Machine Hallucinations — Space : Metaverse NFT Collection at Sotheby’s

Machine Hallucinations — Space : Metaverse is a breathtaking collection from digital media artist Refik Anadol. It includes richly diverse artworks inspired by his studio’s collaboration with NASA JPL which began in early 2018, and his long-term research into the photographic history of space exploration. Using advanced machine learning algorithms trained specifically on photographs of deep space captured by satellites and spacecrafts throughout humanity’s quest to explore its depths, Anadol creates mesmerizing visual speculations of the unknown. The works explore our fascination with the subject while unveiling intricate connections between obscurity and openness through both digital and physical mediums.

Studying the visuals that have been captured by the most comprehensive machines sent to outer space inspired Anadol to contemplate the idea that telescopes keep visual travel journals of spaces where humans cannot yet travel. From this, Anadol and his team members began speculating the possibility that telescopes, which collect so many images in their memories, could dream about the universe.

The entire collection was created by using over two million raw images captured and recorded by the International Space Station, the Hubble and MRO telescopes, providing a vast dataset to train a generative adversarial network. An in-depth look into Refik’s process can be found here: