The late 20th and early 21st centuries are often referred to as the Silicon Age, a period defined by the element silicon’s profound influence on global development. As the essential material for semiconductor electronics, highly purified silicon serves as the backbone of transistors and integrated circuit chips, powering everything from smartphones to supercomputers. In the digital era, its presence permeates nearly every aspect of daily life, shaping how we work, communicate, and interact with the world. The ubiquity of silicon underscores its transformative role in an increasingly interconnected and technology-driven society. By depicting purified silicon stone, Tan Mu explores the intricate global supply chains involved in extracting, refining, and distributing this essential resource—the very material at the heart of computing and information technology. Silicon (2021) invites viewers to consider not only silicon’s pivotal role in technological advancement but also the environmental and geopolitical complexities embedded in its production. Through this lens, the work subtly reveals the profound impact of silicon as a fundamental element shaping the contemporary world.

Q: You have described silicon as a fundamental element shaping the contemporary world. In your view, how does silicon influence our era?

Tan Mu: I believe we are living in an era fundamentally driven by computational power. Advances in computing have reshaped how we explore the world, communicate, and form connections. At the center of this technological landscape lies silicon. Silicon is not simply a chemical element. It is the material foundation of the digital world. It exists within computer motherboards, forming countless on and off switch chips that regulate information flow and quietly structure our perception of reality.

In works such as Logic Circuit (2022) and Mapping (2021), I examine the construction and logic of these electronic systems, focusing on how silicon operates as both a material and a conceptual force. This inquiry resonates with ideas discussed by Michelle Kuo in New Order, where she reflects on the materials that sustain modern life and the role of materiality in contemporary art and technology. In a similar way, my paintings engage with the physical substance that underpins digital existence. The logic of input and output embedded in silicon mirrors human processes of emotion, language, and thought.

For me, silicon extends far beyond its physical properties. It enables technological advancement, and through that advancement, it reshapes social structures. It alters how we form relationships, how memory is stored and transmitted, and how communities take shape. Silicon has become an invisible language through which we engage with the world, quietly organizing contemporary life.

Q: You mentioned the environmental and geopolitical complexities embedded in silicon production. How does this relate to your broader interest in energy, environment, and technology?

Tan Mu: Very much so. If we understand our era as one shaped by computation, then we must also acknowledge the environmental cost that supports it. Silicon production relies on high temperature smelting and complex chemical refinement processes, all of which require enormous amounts of energy. Beyond fabrication, data centers and quantum computing facilities have become major energy consumers, further transforming how power and resources are distributed across the planet.

These processes do not exist in isolation. They are deeply entangled with environmental systems and geopolitical structures. The extraction, refinement, and deployment of silicon based technologies influence where power accumulates and how technological authority is distributed globally. Control over technological infrastructure often leads to concentrated influence, reshaping political relationships, cultural dynamics, and systems of governance.

In my work, I explore these intersections by tracing the evolution of energy systems, from early electrical grids to solar farms and nuclear power. These infrastructures are inseparable from the development of computation and material science. Together, they form a broader narrative about how energy, environment, and technology collectively reshape the physical and political landscape of our time.

Q: What visual language did you use in Silicon to represent this refined material?

Tan Mu: In Silicon, I wanted to move beyond simple material representation. From a distance, the surface resembles a crystalline structure under laboratory lighting, with sharp edges and an icy, mechanical clarity. There is a sense of rigidity and precision that reflects silicon’s industrial origin. However, as the viewer moves closer, this hardness begins to dissolve.

The surface reveals layered colors and rhythmic textures. Subtle flesh pink tones emerge beneath cooler hues, while jewel-like blues flicker across the surface like brief electrical pulses. These shifts introduce warmth into an otherwise austere material, allowing silicon to oscillate between rationality and sensitivity.

In constructing this work, I intentionally balanced realism with abstraction. The sharp focal points of the source image create an aggressive visual tension, while the painterly surface softens and reinterprets that intensity. This instability is what interests me most. It transforms refined silicon from a purely industrial substance into something fragile and alive, suggesting that even the most rigid systems carry an inherent vulnerability.