A GIF animation loop, 2015, Duration 1k years

AS Long As Possible (ASLAP) is a 1,000-year animated GIF art project by Juha van Ingen, initiated on March 28, 2017, at the KIASMA museum in Helsinki. The animation, created in collaboration with Janne Särkelä, consists of 48,140,288 frames that change approximately every 11 minutes, designed to loop continuously until 3017. As of March 28, 2022, ASLAP has been playing non-stop for five years, reaching frame 240,832. The project aims to explore themes of eternity and digital decay, prompting reflections on the impermanence of digital media.

To ensure the longevity of ASLAP, multiple synchronized playback units are maintained in various museums, with time capsules containing documentation for recreating the animation in case of catastrophic events. The GIF format, developed in 1987, remains a popular medium for digital art, and ASLAP pays homage to John Cage's composition "ORGAN2/ASLSP," which is performed over 625 years. The project has garnered attention from various art critics and institutions, emphasizing its significance in contemporary digital art discourse. Celebrations of milestones, such as the five-year mark, include plans to release selected frames as NFTs. The ongoing documentation and preservation efforts highlight the challenges and strategies involved in maintaining digital artworks for future generations.