BMW Partners With Artist Alex Israel on an AI-Powered Trip Down Memory Lane

The 2023 edition of Art Basel Miami Beach is in the books and it didn’t quite match the same expectations set up over the past few years. Namely, there wasn’t ‘that’ viral moment that everyone has come to expect with the fair. Think Maurizio Cattelan’s infamous banana installation.

Tucked away at the UBS Collectors Lounge, however, BMW worked closely with Los Angeles-based artist Alex Israel to reveal a unique installation that carried the same level of excitement — and not to mention, invasiveness — of a viral artwork, such as MSCHF’s ATM Leaderboard last year, but done so in a way that was less of a peanut gallery and instead emphasized the actual experience of the visitor.

Entitled REMEMBR, the collaboration invited participants to download an app which utilizes AI to analyze one’s camera roll, creating a reel of the thousands of images and videos that have been stored over the years. The resulting montage displayed across seven monitors shaped in the silhouette of the artist’s head and accompanied by a Daft Punk-sounding score that takes you down a stroll through memory lane that you’ll likely never forget.

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“I was really interested in doing a project with artificial intelligence,” the artist told Hypebeast and a small group of editors upon revealing the installation in Miami. After serendipitously receiving a call from BMW to work on an AI-powered project, Israel met with the automaker’s head designer Domagoj Dukec in Munich, where he took inspiration from BMW’s new all-electric i5 vehicle. At the center console, the car has a curved monitor that utilizes AI to create atmospheric displays that mirror a users’ inputs and also changes and enhances the colors shown throughout the car as a way to “elevate” one’s mood and “experience” while driving.

Israel used the opportunity to dive deeper into the capabilities of AI, particularly when it comes to navigating rudimental tasks, like sorting through the endless stream of information we store on our devices. “My phone is like an external memory bank for my brain,” Israel said, “specifically when it comes to pictures. I thought: ‘What if there was a way to go through all these pictures and look at your life in a way that wasn’t tedious?’”

Compatible with both iPhone and Android devices, REMEMBR was described as a “memory machine” similar to the short reels that Apple creates on its user’s phones daily. In a matter of minutes, the app creates a timeline of one’s life — as opposed to a quick holiday — omitting any content deemed to be explicit or offensive, such as “nudity, violence, screenshots or anything stored in a hidden folder.”1 of 2

Courtesy Of Bmw.2 of 2

Courtesy Of Bmw.

Unsurprisingly, there was a tense feeling in the air as to who would go on to participate after the artist. Only several audience members joined, Hypebeast included, and the buildup till the video played felt like being an eager five year old in line for the largest roller coaster in the city, not quite understanding the gravity of the situation until the final seconds. While the reel contained some embarrassing shots, namely selfies, it was mostly harmless and algorithmically showed the faces and places that one consistently finds comfort in.

As an automaker that has explored the creative world since the ‘70s, BMW has doubled down on the intersection between art and technology, with a collaboration with Mexican artist Rafael Lozano-Hammer at the 2022 ABMB and its most recent link up this year. “Alex’s fascination with our latest innovation mirrors our shared commitment to blending the worlds of technology, design and art to pursue something truly extraordinary,” said Dukec in a statement. “The BMW i5 is a vehicle that not only moves you physically but emotionally and imaginatively, much like Alex’s art.”

Learn more about the capabilities of the 2024 BMW i5 vehicle here.
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