Studies, Innocence + Experience

Staged 2015, U2 World Arena Tour

“For Innocence + Experience, U2 needed a sculpture that represented the highway between the band’s origins as teenagers and their contemporary practice as global activists. During meetings, I made ink paintings that led to the idea of a transparent LED block animated with different imagery. U2 closed the first act of each concert with the song ‘Until the End of the World.’ During the song, furniture from their childhood homes appeared to be overwhelmed by Hokusai’s woodblock print, The Great Wave off Kanagawa.”

—Es Devlin

A large, indoor concert venue full of people with a large yellow rectangular screen in the center of the room; a black line cuts through the screen revealing a person towards the right.

Production photograph, Innocence + Experience
Staged 2015, U2 World Arena Tour
Courtesy of Es Devlin

A large, indoor concert venue full of people with a large rectangular floating screen in the center of the room; the screen is mostly white with a large shadow raising its hand against the screen.

Production photograph, Innocence + Experience
Staged 2015, U2 World Arena Tour
Courtesy of Es Devlin

Two horizontal papers pinned to a wall, each depicting different versions of a house being engulfed by a large wave.

Es Devlin, Studies, Innocence + Experience, Mixed media on paper.
Staged 2015, U2 World Arena Tour
Photo: Elliot Goldstein © Smithsonian Institution

Black-and-white drawing of a row of five houses floating above three equidistant figures who are between two bold, horizontal yellow lines. Written across the top of the drawing in white uppercase letters is “you can’t return to where you’ve never left.”

Es Devlin, Study, Innocence + Experience, Mixed media on paper.
Staged 2015, U2 World Arena Tour
Courtesy of Es Devlin

Drawing of a long rectangular prism, shown in three-quarter view, with three houses inside; a figure walks up a staircase to the left side of the prism. Two bold, yellow lines lay across the drawing, parallel to the prism; there are also notes and arrows throughout.

Es Devlin, Study, Innocence + Experience, Mixed media on paper.
Staged 2015, U2 World Arena Tour
Courtesy of Es Devlin

Studies, Innocence + Experience

An Atlas of Es Devlin

Your journey so far

All pages

An Infinite Archive

Studio

Iris

Archive Unboxed

Sculptures, Ideas to Forms

Studies, Abel’s Mask

Studies, After Hours Til Dawn

Studies, Bangerz

Studies, Come Home Again

Studies, Electric

Studies, Experience + Innocence

Studies, Flag: Burning

Studies, Forest of Us

Studies, Fundamental

Studies, Hello

Studies, Innocence + Experience

Studies, Legend of the Fall

Studies, Memory Palace

Studies, Mirror Maze

Studies, PoemPortraits

Studies, Sphere

Studies, Unknown Soldier

Studies, Witness

Study, Die Tote Stadt

Study, Don Giovanni

Study, Free Your Mind

Model, Atlas

Model, Betrayal

Model, Don Giovanni

Model, Fundamental

Model, Howie the Rookie

Model, La Caja Mágica / The Seed

Model, Legend of the Fall

Model, Macbeth

Model, Parsifal

Model, The Hunt

Model, The Lehman Trilogy

Sculpture, Songs for Sorrow

Model, Abel’s Mask

Model, Bangerz

Model, Carmen

Model, Chimerica

Model, Compton Super Bowl

Model, Flag: Burning

Model, Hello

Model, Innocence + Experience

Model, Les Troyens

Model, Progress

Model, London Olympics

Study, Dynamic Cube

Study, Perforated Screen

Model, Come Home Again

Model, Five Echoes

Model, Forest of Us

Model, Infinite Library

Model, Memory Palace

Model, Mirror Maze

Model, Please Feed the Lions

Model, Poem Pavilion

Model, Redraw the Edges of Your Self

Model, Room 2022

Model, Your Voices

Model, Zoetrope

Theater in a Box

Films

Book Unbound