Presentation of Self in the Machine

The live footage of the talk, including the Q&A, can be viewed on the session page, VISAP Opening Reception (6:00pm-8:00pm) | -- Art Exhibit Location: Automobile Alley.

Abstract

The world has been driven apart by recent events, making long distance performative mingling difficult to achieve, especially those employing in-person collaboration between humans and machines. How shall we reclaim a tangible exchange between the US and other parts of the world that has presence and meaning, as opposed to impersonal virtual interactions? We created and choreographed and an art technology performance exchange that would allow viewers in Oklahoma City to immerse themselves in a collaborative narrative space between a dancer in the US and a robot arm in City University of Hong Kong's Studio for Narrative Spaces. The performance can be shown in either online or offline form to audiences, who witness the narrative of a dancer and a robot who communicate with each other through movement, sometimes leading one another, sometimes frustrating each other, but always communicating as if each other are present to each other across a 12 hour divide. We propose an evening 9pm performance in Oklahoma City presented by dancer Mizuho Kappa, remotely choregraphed by RAY LC, which is simultaneously streamed live in the morning 10am at the School of Creative Media in Hong Kong, where a robot arm moves in response to movements undertaken by Mizuho. The live stream from Hong Kong is also shared with Oklahoma City, enabling Mizuho and RAY to interactively alter the dance movements and choreography live through visual comparison with the robot in a collaborative digital space. The robot imitates Mizuho’s head using its hand and her body using its arm. The choreography follows Mizuho as she steps outside the digital realm of the virtual platform and into the physical stage, enticing the robot to dance with her. The robot starts with only block-like movements but eventually learns to mimic her with his body. Still he cannot run around or use hands like Mizuho, and eventually seeks help. Soon Mizuho begins performing actions that the arm is not capable of, such as jumping and lying flat on the ground, leading the robot to wonder on his own: is there also something I can do that the human cannot?