Antipodes, the parts of the earth diametrically opposite to each other, have been an important part of Kirsten Mosher’s work, which includes painting, sculpture, video, and text. Soul Mate 180° (The Other Side Is Here) was developed with support by LACMA’s Art + Technology Lab. Soul Mate 180° (The Other Side Is Here) is an installation composed of a sculpture and text. The 1:1 scale sculpture was modeled after a wave in the Indian Ocean (on the opposite side of the Earth from LACMA). The realization of wave topography was based on data collected from an array of sources, including high resolution radar, ships, aircraft, satellites, and buoys. The data was interpolated algorithmically and projected to reflect ocean and weather conditions at a specific place and time.

Mosher’s initial project proposal to the Lab featured an image of a pencil piercing an orange which finally evolved into the marble sculpture. The artist was looking for a direct way of expressing the concept of an antipode without using a map or globe, which would over emphasize specific places since an antipodal connection can happen with any two opposite places. Tending to gravitate toward low tech tools, a pencil and an orange became the starting point of her work.

Soul Mate 180° (The Other Side Is Here) was intended to not only talk about the architecture of various sides, but more about what’s in between and beyond such as geographic space or cultural and political spaces.