kennedy+swan created a series of watercolors that can be scanned using their mobile Augmented Reality app, merging the tactile with the digital. Each image is augmented with an interactive virtual scene, expanding the narrative of the paintings. The 3D elements, handcrafted by the artists in the form of miniatures, sculptures, and drawings, are then digitized to complete the AR overlay.
How can something technical like Artificial Intelligence—so often associated with our alienation from Nature—help us listen to and communicate with non-human beings?
Upon closer examination, most animals and even plants have their unique forms of communication—languages that we're only beginning to decode with modern technology. Yet, the real question remains: Is humanity prepared to embrace the profound insights offered by Nature's sonic dialogues?
The work consists of 18 unique watercolors that can be scanned with the free app "Mixed Signals", available in the Google Play Store and the iOS App Store.
You can try the AR experience at home by downloading the app and scanning the images at the bottom of this website: https://www.kennedyswan.com/mixed-signals.
kennedy+swan created a series of watercolors that can be scanned using their mobile Augmented Reality app, merging the tactile with the digital. Each image is augmented with an interactive virtual scene, expanding the narrative of the paintings. The 3D elements, handcrafted by the artists in the form of miniatures, sculptures, and drawings, are then digitized to complete the AR overlay.
How can something technical like Artificial Intelligence—so often associated with our alienation from Nature—help us listen to and communicate with non-human beings?
Upon closer examination, most animals and even plants have their unique forms of communication—languages that we're only beginning to decode with modern technology. Yet, the real question remains: Is humanity prepared to embrace the profound insights offered by Nature's sonic dialogues?
The work consists of 18 unique watercolors that can be scanned with the free app "Mixed Signals", available in the Google Play Store and the iOS App Store.
You can try the AR experience at home by downloading the app and scanning the images at the bottom of this website: https://www.kennedyswan.com/mixed-signals.
AR paintings and app: kennedy + swan
Scientific collaboration with Dr. Tim Landgraf
With support from: Ether Bloom’s program on artificial intelligence at the Gropius Bau, Berlin
kennedy+swan (DE, founded in 2013) comprises the work of the two artists Bianca Kennedy and Swan Collective. When working together, they explore the future of evolution and its impact on plants, animals, and humans. These utopias are liberated from human supremacy, illuminating the ecological benefits of hybrid life forms, and addressing the twisted relationship between humans and machines. For their videos, VR and AR installations, the duo employs a variety of animation techniques: drawings, stereoscopic film footage, 3D-scanned landscapes, and self-built characters create a dense network of analog and digital imagery. Recent works utilize and reflect the rise of Artificial Intelligence by integrating AI-generated texts and images into their animations.
kennedy+swan (DE, founded in 2013) comprises the work of the two artists Bianca Kennedy and Swan Collective. When working together, they explore the future of evolution and its impact on plants, animals, and humans. These utopias are liberated from human supremacy, illuminating the ecological benefits of hybrid life forms, and addressing the twisted relationship between humans and machines. For their videos, VR and AR installations, the duo employs a variety of animation techniques: drawings, stereoscopic film footage, 3D-scanned landscapes, and self-built characters create a dense network of analog and digital imagery. Recent works utilize and reflect the rise of Artificial Intelligence by integrating AI-generated texts and images into their animations.
Mixed Signals consists of a series of watercolors that come to life by means of Augmented Reality. The strange and beautiful images weave a complex narrative that extends into our reality. At a time when museums are struggling to become more interactive, this is an impressive example of how this could happen. In addition to their aesthetic form, the AR paintings also create a level of engagement with new technologies, promising to connect us with non-human beings. They thereby envision a future when we are able to communicate with animals and plants, opening ourselves to the messages of nature. The technological enchantment of the everyday invites us to take on different perspectives of our world.
Mixed Signals consists of a series of watercolors that come to life by means of Augmented Reality. The strange and beautiful images weave a complex narrative that extends into our reality. At a time when museums are struggling to become more interactive, this is an impressive example of how this could happen. In addition to their aesthetic form, the AR paintings also create a level of engagement with new technologies, promising to connect us with non-human beings. They thereby envision a future when we are able to communicate with animals and plants, opening ourselves to the messages of nature. The technological enchantment of the everyday invites us to take on different perspectives of our world.