Press Release

Marina Zurkow: Parting Worlds brings together a selection of software-based works by Marina Zurkow (b. 1962; New York), an artist who explores the intersection of nature and culture through various mediums, including code, animation, and participatory experiences like dinners and card games.

In the works on view in the gallery and on the adjacent terrace, Zurkow uses software that drives the interplay of the elements seen on screen and their ever-changing compositions to reflect on the complexity of ecological and social systems. The animations Mesocosm (Wink, TX) (2012) and The Earth Eaters (2025) imagine the environmental damage that results from the repeated extraction of raw materials. The work that constitutes the Hyundai Terrace Commission—The River is a Circle (2025)—is site-specific and engages with the ecologies of the Hudson River and the neighborhood surrounding the Whitney. “Parting Worlds” in the title alludes to the landscapes above and below the water, the earth breaking apart in a sinkhole, and islands emerging and separating as they are continually tapped for natural resources. It is also a phrase that evokes impermanence and loss as environments change and disappear due to human intervention and natural evolution.

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Installation Views

About the Artist

Zurkow is a media artist focused on near-impossible nature and culture intersections, and fostering intimate connections between humans, other species, and planetary agents. Her work spans gallery installations and unconventional public participatory projects.

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Also Exhibiting at Whitney Museum of American Art

About the Gallery

The Whitney Museum of American Art is a landmark cultural institution located in New York‘s vibrant Meatpacking District, at 99 Gansevoort Street. Designed by renowned architect Renzo Piano, the museum’s striking asymmetrical structure integrates cutting-edge architecture with sweeping skyline views and direct access to the High Line, making it an essential destination for anyone interested in American art and culture.

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99 Gansevoort Street
New York
United States
Opening Hours
Monday – Sunday
10:30am – 6pm
Closed Tuesdays
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New York 99 Gansevoort Street
Whitney Museum of American Art
99 Gansevoort Street, New York, United States
+1 (212) 570-3600
http://www.whitney.org

Opening hours
Monday – Sunday
10:30am – 6pm
Closed Tuesdays
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