in Collaborations , Frieze London , Videos | 18 OCT 23

Sara Sadik’s Imaginary Maps

The French artist explains how she realized her BMW Open Work commission LA POTION (EH), a transformative virtual journey staged inside a BMW i5

in Collaborations , Frieze London , Videos | 18 OCT 23

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‘I like to work with technology to make my work interactive,’ explains Marseille-born artist Sara Sadik in this film exploring her BMW Open Work Commission at this year’s Frieze London, ‘and this was the best context to do it.’

In this film, Sadik explores the themes and impetuses that led her to LA POTION (EH) (2023), a piece that continues her exploration of the emotions of marginalized young men and their transformation. The work follows the moods of an avatar, Neregy, who travels through states of anxiety and melancholy to eventual serenity – all within the setting of a playable video game inside a BMW i5 car. Sadik talks of ‘imagining different maps that the avatar will go into’, while stressing how important it was for her that the work also be visible to passers-by outside Camden Town’s KOKO, where it was staged during Frieze London 2023.

Installation view, LA POTION (EH), Sara Sadik, 2023.

BMW Open Work Curator Attilia Fattori Franchini describes Sadik’s unparalleled ability to conjure ‘emotions within the virtual realm’, while BMW’s Head of Arts & Thought Leadership Collaborations, Hedwig Solis Weinstein, explains how the work exemplifies the project’s ongoing focus on ‘art, innovation, technology and design’.

Discover more about BMW Open Work at frieze.com/bmw-open-work

^{Thumbnail image: Still from Sara Sadik, LA POTION (EH), 2023. Courtesy the artist}