verena bachl and karsten schuhl's AI-powered installation mimics the cycle of daylight

‘what is for sure’ by verena bachl and karsten shuhl

Berlin-based artists Verena Bachl and Karsten Schuhl join forces to create What is for Sure, a light installation that explores the sun’s course and our perception of time. Like the view through a window to the outside world, a series of diffusing light tubes mimic the rhythm and duration of daylight phases through subtle variations in color and brightness. This natural cycle is altered between sunrise and sunset, showing a mixture of video sequences that capture natural scenes and artificially generated representations created by Artificial Intelligence. 

all images courtesy Studio Verena Bachl

exploring the sun’s course and our perception of time

‘The fundamental nature of the sun’s course and our perception of time once considered reliable, now appears uncertain, raising the question of what we can rely on in a world where AI is increasingly intertwined with our daily lives. Natural light as a transmitter of time is unique and defines the relationship between time and space through movement, change, and rhythm. Artificial light has a special relationship with time and space, as this relationship needs to be re-established constantly and therefore offers the possibility for artistic investigation and manipulation,’ shares Verena Bachl (see more here) 

What is For Sure installation by Verena Bachl and Karsten Schuhl

using AI, diffusion layers within tubes, and sonification

The LED tubes are specially produced for this installation and form an antithesis to current high-resolution image reproduction media, as they allow information to be abstracted. In addition, diffusion layers within the tubes and the physical arrangement of the resulting tubes help to fragment further the information to be observed. Karsten Schuhl (see more here) produced the video sound design documentation by means of sonification of the input footage using Max/MSP. The footage displayed within is fed through color and structural analysis and directly packaged into a resynthesis system. Varying block lengths in the FFT-resynthesis result in tracks which filter and enhance auditory structures of each other therefore at times highlighting changes in visual data of the captured and generated footage of the installation. The low fidelity, low complexity spectral translation is used to reframe the visual presentation through an unanticipated sonic counterpart. 

using stainless steel, glass, acrylic paint and aluminum to build the artwork

detail shot

subtle variations in color and brightness to mimic the cycle from sunrise to sunset

LED tubes are specially produced for this installation

the artwork addresses chromatic changes in the sky caused by atmospheric scattering

1/3

 

sonification of installation footage

 

project info:

name: What is for Sure
artists: Verena Bachl (here) | @verena.bachl, Karsten Schuhl (here) | @karstenschuhl

material: Stainless steel, glass, acrylic paint, aluminum, LED, PLA, custom electronic

dimensions: 158 x 106 x 5 cm

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lea zeitoun | designboom