On-site at Flow of time——David Claerbout and Zhou Tao, The Cloud Collection, 2025-26: David Clearbout, the 'confetti' piece (2015-2018), Two-channel video projection, 3D animation (color, silent), 25min18sec ©The Cloud Collection

The 'confetti' piece captures a singular moment extracted from what appears to be a local election in the United States. Thousands of confetti descend from the sky, as  guests start applauding. Set against the backdrop of a neo-classical building, the falling confetti draws all eyes upwards. The particles, descending delicately like transparent flower petals, appear as an index of lightness. Through this material, Claerbout, in a quest for remnants of tactility within the digital realm, unites seem- ingly irreconcilable aspects in the physical world: weightlessness and heaviness. At the heart of the work lies a detail within the scene: the panic reflex of a young  boy. Like a gravitational force, his muted scream counteracts the upward movement and  pulls the objects in the picture back down.

David Claerbout Video still from the 'confetti' piece(2015-2018) Two-channel video projection, 3D animation (color, silent) 25min18sec Courtesy the artist and EstherSchipper, Berlin/Paris/Seoul, ©the artist

Both the qualities of lightness and weight co-exist in their enduring opposition, producing a new, third dimension that truly reveals itself over time (as minutes unfold).

David Claerbout Video still from the 'confetti' piece (2015-2018) Two-channel video projection, 3D animation (color, silent) 25min18sec Courtesy the artist and EstherSchipper, Berlin/Paris/Seoul, ©the artist

For Claerbout digital materiality won't be confined to virtual reality alone; instead, it aspires to permeate numerous aspects of life, altering both optical and material habits. Consequently, lens-based images are already a part of the  past, making way to be replaced by dark optics.

Courtesy the artist and Esther Schipper, Berlin/Paris/Seoul, © the artist

David Claerbout, the 'confetti' piece(creactive manuscript) : [1]Confetti Ghost Series (The Light in History Painting), 2019, Chinese ink and pencil on paper, 66 x 103 cm [2]The Confetti Piece (Confession), 2016, washed ink, felt pen, acrylic pen, and pencil on paper, 46 x 61 cm [3]The Confetti Piece (Dungeon Eye), 2017, washed ink, felt pen, acrylic pen, and pencil on paper, 46 x 61 cm ©David Claerbout