Data collected from visitors, including their movements, heartbeats, and even skin temperature, will feed a computer that creates an immersive display. This is achieved through a network of sensors, including those on the wrists of ticket-holders.
Dataland's Inaugural Exhibition
'Machine Dreams: Rainforest' marks the first exhibition at Dataland, a new museum located in the heart of America's second-largest city. The museum is the brainchild of Refik Anadol and Efsun Erkilic. Their 10 million lines of code power the animations, which utilize 1.5 billion pixels.
Inspiration from the Amazon
Anadol stated that he was inspired by a visit to the Brazilian Amazon, a place he believes everyone should experience. 'But I do not believe we should all go to the rainforest,' he told AFP. 'The question was: can the rainforest come to us? Can we still connect, feel special, respect and love nature, learn about it?'
Interactive Technology
Wall-mounted sensors track visitors' movements, and guests wear a medical-grade, watch-like device to monitor their emotions and heart rate as they interact with the model. Additionally, they carry a portable scent diffuser throughout the experience.
Using billions of images and data points, the model creates a constantly evolving experience. It is as if the system were 'dreaming,' Erkilic explained. 'It's moving all the time, because it's gathering data. As soon as it builds one structure, it also affects the overall storytelling,' he said. 'It's coming from a more poetic place instead of a scientific place. The machine itself is trying to recreate the reality based on the data points, it's like bringing all the little bits and dots and trying to build the reality itself.'
Tangible Souvenirs
At the end of the experience, visitors can sample chocolates with flavors generated by the model, or print T-shirts and paintings resulting from their interaction. These are intended to serve as tangible souvenirs of the ephemeral dream in Dataland. 'The system forgets you; that is the beauty of it,' says Anadol.
