Anna Ridler

Anna Ridler (b. 1985) is an artist and researcher who works with information and data. She is interested in systems of knowledge, with a desire to know and to make this process of knowing available. She works with new technologies, exploring how they are created in order to better understand society and the world. 

A core element of her work lies in the creation of handmade datasets through a laborious process of selecting and classifying images and text. By creating her own datasets, Ridler is able to uncover and expose underlying themes and concepts while also inverting the usual process of creating large databases. Her interests include drawing, machine learning, computational photography, data collection, storytelling, and technology. 

She holds an MA in Information Experience Design from the Royal College of Art and a BA in English Literature and Language from Oxford University, along with fellowships at the Creative Computing Institute at University of the Arts London (UAL), Ars Electronica, Edinburgh University and the Delfina Foundation. Her work has been exhibited at cultural institutions worldwide including the Victoria and Albert Museum, Tate Modern, the Barbican Centre, Centre Pompidou, HeK Basel, the ZKM Karlsruhe, Ars Electronica, Sheffield International Documentary Festival and the Leverhulme Centre for Future Intelligence. She was a European Union EMAP fellow and the winner of the 2018-2019 DARE Art Prize.

Ridler has received commissions by Salford University, the Photographers Gallery, Opera North, Live Cinema UK and Impakt Festival. She was listed as one of the nine “pioneering artists” exploring AI’s creative potential by Artnet and received an honorary mention in the 2019 Ars Electronica Golden Nica award for the category AI & Life Art. She was nominated for a “Beazley Designs of the Year” award in 2019 by the Design Museum for her work on datasets and categorisation.

Ridler lives and works in London. 

Image credit: Emily Grundon, 2018, installation of Myriad (Tulips)