BMW Art Club. The future is art in collaboration with the Polish National Opera presents the Polish premiere of the EVOLVER project. Created by the London-based Marshmallow Laser Feast collective, the presented immersive VR experience, through its innovative fusion of art, science and advanced technologies, offers a deep insight into the microcosm of the human body and its connections with the macrocosm of nature. In EVOLVER, the connection between man and the world is the breath - experienced and shown in an unprecedented way. Prominent cultural figures collaborated on the project, including cinema star Cate Blanchett and legendary filmmaker Terrence Malick, as well as featuring music by Jonny Greenwood, Meredith Monk, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Howard Skempton and Jon Hopkins.

In its latest fourth edition, BMW Art Club. The Future is Art returns to the Polish National Opera, Teatr Wielki to introduce the EVOLVER project to Polish audiences. EVOLVER addresses the key issue for the entire series: how new technologies can expand both the artistic capabilities of artists and our understanding of the modern world and our place in it.EVOLVER is a multimedia installation-show, during which the viewer experience is divided into three stages.

• EVOLVER VR show begins with an invitation to meditation. In a specially designed relaxation space, visitors to the exhibition have the opportunity to relax and are introduced to the reality of the event.
• Meditation is a prelude to the main part of the exhibition, where viewers participate in a twenty-minute VR session against the background of a monumental, large-format video projection.
• The third part of EVOLVER is conceived as an epilogue and offers a space for reflection on the immersive experience. It takes the form of a gallery, presenting digital works created by Marshmallow Laser Feast artists, as well as texts and videos to expand the exhibition’s narrative.

Marshmallow Laser Feast is a London-based collective founded by artists from different disciplines to experiment with the interdisciplinary possibilities offered to contemporary artists by new technologies. MLF is one of the world’s leading creators of immersive experiences, multimedia projects and VR experiences. The  artists collaborate with cultural institutions (including the Barbican Art Center, Saatchi Gallery), theatre companies (the Royal Shakespeare Company) and festivals (Tribeca). MLF’s diverse projects share a common denominator — a reflection on how new technologies such as robotics, dynamic light sculptures, complex laser systems or environments built in virtual reality are able to enrich the aesthetic experience of viewers, but also enhance their understanding of the world and the relationships people enter into with the world.

The BMW Art Club. The future is art project is part of the brand’s more than 50-year tradition of global commitment to patronage, support and creation of culture. BMW is known worldwide for its partnerships with leading art institutions and events, such as the Tate Modern museum in London, the La Scala opera house in Milan and the Art Basel art fair. The brand’s philosophy is founded on the belief in creativity, creative freedom and art, understood as the areas where new ideas, visions of the future and progress are born. These are also the underlying principles of BMW Art Club. The future is art. The project was launched by BMW in 2018 as an artistic platform for experimentation, combining art and new technologies — a space of possibilities for outstanding multidisciplinary artists. BMW Art Club. The Future is Art takes place in the rhythm of annual editions. The subsequent editions of the project are carried out in collaboration with Poland’s major cultural institutions, including the Polish National Opera, with which BMW Poland has initiated a number of diverse and multifaceted activities, the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra in Katowice, and Warsaw’s Nowy Teatr.

Executive producers: EDWARD R. PRESSMAN & TERRENCE MALICK
Directed by: MARSHMALLOW LASER FEAST

Music: JON HOPKINS, JONNY GREENWOOD (RADIOHEAD), MEREDITH MONK, JÓHANN JÓHANNSSON & HOWARD SKEMPTON
Curator: STACH SZABŁOWSKI

Executive producers: NICOLE SHANAHAN, CATE BLANCHETT, COCO FRANCINI, ANDREW UPTON, NELL WHITLEY, MIKE JONES, PAULA PAIZES, RENÉ PINNELL
Producers: SAM PRESSMAN, ANTOINE CAYROL
Co-producers: GUILLAUME BRUNET, MORGAN BOUCHET
Line producers: MARTIN JOWERS, EMMA HAMILTON
In collaboration with: NATAN SINIGAGLIA, JAMES BULLEY, HENRIK OPPERMANN, DAISY LAFARGE, FRAUNHOFER MEVIS, ALLEN INSTITUTE FOR CELL SCIENCE, JENNIFER GARRISON, KINDA STUDIOS