1. Curated by Flavia S. Zúñiga-West
Don Bergland, Mahfuzul Hasan Bhuiyan, Marlon Paul Bruin, John Clowder,
Laurie Curtin, Karl Eschenbach, Zoran Ljubojevic, Maya Just Maya, Lona Moody,
Aiba Takanori, Sander Terbruggen, Shea Wilkinson
2012 and Beyond: Charting the Future
March 15, 2012 - May 1, 2012

2. T
2nd Place
John Clowder, Gene Play
Collage, Mixed Media
he uncharted future is tomorrow. Despite
schedules and plans, the day’s outcome is
unknown. It is the beauty of not knowing
what tomorrow or 20 years from now
brings where undreamt innovations
become realities that propel human
existence.
We have structured a linear timeline to
differentiate yesterday from today from
tomorrow. We anticipate the following day,
predict its outcome, and dream of places to
explore, people we have yet to meet, and
creations we have yet to make. It is in
being able to dream and mold tomorrow
that made computers, Kindles, and cell
phones morph from being figments of
imagination in science fiction novels to
everyday necessities.
The majority of early, prolific science
fiction novels of the 20th century did not go
beyond 2001, and 2012 has been dubbed
the ‘ End of Days’ by the predictions of
Nostradamus and Mayan calendars.
However, actualizing our future can occur
in infinite ways, from novels, to
conversations to art. 2012 and Beyond:
Charting the Future focuses on
speculations for the future and exploring
worlds, technologies & movements we have
yet to create. It approaches science
fiction through the lens of speculative
fiction, observing technology and
environments that evolved from dreams
into reality.

3. The 12 artists in this exhibition
have provoked us to see past
predictions and into the future
through an international lens.
From Bangladesh, Japan, The
United States, Italy, and Canada,
we view the possibilities in the
universe, from artificial
intelligence, planetary life cycles,
and cityscapes of the future,
extraterrestrial breeding and
spaceships. They frighten,
tantalize and speculate what
tomorrow could bring.
The three prize winners of this
exhibition, through various
mediums—digital art, collage, and
sculpture—conjure anticipation,
instigate ethical dilemmas, and
provoke discussion of our
unknown future. 2012 and Beyond
is proud to celebrate the work of
Best in Show winner: Karl
Eschenbach; 2nd place winner:
John Clowder; and 3rd Place
winner: Aiba Takanori.
3rd Place
Aiba Takanori, Hawaiian Pineapple Resort
Steel with mixed media

4. Award Winners
Best in Show
Karl Eschenbach
Alas, Poor William
Digital Art on velvet fine art paper
Alas, Poor William is haunting. Eschenbach’s digital work startles his viewer and instigates
existentialist dilemmas of artificial intelligence and how their creation and distribution would
complicate, threaten, and obscure the meaning of humanity. Eschenbach’s title is poignant,
referencing Shakespeare’s Hamlet and the mortality of human existence. His subject, a fleshless,
metal cyborg, stands in an industrial environment gazing at a human skull, unable to fathom our
corporeal existence.
Science fiction novels and films flood the viewer’s mind such as Phillip K. Dick’s novel, Do Andriods
Dream of Electric Sheep with the Tyrell Corporation’s slogan “ more human, than human,” provokes
intense personal reflection and fear.
2nd Place
John Clowder
Gene Play
Collage, Mixed media
John Clowder’s work is witty, absurd, and intriguing. Gene Play conjures anticipation of the misuse
and use of genetic modification. Clowder’s piece addresses the science of genetics and juxtaposes
the rigid system of inheritance with a playful depiction of geometric shapes, concrete blocks, and
animals. With the advent of genetic engineering, splicing, and cloning, Gene Play critiques the
supposedly systematic order of genes which is no longer true, as science has allowed us to reshape
genes on a whim.
3rd Place
Aiba Takanori
Hawaiian Pineapple Resort
Steel with mixed media
Takanori is a master craftsman who utilizes the medium of the bonsai tree and asks his viewer to
contemplate the role of popular culture in our everyday life. His work is original, precise, and
captivating. Warholian in his use of Hawaiian pineapple brand, Takanori fuses the cultural
traditions and aesthetics of bonsai with pop art, asking his viewer to consider a future where we live
and vacation in consumer products.
Taking into the account of the methodical and precise art of bonsai trimming, his work deftly
presents a future where consumerism has consumed contemplation and product has consumed
individual expression. The future is defined not by our accomplishments but rather the products
that in it.

5. Infinity Art Gallery honors two artists with the
awards and reflections from our Founder,
Charly Swing, and our Director, Julie
Weismann. 2012 and Beyond is pleased to
announce the Founder’s Choice award winner:
Don Bergland; and Director’s Choice award
winner: Shea Wilkinson.
Flavia S. Zúñiga-West
Los Angeles, 2012
“Don Bergland's vision for "Ministry of
Destiny" was appropriately created as a digital
image. The viewer is invited to wonder whose
is the mysterious hand pulling back the
luscious curtain for the performance where the
only version of humanity on this stage of life is
a disconnected and encapsulated replication of
a child human peering out at the curious rats,
and attempting to engage only through a
monitor. Captivating and wonderfully eerie.”
- Charly Swing
Founder, Infinity Art Gallery
“Wilkinson’s quilting is outstanding. With
intricate patterns and skilled technique of free
motion quilting, she uses the sewing machine
to depict visual narratives and explore
documentations of close encounters. Her
detailed work is entrancing and unique.”
- Julie Weismann
Director, Infinity Art Gallery
Director’s Choice Award
Shea Wilkinson, Mission Europa
Cotton fabric & batting, polyester thread, acrylic paint
Founder’s Choice Award
Don Bergland, Ministry of Destiny
Digital Giclee

6. Acknowledgements:
I would like to thank Julie Weismann and Charly Swing for their support of international
artists and independent curators. Special thanks to Daniel Ruiz for his editorial eye.
COVER: Karl Eschenbach, Alas, Poor William
Digital Art on velvet fine art paper
http://www.infinityartgallery.com