Project Atrium: Ryan Rasmussen

Ryan Rasmussen is a multidisciplinary artist whose work operates at the intersection of architecture, installation, and electronic media. Working with extruded aluminum, acrylic, projection mapping, and interactive systems, he constructs large-scale sculptural frameworks that interrogate the structural and perceptual logic of built environments.

Glitch: Architecture Undone, to be presented at the Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville, will consist of two interconnected structural systems. A freestanding tower of extruded aluminum and acrylic, rising approximately twenty-five feet from the atrium floor, will act as “host” to a secondary material accumulation: raw wood scraps, industrial piping, backlit translucent panels, cable assemblies, and found material in states of partial tension. The two systems intersect in the middle zone of the atrium, producing an ambiguity fundamental to the work: it becomes impossible to determine whether the structure is assembling upward or collapsing downward, whether it is being built or being taken apart. This ambiguity is the architectural operation of the glitch.

The installation draws inspiration from Vladimir Tatlin's unrealized 1920s Monument to the Third International –the utopian structure considered a seminal piece of Modern Art, that has continued to inspire artists, designers and architects. Just as Tatlin's Tower reached for the sky but remained earthbound, our digital aspirations often collide with the limitations of our physical world. We confront a paradox of our age: the relentless pursuit of digital perfection juxtaposed with the beautiful impermanence of our material existence. The glitching, shifting structure at the heart of the installation becomes a powerful metaphor for our contemporary existence – constantly in flux, simultaneously solid and ephemeral. Ultimately, this project aims to leave visitors with a profound sense of our entanglement with technology – neither fully separate from it nor entirely subsumed by it.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Rasmussen’s installations have been exhibited internationally, including at Mathaf: Arab Museum of Modern Art in Doha, CICA Museum in South Korea, and Kyoto Cultural House in Japan. His most recent large-scale work, "Vibrant Matter" (2024), was presented in a solo exhibition at 3S Artspace in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, employing the same material vocabulary and fabrication methods that inform the current project. Rasmussen holds an MFA from the University of Iowa and is currently Associate Professor of Intermedia at Elon University.

LEARN MORE >>

Vibrant Matter

Rasmussen’s Vibrant Matter stands as a response to the blurring line between virtual reality and the physical world. This artwork's structural core simultaneously serves as the work's foundation and container, aiding in the creation of the work's fragmented digital elements. The title of the work is inspired by Jane Bennet's philosophical theory that agency exists not just within human beings, but in the vibrant matter of objects themselves. The interactive digital elements of Rasmussen's piece invite viewers to take part in the live reiterations of the work. A digital eye within the structure follows human movement, allowing viewers to become a part of the work's non-static nature. Vibrant Matter is a meditation on both the intentional and unconscious participation of humanity in the rapid advancement of virtual realms.

Learn more about Vibrant Matter.

© Ryan Rasmussen Vibrant Matter, Courtesy of the artist

Cut From the Stuff of Moons

Cut From the Stuff of Moons reinterprets the Tower of Babel as a contemporary visual codec—an architectural syntax where meaning is continuously constructed and dispersed. Existing between material presence and luminous projection, the work explores the tension between a unified visual language and the plurality that inevitably follows. Within a geometric lattice, backlit images assert a vibrant materiality while simultaneously exposing their fluidity and capacity to extend beyond physical boundaries. At a time when the virtual often eclipses the tangible, the work invites viewers to move beyond representation and become co-participants in meaning-making.

Learn more about Cut From the Stuff of Moons.

© Ryan Rasmussen Cut From the Stuff of Moons, Courtesy of the artist

Mycelial Muscle

In Rasmussen's Mycelial Muscle, man-made engineering and nature communicate a universal message of decay and regeneration. With mushrooms sporadically blooming out of a Ferrari engine, this sculpture references the inherent struggle between nature and technology. While symbolizing nature, these mushrooms evoke a sense of transformation as they embody the natural world's tendency to profoundly affect everything within it. This sculpture invites viewers to consider the temporality of technology, despite its relentless advance continuing alongside the inevitability of natural cycles.

Learn more about Mycelial Muscle.

© Ryan Rasmussen Mycelial Muscle, Courtesy of the artist