Meow Wolf: Fractallage
SXSW – Empire Control Room & Garage, March 12, 2018
Article by Stacey Lovett, Photos Courtesy of Meow Wolf
Santa Fe based art collective, Meow Wolf, brought their immersive art experience to Austin for SXSW 2018. As they branch out their collaboration beyond New Mexico they work hard to maintain their core idea for artists to come together and create something bigger than themselves, uniting a world that often divides itself. This bold artistic statement of their self-proclaimed ‘subversive punk rock’ also accomplishes something not often seen in the arts – they work as a business supporting their artists through employment and providing benefits – a revolutionary concept in itself.
The Austin live art installation – Fractallage – briefly took root at the Empire Control Room & Garage for one day only their party during the festival. While the more technology-based experiential mediums like virtual reality and even artificial intelligence ran thick at SXSW 18, a lot of counter-response to it was also brought to the table. Meow Wolf presented their own VR piece in addition to Fractallage yet the experience of the latter was one more open to interpretation, ever-changing for each viewer depending on the time of day, personal perspective, and even the instance of music accompanying the space with their own curated DJ set and music showcase. The collective teamed up with Austin-based artists Bild Art and FTBDC Collective to curate a colorful explosion of patterns, textures, lights with various materials forming naturalistic and psychedelic geometric forms, sculptures, and murals throughout the complex. The show included some interactive elements as well as projection mapping and all was constructed to bring the viewer into their own open interpretations and visceral feelings of the art.
As Meow Wolf builds their ideal and grows the business of art for art’s sake, they bring light to their greater purpose of creating an artist’s voice in society and do so by making their own voice and origins known to the general public. The documentary Meow Wolf: Origin Story premiered at this year’s festival and discusses not only the success of their “radical inclusivity” but the struggle to maintain the ideal they’re rooted in without losing sight in the face of their big business ventures.
Meow Wolf’s heavy presence at SXSW 18 not only draws attention to their own objective and aspirations but serves as a statement in the bigger picture of the power of art and artistry in collaboration with itself as well as other mediums. As the role of art in society is becoming more widely accepted and valued, its presence both documents the current world and opens up a deeper emotional assessment to viewers beginning a conversation that might not otherwise be reached. In commercializing this experience, a fine line exists between maintaining just enough business to support the greater goal of the art and spread this message without losing sight of the goal, and Meow Wolf thus far represents the revolutionary force behind this new passage of art.
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