Planetary Computation
September 13 - October 19, 2025
Photoworks is pleased to announce the opening exhibition of our 2025 Artist-in-Residence, Ashton Reeder.
Opening Reception
September 13, 2025, 4-6pm
The age of the internet has brought forth an extremely complex set of interconnected digital parts, an idea known as Planetary Computation. An ever growing complex network based around mineral extraction and cross continental digital infrastructure being furthered by the advance of Artificial Intelligence.
This project spans three geographies: Ashburn, Virginia with a focus on the physical embodiment of data, the monolithic warehouses and cooling systems that house our collective digital memory; The Bay Area, California, the ground zero of artificial intelligence where venture capital flows reshape entire neighborhoods while displacement pushes communities to the margins; and Nevada, a place where environments are being altered by the demand for minerals to fuel computational infrastructure, where ancient lake beds become lithium extraction sites and the desert bears the scars of our digital appetites.
Artist Talk:
Saturday, September 20, 10-11:30 AM at Photoworks
Artist Info
Ashton Reeder (b. 1999) is a technologist and photographer from Gig Harbor, Washington, currently based in Washington, D.C. His work merges data, computation, and photography to interrogate how technology reshapes landscapes, infrastructures, and experiences. Educated in Design and International Relations at the University of Utah, he applies data driven methodologies and visual research to document complex socio-political and environmental narratives.
Ashton is the founder of Material Investigations, a research agency exploring the intersection of photography, data, and forensic analysis. His work has been exhibited internationally, including a residency at Arthere Istanbul, and he has published Fabricated Landscapes, a photobook examining the rapid technological expansion of megacities throughout Asia.
