I hear a tree in the wind at night

The true method of discovery is like the flight of an aeroplane. It starts from the ground of particular observation; it makes a flight in the thin air of imaginative generalization; and it again lands for renewed observation rendered acute by rational interpretation. (Whitehead, 1978)

“I hear a tree in the wind at night” explores the dynamic correlation between technology and perception. The work aimed to reconstruct biological and geopolitical anxieties by pulling out the vibrations and curves of organic life in the midst of infinite mechanical apparatuses. The exhibition was designed to create a sensory disagreement of signals, from the ambiguous materiality of automated texts to the noise within meaningful voices, culminating in a state of pervasive disturbance.

The project was conceived as an open system in which every visitor could become a participant, influencing the work’s evolution. Though situated in a physical gallery, the work was globally accessible via the internet, allowing for interaction from anywhere in the world. This was achieved by constructing a networked system with both physical and digital interfaces that enabled a full-scale user experience. The system parsed and visualized real-time geolocational information and archived found footage into a dynamic database. Visitors’ smartphones served as an entry point, with their location data acting as a core resource for the work’s operation.

Through this data-driven digital interface, the work explored the philosophical dimensions of the “screen.” It transcended the traditional three-dimensional space by converting it into electronic digital information and visualizing it in real-time. This process challenged the viewer’s consciousness by dissolving the gap between the original experience and its digital representation. The visual composition, aided by navigational data, transformed individual images into temporal and spatial phenomena, energized by the fusion of real-space parameters.

The project concluded by representing a vista of multiple vectors where the sense of self was in a constant state of flux. Bright light from the ceiling moved continuously, casting a dynamic interplay of light and shadow across the physical exhibition space and the bodies of visitors. This state placed viewers in an ambiguous state between motion and stillness, creating an eerie sensation that drove the mind while conflicting with bodily presence. This experience of blurred boundaries between the physical and the virtual, the self and the environment, serves as the direct conceptual and technical foundation for my ongoing research into autonomous AI systems and their capacity to perceive and express a world beyond human-centric input.