Variations in Fabric and Motion
A site-specific performative installation
As part of the first Tel Aviv Biennale of Crafts & Design, we were invited to create a research-based, site-specific work for the Aretz Israel Museum Watch Tower.
From the exhibition text:
A group of robotic curtains envelops the Observation Tower. Using the curtains, the creators will examine the possible interactions enabled by everyday robotic objects as a connecting element between the viewers and the space, other viewers, and the natural environment outdoors.
Every second, 127 new devices connect to the Internet, and this number is expected to double in less than five years. A world in which most home appliances are connected to the Internet and to artificial intelligence and learning is around the corner. When also considering developments in the world of robotics, one can imagine an environment where everyday objects will be able to move, be autonomous and interact with the world and the objects around them. What will be the nature of our relationship with these autonomous objects, and what meaning will these relationships add to our lives?
How could the controlling of movement using code, data, or sensors extend the function of the curtains as objects which connect and separate between exterior and interior? How do we experience the autonomous environment when it behaves in a harmonious or disharmonious manner, when it responds to us or to the surroundings, or when various objects communicate among themselves?
In order to address these and other questions, the lab's team developed an infrastructure of robotic curtains, and invited Ari Teperberg – a performance artist whose work revolves around objects and movement, to jointly conduct a series of site-specific performative experiments, which will take place throughout the exhibition using various choreographies for the curtains. Through the development of tools for controling the curtains, methods for designing movement for objects are explored. This new practice is expected to be part of the design process of future robotic objects.
Mentor: Dr. Oren Zuckerman
Technological Lead: Daniel Goldblat
Choreography and Motion Design: Ari Teperberg
Technology and Design Team: Tamar Levi, Ofir Benjamin, Jeck Zeisset and David Benaim
Press: Ynet[HE]