David Teng Olsen
David Teng Olsen
Associate Professor of Art
Installation view, Q20: Wellesley Faculty Artists, Davis Museum at Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA.
Artist’s Statement
Survival Robot is a sculptural installation that explores themes such as autonomy, collectivity, apocalyptic disaster and immortality along the East/West axis. The project has been conceived as a self-powering survival exoskeleton that mines its own cryptocurrency. The finished sculpture is constructed from wood, plastic, glass, and metal, and is filled with ASIC blockchain mining machines. It is inspired by the Army of the Ming Dynasty, the Terracotta Army, and my family’s experiences during the Cultural Revolution in China. It is a survival suit for the near future. The plans for the entire robot are on a USB drive hidden inside.
2006 MFA, University of Wisconsin Madison
2005 MA, University of Wisconsin Madison
2001 BFA, University of Washington Seattle
https://www.davidtengolsen.com/
David Teng Olsen, Survival Robot, 2020, Wood, glass, steel, enamel, plastic and ASIC miners, Courtesy of the artist.
David Teng Olsen, Survival Robot, 2020, Wood, glass, steel, enamel, plastic and ASIC miners, Courtesy of the artist.
David Teng Olsen, Survival Robot, 2020, Wood, glass, steel, enamel, plastic and ASIC miners, Courtesy of the artist.