LaJuné McMillian's solo exhibition centres on "The Portal's Keeper," an avatar of the artist's future self that visitors talk with, powered by a locally hosted language model developed from their own prayers and essays and from prayers collected from visitors.
More than 1,300 of those prayers were collected at the Frist Art Museum in 2024. The language model runs entirely within the installation, without a cloud connection, so conversations stay in the room. LaJuné McMillian calls this approach (re)generative AI.
The title draws on the Ancient Greek autopsia, "to see for oneself," and treats the autopsy as a process of witnessing memory and consciousness. The avatar was built in Unreal Engine, and a living hydroponic sculpture accompanies the virtual environment.
The work can only be experienced in person. In parallel, Pioneer Works in Brooklyn shows their installation Child/ren of the Bloom until 20 December.
