In his solo project Probes, Wesley Meuris casts a new glance at the current human condition and the multifaceted ways in which our daily lives are constantly being mediated by machines. Our perception of space has become increasingly technology-driven through the use of ingenious devices such as satellites, drones and robotic vehicles. Devices that testify to the human ingenuity, but that also put our place in the universe into perspective. Meuris’ abstract sculptures or architectural objects are visual echoes of the countless satellites that drift around in space, busily surveying planet Earth. It is clear that, apart from gaining scientific knowledge, there are also military-industrial, political and economic motives at play.

In the current exhibition, Wesley Meuris addresses the uniqueness of the “vertical gaze” and the way it affects our view of both man and the world. In our upward gaze, we also project that which makes us human, all too human. Take, for instance, the way in which the cool, machine-like interior of space capsules has been adapted to suit domestic decorum. Meuris’ abstract visual vocabulary is rooted in that of Modernism, yet it simultaneously probes for a more human connection via seemingly trivial details such as loose cables and fragmented organisms. Probes is a spatial constellation of capsules and panels that encourages the visitor to ask fundamental questions: does this techno-scientific language change the human scale in relation to the universe, and how? Is man becoming an abstract entity or is abstraction linked to our current condition of existence? The “cosmic caravan” (Vlad Ionescu) is not only the result of a crystal-clear, objectifying gaze, it is also a visual scenography that seeks meaning in a computerised world.