Influenced by the cultural shifts that technology creates, this series of fiber installations—The Masquerades of the Soft Machines— imagines a future dystopia warped by technology. The surreptitious collection of personal data has led to humanity controlled by the machine. Luciferins is one project in this series.
Luciferins is inspired by bioluminescent marine organisms & the plethora of invisible network traffic that surrounds us. As viewers walk through the hanging fiber structures, graphical animations appear. Graphical portals open showing invisible network communications. Field recordings interlaced with shortwave radio recordings play in the 7-channel sound system.
Luciferins makes our networks perceptible when they are imperceptible. The infrastructure that facilitates communication remains hidden (until it is broken). Body movement makes Luciferins’ perceptible; enabling one to see invisible activity that surrounds them—just as a swimmer makes a dwelling of sea sparkle appear by swimming through it.
This is the first machine in the series The Masquerades of The Soft Machines.
• DATES: Aug 28 – Oct 31 2021. Weekends and by appointment through October 31
• LOCATION: The Workings of Media [art and artists] at the Harvestworks Art and Technology House. Building 10a, Nolan Park, Governors Island
Documentation of the installation:
• BIOS
As a new media, fiber, and installation artist, LadyK’s practice encompasses interactive and responsive systems exploring how our collective digital experiences are shaping our future. She merges ancient fiber traditions with programming and physical computing to create nervous systems for her handcrafted soft fiber structures. In her piece Memory Capsules, she felted cocoons, embedding custom electronics and mini-displays, to depict memories. A viewer’s soft breath activates the cocoons, triggering the memories. Yet this system, which was entrusted to protect memories, instead warps, degrades, and erases them. Liminal spaces brought forth by digital technologies fascinate her, as LadyK explores the cultural transformations that result. Her latest environments investigate how communication technologies are shaping our identity, pushing a tighter integration with the machine.
LadyK is the recipient of numerous state and national grants, including the NYSCA, Ohio Arts Council and Puffin Foundation, among others. She has exhibited nationally and internationally, including at Ars Electronica, ISEA, ZKM, Maryland Art Place, Indianapolis Art Center, Collar Works, The University of the Arts, the Contemporary Arts Center of Cincinnati, among others. Selected residencies include Harvestworks, Jentel, Weir Farm and Vermont Studio Center (full grant). Her work also appears in the Spring 2019 and 2020 issues of Fiber Arts Now. She teaches human-computer interaction design, programming, and physical computing at New York University’s Tandon School of Engineering.
• LINKS
Luciferins documentation
https://vimeo.com/485183280
• WEBSITE AND SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS
www.katherinebennett.net
www.katherinebennett.net/process
Twitter – LadyKStudios
Instagram – LadyKStudios
Github – LadyK