Orientalis Exoticum II

“She only blooms in silence to hide from leering eyes, in fear of kings and bandits who would hunt her for prize.”

— Excerpt from Metaphorphosis

Orientalis Exoticum is a species of neither flora nor fauna, birthed in the deep of Metaphorphosis. A creature of unknown origin and subject to mythological speculation, it is sought after for its purported aphrodisiac qualities in accordance with a manner of rigorous processing and consumption.

PNG | 9000x9000 | 300dpi 2022 by @conniebakshi x AI

Metaphorphosis is anomalous lore, written and visualized in collaboration with AI, that contemplates the united states of being, an undefined space that lives at the intersection of belonging and rejection. The tale considers the minute lens shifts that would teeter between the grotesque and divine, fetish and indifference, human and other. Drawing from the transformation canons of western literature and eastern mythology, Metaphorphosis draws a thin line between the exiled and the exalted.

Connie Bakshi is an artist, classical musician, and engineer based in Los Angeles. Predominantly interested in AI conversational and image synthesis models, she recodes language, lore, and ritual to explore what it means to be human in a machine era. Her work often mediates between a collective consciousness embedded in AI and post-colonial identities emerging on the blockchain.