Refik Anadol, M.F.A. ’14

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Refik Anadol, M.F.A. ’14, has been named the 2024 Edward A. Dickson Alumnus of the Year for his expansive and innovative artistic vision that is reshaping our understanding of the relationship between data, technology and the human experience. Anadol is one of the world’s best-known media artists and his work often addresses larger social and cultural issues including climate change, mental health, and the power and limits of artificial intelligence.

Anadol uses cutting-edge science, research and technology to transform vast amounts of data into immersive, visually stunning artworks and reimagines architecture as a canvas for artistic expression. His work, “Unsupervised – Machine Hallucinations” used the Museum of Modern Art’s public archive to create an alternate interpretation of modern art; “Winds of Berlin” analyzed real-time weather data to generate a canvas of colors and movement; “Artificial Realities: Coral” used 100 million coral images to address global warming.

Born in Istanbul, Turkey, Anadol received an M.F.A. from UCLA’s design media arts program. He is currently a lecturer and visiting researcher in the UCLA Department of Design. His work has been featured across the globe, from the world’s largest LED screen at the Sphere in Las Vegas to an A.I. model dedicated to nature at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Anadol is a strong supporter of UCLA as both a philanthropist and teacher. In 2022, during the COVID-19 pandemic, thousands of people visited UCLA’s Franklin D. Murphy Sculpture Garden to view his art-based experience, “Moment of Reflection,” and considered how COVID-19 had affected their lives. To further the study of how his art can positively influence mental health and wellness, Refik Anadol Studio has collaborated with UCLA neuroscientists to study its impact in a clinical setting.

In 2023, Anadol’s trend-defying Winds of Yawanawa NFT collection raised $3 million for the Yawanawa people. The collection merged weather data gathered directly from their village in the Amazon rainforest with the works of young Yawanawa artists resulting in a mesmerizing play of traditional shapes, forms, textures and colors.

Refik Anadol Studio is supporting new research and innovation through their UCLA internship program, demonstrating his strong commitment to mentoring young people from diverse backgrounds. The Studio has raised more than $5 million for organizations including St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, The Alzheimer’s Foundation and UNICEF. Anadol and other digital artists helped raise nearly $5 million to support the victims of Turkey’s devastating earthquake in 2023.

He has received numerous awards and prizes including the UCLA Art+Architecture Moss Award, Lorenzo il Magnifico Lifetime Achievement Award for New Media Art, Microsoft Research’s Best Vision Award, iF Gold Award, University of California Institute for Research in the Arts Award, SEGD Global Design Award and Google’s Artists and Machine Intelligence Artist Residency Award.

UCLA honors Anadol for his groundbreaking art and significant contributions. His innovative vision of creating art using AI, while exploring critical questions, invites us to reflect on our place in this world and reimagine what the future can be.