ANIMA explores what it means to be alive in our age of artificial intelligence. We enter a darkened space where a luminous two-meter sphere floats in the middle of the room. This luminous entity functions as the sole source of light, drawing observers into its field of vision with its liquid metal patterns. The spherical projection is created from within the sphere using a high-powered, wide-angle projector and fisheye lens, which creates images in a 360-degree radius. The installation’s artificial intelligence continuously modifies the data to create viscous metallic fluid textures that distort and flow around the form. The space is filled with sequences of fixed sound frequencies that are transformed into musical motifs. This object acts as a metaphor for human-to-non-human relations as it creates a playful environment for us to investigate uncomfortable questions about communication among unknown entities. When do we perceive something as having a soul? How do we relate to beings different from ourselves?

Created in collaboration by artist Nick Verstand, the digital design studio Onformative and projection specialists Pufferfish, ANIMA represents a new form of digital art. As you move around this ethereal sculpture, you become part of an ongoing dialogue between human and artificial intelligence, exploring the emotional connections possible with non-human entities. 

(Barnabás Bencsik)