Artechouse & Machine Hallucination by Refik Anadol
Summary
Machine Hallucination is a new installation in the newly opened Artechouse in Chelsea Market, NYC. The artist wants to “reveal the hidden connections between these [architectural styles and movements] moments in architectural history” (artechouse). The installation produces images of NYC architecture that move and morph into different buildings to help show the “future” of architecture. There are also sounds such as radio transmissions and city sounds that are played along with the visuals (Saraniero). Artechouse itself is a place to host installations, such as this project, and supports such emerging tech. For example, its balcony bar has drinks and coasters that can “come to life” through augmented reality which you activate through a smartphone app.
My Thoughts
Regarding Artechouse, I think it’s really great that more people are recognizing the growth of machine learning and the potential it has, as shown by the project mentioned above. It makes me wonder if there are going to be more places opening in cities that integrate technology such as AR and ML, which is exciting. As for the Machine Hallucination, I was really interested in how immersive it seems, since it’s an entire room that’s covered in the visuals and the sounds. I think it’s a good example of zero UI in that there’s no screen. People are just completely surrounded by the experience.
Technology that went into making it:
I would assume there would be machine learning algorithms, speakers, projectors, Manhattan architecture and image databases (3 million images), and lots of coding. One of the articles mentioned that Artechouse has “L-ISA Immersive Hyperreal Sound technology with 32 separate channels for an entirely multidimensional audio experience” (Waddoups)
Sources
https://www.artechouse.com/nyc
Saraniero, Nicole, “Photos Inside Chelsea Market’s New Hidden Underground Art Space”, https://untappedcities.com/2019/09/05/photos-inside-chelsea-markets-new-hidden-underground-art-space/
Waddoups, Ryan, “Enter Manhattan’s Sprawling New Digital Art Mecca”, https://www.surfacemag.com/articles/artechouse-nyc-opening/
Zandl, Irma, “Machine Hallucination at ARTECHOUSE NYC”, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLjSNqzWOMk