ghostly voices provoke sparks of real emotion."
The 2026 Whitney Biennial resists easy categorization as a slow-burn exhibition with interconnected themes. Among its most significant works are those addressing artificial intelligence. Zach Blas's ground-floor installation attempts digital maximalism but fails to effectively convey threat through aesthetic creepiness. Conversely, Cooper Jacoby's AI-powered sculptures generate synthesized voice fragments from deceased artists' social media, creating emotionally resonant experiences that provoke deeper questions about technology's relationship to artistic self-expression. The exhibition also incorporates elements of contemporary nostalgia aesthetics, reflecting broader trends in current art practice.
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