Addie Wagenknecht
Selected Works Overview

Addie Wagenknecht's artistic practice blends conceptual art with forms of hacking and gestural abstraction. 

Wagenknecht is known for pioneering the use of drones in painting and other mechanized forms of art in the early 2000s while based in New York. 

Her works are often recognized for their experimental co-creative aspects, exploring the relationship between technology and the vulnerabilities of being alive. Previous exhibitions and works held in permanent collections include the Centre Pompidou, Istanbul Modern, Whitechapel Gallery, Whitney Museum of American Art, and the New Museum in New York, among others. She has collaborated with CERN, Chanel, Coinbase, and Google's Art Machine Intelligence (AMI) Group. Her work has been featured in publications such as TIME, The Wall Street Journal, Vanity Fair, Art in America, and The New York Times. Wagenknecht has held fellowships at Eyebeam Art + Technology Center in New York City, Culture Lab UK, Institute HyperWerk for Postindustrial Design in Basel (CH), and The Frank-Ratchye STUDIO for Creative Inquiry at Carnegie Mellon University.
Optimization of Parenting, 2012- In Optimization of Parenting, Part 2, Addie Wagenknecht features a robotic arm that reacts to a baby's cries, addressing the societal pressures on mothers as full-time caregivers. The work critiques the expectation that parenting is exempt from scrutiny and highlights the creative sacrifices women often face.

By automating repetitive tasks, Wagenknecht envisions a way for mothers to reclaim their creativity without the financial burden of childcare. Developed with support from the STUDIO for Creative Inquiry at Carnegie Mellon University, this installation challenges viewers to rethink the role of technology in achieving a more equitable balance between motherhood and personal ambition.