Beneath the Terra
audio-visual installation, TouchDesigner, MaxMSP, and Arduino
This audio-visual installation, using TouchDesigner, MaxMSP, and Arduino, explores themes of ecology and ecological ethics. Ecological ethics examines the moral relationships between humans and the environment, emphasizing the intrinsic rights of non-human entities. Central to this eld is eco-centrism, which posits that all living organisms possess inherent value.
The main part of the installation is a tree root made by 3D printing. I tried to let them look like they are growing from the wall, so when people look at it they will feel like an underground world.
I want to use my art work to talk about ecology and ecological ethics. Ecological ethics studies the moral relationship between human beings and the environment and the rights of non-human entities. It also includes eco-centrism, which argues that all living organisms have equal values.
My inspiration comes from the Bible story of Noah's Ark. In that story, plants weren't brought on board. Some people guess that this maybe because plants are too hard to be extinct, while others believe plants aren't that vital. This made me reflect on the status and rights of plants in the ecosystem. Many people see plants as non-living because they don't move, but in reality, plant intelligence is far beyond what we imagine. Plants send signals from their root tips to every branch and communicate through parasitic plants or underground rhizome networks.So this is why i want to do this work.
I first start with the 3D printing part, and i use copper tape to wrap through the whole branch to make it conductive. So when people touch the part, it will change the capacity so the led will be on and the visual will change. I use Touch Designer to do the visual part and there are two layers of it, one is the flowing part, i make it look like leaf vein. And the background is a video that i took in a forest where one tree fall down on the ground while others stand still behind it, and they are becoming particles.The sound part is made by Maxmsp, and i try to express the feeling about nature and ecology.