Becoming

Lilian Zhao

Becoming
Image credit: Lilian Zhao

Abstract:

Becoming’ recontextualizes a custom playable device as a living entity that responds to both interaction through an analog interface, and audiovisual stimuli detected from the surrounding environment. Using adaptive animations and ambient soundscapes, the piece creates a volatile space that evokes thoughts of transformation, growth, and destruction. It tells the story of a machine grappling with fate and embraces human nature through the eyes of something artificial. The visual component arises through layers upon layers of blood red lines that coalesce into abstract shapes, mirroring processes of growth and decay. The accompanying soundscape layers mechanical noises with ambient sounds like human voices from the surrounding space, emphasizing the tension between artificial systems and organic environments. Through its unpredictable behavior, the work challenges the audience to reflect on questions of agency, determinism, and the fluid nature of identity.