me + you, The Smithsonian
Public Art — 2022
Technology has brought us immeasurable knowledge, but it is our human imprint on this knowledge that shapes its being in the world around us. Weaving the wisdom of humans and the intelligence of technology together, me + you is an interactive sculpture created through combined strengths, as an emblem for a positive future of coevolution.
Viewers are invited to speak a word describing their future into the cloud base of the sculpture at designated points. Acting as an emotional translator, me + you reflects back to each visitor a unique kinetic mandala.
As individuals interact with the sculpture, the collective vision of all users is also displayed as an artifact at its center. The interaction between humans and artificial intelligence is visualized as a visceral experience of the balance between individual responsibility and collective agency. The interactive sculpture incorporates artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) from Amazon Web Services (AWS) to translate each person’s vision of the future into patterns transmitted into a 20-foot-tall totem at the center of the sculpture generating a virtual mandala, a collective vision of our humanness. me + you is the first major public art commission from AWS.
For those who could not visit the exhibition in person, me + you is translated into a corresponding website.
Curated by Isolde Brielmaier, me + you was the centerpiece of the “FUTURES” exhibit at the Arts and Industries Building of the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C.
"With me+you, we needed to address the possible relationship between humans and technology. I came up with this idea of turning the vibration of sound into the vibration of light, playing with emotion through technology.”
