WE DO NOT SEE UNTIL WE SEE

2019
Interactive Installation
1ch HD/4K display, Webcam, 12V mini pumps, Glass tank, Plinth, Arduino Uno, Custom software
Duration: N/A
Dimensions:
44cm(width) x 65cm(depth) x 220cm(height)

bingComputing @ 2019

The flow would not be perceived clearly until we seeing ourselves under its influence.

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WE DO NOT SEE UNTIL WE SEE (2019) is an analog and digital interactive reflective installation, an abstraction of the state of how we perceive matters around us.

A scene of a mirror in water is symmetrically constructed with a water tank with a mirror at the centre, and a screen against the tank displaying a digital version of the reflection within the flow. There is very subtle, even unnoticeable analog flow being generated from pumps under the water tank. Meanwhile on the screen, there are computer-generated abstract graphics being animated form the data of the analog water movement, which is captured by a webcam on top of the installation.

If there is a viewer steps forward and looks straight into his/her self reflection in the mirror within the water tank, his/her reflected face would be captured and recognised by the webcam, which triggers to turn up the pumps, then he/she would see the water flow getting more and more noticeable, eventually distorting his/her reflected image in the mirror. At the same time, the viewer’s reflected image would be captured by the webcam and appear on the screen symmetrically in real-time, which emerges a scene of oneself looking at oneself involuntarily. And the other audience surrounding the installation would also witness the flow from that viewer’s distorted reflection on the screen and/or the triggered waves in the glass tank.

The flow would not be perceived clearly until we seeing ourselves under its influence - Not only the flow of water in the tank, but also the flow of politics, culture, ecosystems, climates and so on.

The project was created during my MA at Goldsmiths Computational Arts

Acknowledgements

Background

The project was inspired during seeing the drastic protest actions in HongKong against the political conflicts between HongKong and the mainland Chinese government. I was born and grown up in Guangzhou, and my mother’s families are living in HongKong for years. We speak the same language, share the same culture, so could say that there’s a bit more connection between this city and me, comparing with most of the people in mainland China. And I’ve known there’re some political decision conflicts between the two governments and there’re many culture and value conflicts between the people. However, I was more like a spectator, who wasn’t really very concerned about these matters. Until recently people’s anger bringing violence and destroy on the streets, as well as governments’ policy changing, which actually influencing my families and friends’ lives there, then I started to really perceive these issues, look into these incidents. In the end, the more I look into it, the more I see this is not “their matters there”, but “our matters here”.

We might believe the wave was too minor to perceive, until we come forward and look into it, seeing ourselves being inside the water and being affected by the wave, then we actually perceive the wave. - In fact, this behavioural concepts could apply to many objects beyond the HongKong-Mainland matters: politics, social and economic trends, ecosystems, climates, etc. If we don’t step forward and look into it, we would see nothing, and we won’t understand what it is.

Technical

The project was built with OpenFrameworks and Arduino. The system includes 4 parts:
(1) ARDUINO controlled PUMPS which generates ripples/waves in the water;
(2) WEBCAM gets motion information of the water waves (using algorithm of background differencing and brightness value calculation), and use the data to generate, or rather to affect the computer graphics on the display screen;
(3) DISPLAY SCREEN shows designed computer graphics combined with the webcam stream of the water and the audience;
(4) AUDIENCE react to the screen and/or the water (mirror), those reactions (e.g. gazing or paying attention to the work) are captured by the webcam, with the algorithm of face tracker, the data then affects the electric current value which goes through the Arduino and pumps to control the water waves generating.


If you are interested in more concept
and/or technical details please check the Project Archive.

Selected screenshots from the exhibition

Slide mouse to navigate the Project Archive, or click HERE to access the page.