This summer, TUR launches Untangling Lines of Connection, a series of three solo exhibitions that examine the architectures — visible and invisible — that shape contemporary life. Opening the series is This Machine by Bob Demper, who has spent the month of May as TUR’s artist-in-residence, working directly with the space as both a studio and site for his exhibition.
Demper’s practice, rooted in filmmaking and expanded through installation and sculpture, is driven by a deep and historically attuned investigation into systems of power — particularly financial and technological. His immersive environments borrow the familiar cues of cinematic language and corporate architecture to build speculative interiors that both mimic and critique the spaces where decisions about capital and control are made. These are not passive representations, but active spaces of inquiry.
This Machine extends Demper’s ongoing research into “Black Box” financial models and the looming implications of quantum computing. Inspired in part by BlackRock’s AI-powered Aladdin system, and informed by texts such as Cathy O’Neil’s Weapons of Math Destruction and Gregory Zuckerman’s The Man Who Solved the Market, the exhibition probes the growing presence of systems that not only operate without transparency, but increasingly escape the grasp of their own designers. While maintaining a purposeful vagueness around agency and consequence.
In this exhibition, Demper shifts from constructing fully immersive environments to creating a dialogue with the raw architecture of TUR’s space. Server racks, cabling systems, and a corporate conference speaker’s table form the spine of the installation, accompanied by scattered sculptural interventions and film fragments drawn from an evolving body of work. These elements are connected not just by wire and structure, but by mood: a mixture of absurdity, unease, and strange beauty.
At once speculative and grounded in research, This Machine invites the viewer into a fictionalized, sensorial encounter with technologies that govern real-world economies — and increasingly, lives. Through sound, image, and spatial composition, Demper offers a playful but unsettling portrait of the systems that promise efficiency while concealing risk. In reframing post-production processes as central rather than secondary, Demper uses his time at TUR to slow down, reflect, and engage with his materials in a new way. This Machine is both a continuation and a departure: a project that builds on years of inquiry while allowing space for unresolved questions to resonate.
As part of Riga Art Week, the exhibition joins a broader program of events celebrating contemporary art across the city. On Wednesday, May 29th, during RAW’s “Gallery Late” program, Bob Demper will be present at TUR for a series of artist-led tours throughout the evening, offering deeper insight into the ideas and processes behind This Machine. In addition, on Tuesday, June 11th, composer Ernests Vilsons will perform Artist Talk XVI — a free concert that responds to the exhibition through sound, exploring its central ideas in a distinctive musical format.
Exhibition Curator: Edd Schouten
Project Manager: Kristīne Ercika
Production Support: Ada Ruszkiewicz
Technical Support: Tils Zigmunds Ozoliņš, Maksimilians Kotovičs and TUR Team
Graphic Design: Andris Kaļiņins
Cast: Rick van Uum
Cinematography: Pedro Gossler
Special Make-up: Rob Hillebrink
AV Show Design: Tim Demper
The exhibition is supported by VKKF and STROOM
Artist talk concert is supported by Riga City council
About the Artist
Bob Demper (b. 1991, The Netherlands) is a visual artist based in The Hague. With a background in filmmaking, his practice spans film, installation, video, and sculpture. Demper’s work is characterized by a meticulous engagement with structures of power, particularly as manifested in financial systems, corporate aesthetics, and emerging technologies. He has exhibited at institutions including 1646 (The Hague), Museum Helmond, and Art Rotterdam, and has participated in numerous group exhibitions and screenings across Europe. His current research explores the sociopolitical consequences of algorithmic and automated financial models through speculative environments that blend cinematic tropes with sculptural precision.
About TUR, Contemporary Space for Art
TUR organizes seven contemporary art exhibitions each year: three solo exhibitions in the winter months, three in the summer, and a group exhibition in the fall. TUR’s mission is to enrich Riga's contemporary art scene by providing a platform for experimentation, collaboration, and close engagement with selected artists to produce high-quality, curated exhibitions. Working with the unique characteristics of its space—which combines elements of the traditional white cube with the building’s industrial past—TUR invites artists to create new work and encourages them to experiment beyond their usual practices. Since its founding, TUR has hosted contemporary art exhibitions alongside concerts, performances, and poetry readings connected to its programs. Notably, three of TUR’s exhibitions have been nominated for the 2025 Purvītis Prize: “Folding Lines” by Luīze Rukšane, which has made the final selection of nominees; “Voices in My Heads” by Rūdolfs Štamers; and “Lapa uz lapas” by Maija Kurševa, each receiving critical acclaim.
TUR_telpa is a non-profit art initiative supported by the Latvian State Culture Capital Foundation. For updates on exhibitions and events, follow TUR on Instagram (@tur_telpa) and Facebook (TUR).
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