– Shane Guffogg listens to Indian classical music, Gregorian chants, and obscure composers while he paints
– Guffogg created a visual alphabet matching musical chords to colors with a pianist, Anthony Cardella, and an AI researcher, Jonah Lynch
– Music composed based on Guffogg’s paintings was played at the Venice Biennale, creating a profound experience for audiences
Shane Guffogg, an American artist, recently launched an exhibition of 21 paintings at the Venice Biennale. He listens to specific types of music while painting, which sparks his creativity and allows him to be completely present in the moment. Guffogg had a desire to explore what his paintings might sound like and sought out collaboration with experts in AI and quantum computing to help. After creating a visual alphabet that matched musical chords to colors, he collaborated with musician Anthony Cardella and AI researcher Jonah Lynch to convert his paintings into music. Guffogg was moved to tears when he heard the music played back to him, recognizing the compositions he listened to while painting.
Guffogg and Cardella composed music for several paintings, which they have played for audiences worldwide. They held a concert at the Forest Lawn Museum in Los Angeles, where the audience could experience the music alongside the paintings. At the Venice Biennale, Cardella performed a sonata inspired by one of Guffogg’s paintings, leading to an emotional response from the audience who could see the connections between the colors and notes on the canvas. Despite recognizing AI as a tool that requires human oversight, Guffogg credits it with unlocking the musicality of his paintings and enhancing his creative process in a way he couldn’t achieve without it.