Photo: Ars Electronica / Birgit Cakir
YEAR
2025
TYPE
Interactive Art
UNIVERSITY
Time-based & Interactive Media Art
University of Art & Design,
Linz
Synesthesia
This immersive experience is inspired by synesthesia, a special form of sensory perception, in which the senses are connected in unexpected ways. Synesthetes, may see shapes to numbers, taste words or hear colors.
What might it feel like to not only see colours, but also hear them? The application for multimedia spaces invites visitors to collaboratively create digital colours and immerse themselves in the soundscape generated in response.
#interactive #playful #audiovisual
Video: Pauline Hübner, Lun Raaberg; with Mirjam Bär, Neo Klinger, Jingwen Lou
The interactive game is now part of the applications of the Deep Space 8k of Ars Electronica Center Linz.
Players interact cooperatively on a bright or dark floor-projected canvas, mixing colours and triggering sounds. Every colorshade is linked to a specific note.
The game playfully introduces the additive color mixing system, while offering a multisensory experience inspired by the perceptual world of synesthetes.
INTERACTION
1. Assign Colors:
Each player starts with one of eight base colors.
2. Change Colors:
Players can switch their color by jumping off the floor.
3. Mix & Create:
When players approach each other, their colors blend, creating a new hue and a corresponding sound.
Technology
Photo: Ars Electronica / Birgit Cakir
LASER-TRACKING
The installation uses laser tracking to detect participants’ XY-coordinates, triggering real-time visual and auditory responses.
There is no strict limit to the number of participants, though the system’s ability to distinguish individuals may decrease at high densities.
Behind the scenes of coding with Processing and testing the concept.
Showcase
Photos : Ars Electronica / Birgit Cakir
SPECIAL THANKS:
Marco Mrčela | Sound Design
Holunder Heiß | Supervisor | University of Art & Design | Time-based & Interactive Media
Cécile Bucher | Supervisor | University of Art & Design | Time-based & Interactive Media
Technician Team | Ars Electronica Center
Presented at Ars Electronica Festival 2025 in Linz, Austria
Part of the Deep Space 8k active applications