Spring, 2023
How does a tree feel? In this work, I have explored this question and tried to find a visual language to visualize the biological processes that take place in a tree. To do this, I used large data sets as the basis for code-generated organic shapes that represent the state of a tree. I presented the videos using projectors and accompanied them with sound, resulting in an immersive video installation.
In this data visualization, I used the matter.js and p5.js libraries to visualize and sonify the data. As the project progressed, the line between analog and digital became blurred.
PROCESS
I used tree data from the Pfynwald forest in Valais, Switzerland. My concept was to depict a tree from this forest and use data visualisation to show it as a living being that communicates, breathes and reacts to its environment. To do this, I drew numerous sketches showing the inside of a tree. The next step was to program the basic structure and physics of my data visualisation using the matter.js library. To transfer the tension of the sketches to the visualisation, I scanned individual cells (circles) from the sketches and used the resulting PNGs as basic design elements. To complement the visualisation, I set the tree stress data to music using an oscillator. I ended up with two video sequences, accompanied by an audio track. I then staged the whole thing as a video installation in space.
