Newsletter #5: Superpositions

Dear Friends,

My years of working with quantum principles lead me to a fundamental question: Could I create artworks that, like quantum particles, don't fully exist until observed? This exploration has become Superpositions – perhaps my most conceptually direct and materially enigmatic project yet.

What is a Superposition?

In quantum physics, "superposition" describes a fundamental principle where particles exist in multiple states simultaneously until measured. Think of Schrödinger's famous thought experiment: a cat in a sealed box exists as both alive and dead until someone looks inside. The moment of observation "collapses" all possibilities into a single reality.

The Von Neumann's interpretations of quantum mechanics suggests that consciousness itself is what collapses this field of potential – that multiple possibilities persist until encountered by a conscious mind.

What is Superpositions?

Each set consists of a handcrafted clamshell box containing three sealed envelopes:

A drawing generated from quantum computer data, unseen even by me
An AI's interpretation of that unseen drawing
The original quantum data, stored immutably as an NFT

None of these elements have been observed. And so, according to quantum theory, they exist in superposition – a state in which all possible versions coexist until the moment of conscious observation.

Observation as Creation

Within this framework, observation is not passive but creative. The images exist only as potential until a conscious collector opens an envelope. In that moment, a singular version of the work comes into being, while all other possibilities fall away.

The presence of artificial intelligence adds a further layer of complexity. If one believes that AI possesses even a minimal degree of awareness, then the question arises: did the superposition collapse the moment the machine rendered its response? Or does the image remain indeterminate until seen by human consciousness?

Superpositions leaves this ambiguity deliberately unresolved, making the collector an active participant in the ontological fate of the work.

This is not a project that illustrates quantum theory; it enacts it. The work remains incomplete – literally unrealized – until the moment of action.

Availability

The work exists as ten unique sets (plus two artist proofs). Each is individually created, signed, and accompanied by documentation of its process and conceptual grounding – without disclosing the contents of the envelopes.

There is a project page here: https://davidyoung.art/work/superpositions.html

There is also a private PDF with more information, available on request.

Let me know if you're curious to learn more -- or just want to talk quantum weirdness.

Warmly,

David

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