Introduction

When I recently revisited the outputs of the enigmatic generative art project Tur (a collaboration by pseudonymous artist Ganchitecture and Tender's Adam Berninger), I found myself instantly recalling a comment Adam made about liminal spaces some time ago. Since then, this perspective has been colouring my perception of the artwork.

Let me share it with you!

Imagery and Inspirations

Tur presents an array of 444 mostly black and white images of mysterious, solitary towers in desolate landscapes. Ganchitecture and Adam Berninger employed an AI system to generate these images based on a diverse array of hand-drawn architectural sketches, with influences from megaliths, ziggurats, industrial era functional buildings, Brutalist edifices, the Modernist architecture of Brasilia, and even the fantastical walking cities envisioned by Ron Herron.

Ganchitecture's collaboration with Orr Kislev on MONOLITH for fx(hash) serves as an influential predecessor to Tur. It offers a glimpse into the interplay of rough, empty environments with the enigmatic presence of monolithic structures, yet these structures were only alluded to by blank spaces. As Tur now shifts the spotlight to the towers themselves, it forms a complementary puzzle piece, completing the artistic narrative initiated by its predecessor.

The outputs of Tur often make us stumble upon the lack of a discernible purpose of the buildings we see. Peculiar architectural details feel out of place, and the placement of these buildings in rough, inaccessible landscapes that show no other signs of human settlement makes one wonder about how and why they were built in that specific spot.

An Unconscious Resonance

It was my experience with the iconic video game classics Half Life and Shadow of the Colossus that made me connect Tur to the concept of liminal spaces, though. These games' haunting environments and the solitary towers depicted in Tur resonated with me in an unexpected, almost unconscious manner. The immersive worlds mirrored the enigmatic essence captured in Tur, inviting me to explore it through this specific lens.

Half Life (especially Half Life 2) derives its feelings of liminality not only through its excellent storytelling and the ongoing theme of transitions between realities, but also to a large degree from the brilliant virtual architecture of the (mostly) deserted environments that we explore alongside protagonist Gordon Freeman.

Contrary to this, the fog-filled fantasy landscapes of Shadow of the Colossus and the game's central element of hunting down giants from a bygone era provide a gripping, melancholic narrative that puts a focus on the reflection on the passing of time and on the inevitable shifts in power that we, as the player, bring about.

Tur touches on both of these concepts in fascinating ways.

The Liminal Spaces of Tur

Given the artist Ganchitecture's name and previous portfolio, it's unsurprising that the project focuses on architecture. The title Tur derives from the common root for the word "tower" in many European languages ("tur" in Old English, "tour" in French, "Turm" in German, etc.), and the images show the word's complex history. While the architectural influences shine through, the AI-designed buildings retain an enigmatic quality, hinting at the involved AI's intriguing ignorance of purpose.

This lack of purpose is woven into the artwork's narrative, and the aspect of temporal liminality and impending change becomes evident. Drawing from the reference to the German word "Tür" (for door), we discover that the towers symbolize anachronistic remnants, embodying a groundbreaking shift in the past of a fictional world's balance of power that it passed through. The historical importance of towers as symbols of power and control contradicts modern views of a more egalitarian and inclusive society, yet the project's narrative alludes to an unresolved conflict between mankind and machines that lead to the resurgence of these towers.

Both of these aspects—the lack of a discernible purpose and the allusion to a state of unresolved, impending changes—are often mentioned qualities of a current view of liminal spaces.

Neighborhood Conversations

Even though there might be no obvious inspiration, there is an overarching dialogue between Tur and other artworks that deal with the same topic.

I had to think of James Turrell's ongoing land art project Roden Crater that, instead of erecting towers, excavates its uncanny, unfamiliar spaces down into the earth, into the cone of the crater. The fact that only a selected few collectors have so far been able to officially see it from the inside adds a sense of mystery to it that mirrors what I feel when looking at Tur's Towers.

In the realm of digital art, I felt reminded of the surreal, mind–boggling illustrations by Ali Kazmaz or the series of confusingly intricate Monoliths by Zaki Jawhari (Urbandrone).

And (not surprisingly), the world of generative art holds many possible artworks that could enter the conversation. Hollow by Jacek Markusiewicz shares a focus on architecture and a preoccupation with the topic of liminality and the limits of human aspirations with Tur and is one of the iconic generative artworks of the past years (you can read a write–up that I did about it on Mastodon or Twitter, and I hope to release it as an extended text soon).

Looking beyond the concept of liminal spaces, the towers in Tur seem to draw us in with a familiar narrative power, much like the many mythical and fictional towers that have served as focal points for archetypal transformative journeys of heroes. In this regard, I love Stephen King's The Dark Tower, where the namesake tower serves as the essence of all existence, or the tower that the classic Game Boy game Final Fantasy Legend is set in and that players explored passionately decades ago.

Even without a hero's quest taking place within them, towers have long been portrayed as catalysts for change, as evident in the biblical legend of the construction of the Tower of Babel.

Conclusion

While the parallels I draw to video game classics may be a personal reflection, they illustrate the timeless nature of themes and ideas, transcending the limitations of different artistic mediums. The fact that the images of Tur have been created using AI adds a meta layer of liminality. It shows how our world is at a threshold to something new, inexplicable that might already be beyond our control.

Tur is a captivating artwork that combines the themes of liminality, architectural evolution, and the profound impact of AI into a harmonious artistic expression. Through its lonely, deserted towers, Tur makes us ponder the nature of time and change, while its AI-generated essence underscores the very liminality of our technologically-driven world.
 As we move forward into a future where AI technology becomes commonplace, future artworks will need to find new ways to captivate us beyond the initial allure of grappling with meaning and purpose that the early AI models show. Nonetheless, Tur remains a beautiful and evocative artwork, serving as a catalyst for reflecting on life's perpetual state of flux and the intriguing possibilities that AI-driven art presents.