As humans, we perceive our surroundings not only through our bodies but also through tools and interfaces that expand our perception. Ways of Sensing invites us to explore non-human modes of sensing—both technological and ecological—while examining the interactions between different beings.
Enter a techno-ecological landscape inhabited by alien species that function as machines, shaped by natural forces. Wind and bird migration data animate Sunjoo Lee‘s wind harps shaped like large eggs, while Nika Schmitt’s mechanical flowers transform light loops into sound. In Adam Centko‘s virtual simulation, a natural environment is perpetually constructed and deconstructed by human interference and the overheating of computers.
Adam Centko
Adam is a lens-based artist who observes the intricate workings of our ecosystem. Rather than viewing technology and nature as opposing forces, he sees human inventions as extensions of the natural world. Through mediums like video and 3D animation, he highlights these interconnected relationships.
Garden of Aether (2022)
Garden of Aether is a real-time simulation in which non-playable characters autonomously interact with the digital environment. Each brief generation builds a new sculpture in a sonic and visual landscape, consuming computational resources and heating the system. As pollution rises, they rush to the fire exit—only to be replaced, repeating the cycle.
Commissioned by Slagwerk Den Haag, Lead Developer: Eusebi Jucglà, Sound: Frank Wienk, Production: David Veneman, Typeface: Celine Hurka, 3D assets assistance: Samuel Rynearson, Installation assistance: Jakov Habjan
Sunjoo Lee
Sunjoo Lee is an interdisciplinary artist who works in the crossover between art, technology, and ecology. She collaborates with ecologists and technicians, intrigued by the diverse ways electronics and digital tools are used beyond human interests. In her recent projects, she has explored the lifespans of trees, biomimicry systems, and the tracking of migrating birds.
Aeolian Eggs (2021)
Aeolian Eggs is a sound installation composed of three wind harps, fans, and a computer with a custom algorithm. The harps and fans move according to data from a migrating honey buzzard—terrain height, air temperature, altitude, speed, and wind conditions—as it travels from Liberia to the Veluwe.
Collaboration with Ko de Beer and 12 student participants of Spacemakers program. Commissioned and co-produced by STRP.
Nika Schmitt
Nika Schmitt creates site-specific sound installations and kinetic sculptures that explore feedback loops and self-modifying systems. Her work investigates electrical energy as a means to reveal the interconnectedness and entanglement of time, matter, and the rhythmic cycles that shape the world around us.
sweet zenith (2022)
In sweet zenith, two light pendulums orbit solar collectors mounted on poles. Driven by their own luminosity, the pendulums never come to rest. Sound becomes light, light becomes movement, and movement again becomes sound in a perpetual feedback loop. The space shapes and contains this ever-shifting interplay of opposing forces.
Presented by iii with financial support from Creative Industries Fund NL and The Municipality of The Hague.
