Empty Network

Empty Network reflects on digital technology's role in facilitating cultural memory while engaging with Zen Buddhist metaphysics. The visual component features a 3D model of the "Iron Seated Buddha" from the National Museum of Korea. The audio and visuals are manipulated through control signals derived from machine learning analysis of the Heart Sutra, where the text is converted into numerical embeddings. This technical process was developed in collaboration with machine learning engineer Sohyun Shin.

In the work, the 3D Buddha exists as both "empty" (a digital reconstruction of a physical object) and paradoxically "non-empty," as its manifestation depends on the museum's digitization efforts and the broader infrastructure of the Internet. This interplay speaks directly to the Buddhist concept of dependent-arising: the Buddha, the piece, and the technology are interdependent, with none existing in isolation.