- Mariko Mori: Sister
from Another Planet
- Andrew Zolli opednews.com
-
 How
does one describe the world and work of Mariko Mori? The
category-defying Japanese artist's photographs, installations, and
video work seem to emanate from an imagined near-future, mixing
influences from eastern and western religion, popular futurism, and
the world of otaku (albeit less overtly than 'superflat'
artist Takashi
Murakami). She's the aesthetic lovechild of William
Gibson, Cindy
Sherman, and the Ghost
in the Shell.
- In the 1990’s, Mori became known for her intensely stylized
photographs and multimedia projects. In these, she starred as a
priestess, anime babe, and a goddess, exploring the imaginary
iconography of a globalized future culture. The work flirted on the
edge of kitsch, but also synthesized a myriad of connected influences,
from anime to transhumanism, that were bubbling up in the
pre-millennial psyche. And it catapulted 36 year-old Mori to the top
of the global art scene.
- Now, Mori has a new installation in New York. Called 'Wave
UFO', the work transcends the pop iconography of her
earlier efforts and offers an immersive experience that brings
together architecture, real-time computer graphics, brainwave
technology, sound, and state-of-the-art engineering to create a
profound interactive experience. Anyone interested in experience
design, and the relationship between art, technology and the future
should see it.
click on image for larger version
- Wave UFO is a 34-foot long, 17-foot tall droplet-shaped
capsule of polished silver fiberglass that ‘floats’ on stilts
about 5 feet above the ground. Inside the shell is an interior
capsule, which is reached by white polished stairs. Inside this
capsule, three visitors at a time can rest comfortably on an
ergonomically-curved surface covered in technogel.
As they look up at the domed interior of the capsule, they are treated
to a seven minute digital animation, projected from the center of the
pod.
click on image for larger version
- But this is no ordinary video presentation. Just prior to entrance,
the visitors are outfitted with a set of electrodes (provided by IBVA)
which read their brain activity. This activity is digitized and
influences the structure and timing of the animation - in real time.
The result is an experience that is simultaneously individual and
communal, and utterly distinctive - a unique visual ‘trio’ of
brain patterns that dance before the visitors eyes. The experience,
aimed at bringing visitors into a deeper sense of the 'connected
world', succeeds marvelously.
click on image for larger version
- Wave UFO is such a stunning and novel integration of media
and technologies that it is almost impossible to critique - we don’t
yet have a critical language for it. But the work amply demonstrates
one truth: artists will continue to pave the way for the integrated
experience of multiple media and multiple sensory channels. Designers
and industry leaders should be watching carefully.
- Wave UFO runs until July 31, 2003 in the atrium at 590 Madison
Avenue at 56th Street. Hours are Tues: 10am - 8pm, Wed-Sat: 11am -
7pm, Sun: 11am - 5pm.
- Reviews of Mori's work are available here: [1],
[2],
[3].
CODA:
- Ironically, one of the most impressive things about Wave UFO
is the part that can’t be seen. The software which analyzes and
visualizes brain activity, developed by Masahiro Kahata, runs on
computers which are hidden from visitor’s view. During our
interview, Mariko took us back ‘behind the curtain’ where Mr.
Kahata, like the great-and-powerful Oz, monitored machines that are
capable of even more powerful visualizations. Kahata showed how users
might ‘fly’ through a landscape whose peaks and valleys are
defined by the brainwaves induced by their own act of watching. More
on the software will follow in this space.
was
founded by Andrew Zolli in 2001.
Andrew
Zolli of Z
+ Partners is
a forecaster, design strategist and author, working at the intersection of
culture, creativity, technology, and futures research. Andrew specializes
in helping people and institutions see, understand and act upon complex
change. Most recently, Andrew was the editor of the Catalog of Tomorrow,
(QUE Publishing, 2002) which explores 100 trend and technologies for the
next 25 years. His next book, In Good Company, about the complex
relationship between companies and culture, will be published in 2004. He
also serves as a Futurist in Residence Popular Science magazine, and is a
regular contributor to Wired magazine. |
