Art Installations Narrative/storytelling

As I Sync My Breath With You

an interactive breathing experience that invites the audience to breathe in and out a series of breathable animations to explore both the visual storytelling of the animations and our own inner worlds.

Student

Caren Wenqing Ye

Advisor

Simone Salvo

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Abstract

I believe that true wisdom comes from within, and that by looking inward, we can access the deep reservoirs of insight and understanding that lie within us. Through breathing, we connect our life to consciousness, uniting body to thoughts. As quoted by Thich Nhat Hanh in his book The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation: "Whenever your mind becomes scattered, use your breath as the means to take hold of your mind again." As I Sync My Breath With You consists of a series of breathable animations that invites us to feel our existence through breathing in a playful, meditative and reflective way. It contains multimedia works and events that incorporate interactive breathing technology, such as sensors, webcams, and OSC communication to trigger animated visuals through the act of breathing. It is presented in various mediums: interactive video installation, immersive room projection mapping, live audiovisual performance, public screen art, and art-guided therapeutic workshops. Each animation within this breathing experience conveys a message or sentiment, serving as a lens to explore fundamental truths of our existence such as life, birth, energy, interconnectedness, and the non-linear nature of time. As the participant inhales and exhales, they will be able to see the animations come to life, creating an interactive and engaging experience that encourages a poetic moment to wonder and reflect.  

Research

My biggest sources of inspiration and soul food for this project: True Perception: The Path of Dharma Art, book by Chögyam Trungpa How to Focus, book by Thich Nhat Hanh Immersion in the Visual Arts and Media, Edited by Fabienne Liptay and Burcu Dogramaci 13 Essential Rules For Understanding the World,  film by Basim Madgy

Technical Details

Breathable animations created using Blender, an open source 3D content creation software Breathing data detected by MultiSense OSC app and connected with MaxMSP to MadMapper for projection mapping AI Integrated breathable videos developed with Runway's Gen-1