Ian Cheng is taking part in The K11 Art Foundations first major project in China, ‘After Us’ in partnership with the New Museum, New York. Curated by Lauren Cornell, from the New Museum with support from Chinese curator Buoying Chen. After Us looks at the original personae that artists are animating: ones that amplify current social and emotional conditions and speculate on potential future states. With the rise of artificial intelligence, the social web and gaming, the process of adopting newly invented personae is now a common part of popular culture and daily life. Stand-ins for the self, for feelings and products, and for values and beliefs have expanded our lives and sense of possibility. In Ian Cheng’s mixed-reality simulation Emissary Forks For You (2016), participants are led through the gallery by an animated shiba inu whose verbal commands are not subtle in positioning listeners as her pets.

Image: Ian Cheng, Emissary Forks For You, 2016