BANK is thrilled to share that Lu Yang’s solo exhibition DOKU The Illusion will open at Espace Louis Vuitton Venezia on May 8, 2026, running through October 4.
Curated by Claire Staebler, the presentation coincides with the 61st Venice Biennale and marks 20 years of the Espaces Louis Vuitton and 10 years of the Fondation Louis Vuitton’s Hors‑les‑murs programme.
Lu Yang is known for building immersive digital worlds that blur the lines between philosophy and visual spectacle. Working at the intersection of technology and belief, he often draws on Buddhist thought to question what is real and what is constructed. While manga, gaming, and anime surface throughout his work, they serve as a language — not a destination. Beneath it all lies something far more existential.
For this exhibition, Lu Yang has created an installation featuring original sculptures and a new film, DOKU The Illusion — the fourth chapter of his ongoing DOKU series, which began in 2019. The series follows a virtual avatar based on the digitalisation of the artist’s own face, exploring themes of digital reincarnation and freedom beyond physical limits.
The installation transforms the Espace Louis Vuitton Venezia into a cybernetic sanctuary, somewhere between a chapel and a futuristic refuge. At its centre, the film is projected on a monumental LED screen placed on an altar. DOKU The Illusion blends live‑action footage with AI‑generated imagery, unfolding largely against the deep‑blue skies and open landscapes of Japan’s Izu Peninsula, playing like a spiritual road movie.
