Mortal Myths for Machine Minds

Co-operative Aesthetics
In this floor and ceiling projection
by Gerhart Funk, visitors can move
about freely and thereby influence
the visual output of the wall and
floor projections and the sounds
audible in the space. I had the
chance to experience this whilst
on exchange. Visitors are meant
to playfully explore the phenomena
triggered and controlled by their
movements. In doing so, they
come into contact with others
in the space; they can mutually
coordinate their movements,
develop small choreographies,
and create a shared aesthetic
experience of space.
For the works screened by
*Cooperative Aesthetics*, the
emphasis isn’t so much on their
character as a game with a clearly
defined objective, but rather on
playfully exploring possibilities
together with others. And if there
is such an objective, then the point
is to achieve it by cooperating
with others and not by competing
against them. Accordingly, this
isn’t only an aesthetic experience,
it’s also an exercise in group
Dynamics.
I found this idea really interesting as
it changes the viewing experience
from; *hush-hush* walking around,
silently thinking - to - “how does
that bit work?”, “you need to
do this!”, communication driven
experience. I was influenced by
this heavily, and tried to make this a
feature in the work. Level 3 features
visual experimentation as a group,
levels 4 and 5 require viewers to
a complete a task together, and
level 2 lets users playfully smack
balls around creating sounds. This
playful group environment is the
context that the ideas are situated
within.
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