Dmitry Morozov, known as ::vtol::, develops technology-based installations and kinetic sculptures that combine robotics, sounds, coding, and interactive systems. The Moscow-born, Ljubljana-based transdisciplinary artist and researcher centers his practice on electronic installations that react and respond to environmental changes and the proximity of the viewers. They include robotic systems, sound generators, and mechanical devices that operate independently once activated. ::vtol:: presented three of his recent projects at Sónar+D between June 12th and 14th, 2025, during which designboom also hosted a live talk with the artist.

In a recent interview, the artist, who’s the mastermind behind the tattoo-based instrument Reading My Body and wearable mask organ Last Breath, shares with us that when he creates works, he’s creating a form of entities with agencies rather than just tools. ‘Ultimately, I perceive my works as participants in a gigantic performance called technological art. This kind of art is very ephemeral, as the lifespan of any object is quite limited—either the electronics will break down, the software will be updated, or the mechanics will fail,’ he tells us.

view of Last Breath | all images courtesy of Dmitry Morozov, known as ::vtol::

microcontrollers process sensors and control mechanics

::vtol:: constructs his kinetic sculptures, robotics, sounds, and code-driven installations using electronic components, sensors, motors, and custom programming code, and each work includes microcontrollers that process sensor data and control mechanical movements. The systems respond to sound, motion, light, or other environmental inputs, allowing these machines to exhibit unpredictable behaviors that seem to react to the user’s mood and handling methods. The artist applies sculptural methods to electronic construction, too. Instead of following engineering protocols, he treats circuit boards, sensors, and actuators as sculptural materials. 

This approach of ::vtol:: produces kinetic sculptures, robotics, and installations that have personality traits with their operational patterns. Sound generation systems are often a recurring theme in his practice, where mechanical components create acoustic outputs through vibration, striking, or air movement. Electronic circuits process these sounds and feed them back into the mechanical systems, creating feedback loops. The works operate as autonomous performers, and sensors detect audience presence and environmental changes. The systems modify their behavior based on this input data, so different audience interactions produce varying mechanical responses.

side profile of Last Breath

Technology-based artworks that demonstrate lifelike behaviors

::vtol:: shares with designboom that while he creates what may be considered as a ‘set of electronic components and code’, he always puts his soul into these kinetic sculptures, robotics, and installations. After all, he’s partly a sculptor, and not an engineer, as he describes himself. ‘I grew up in the 80s and 90s when half of all devices were still analog. These devices behaved so unpredictably that it seemed to depend even on your mood transmitted in the field around the object. I believe this quality has also transferred to many of my works. Since childhood, I have been accustomed to perceiving devices not just as soulless objects, but as living beings,’’ he explains to us. 

It’s worth noting that he’s not inclined towards esotericism, but the artist admits that there is certainly more for people to discover about how living and non-living objects interact on different levels. As a result, the kinetic sculptures, robotics, and installations of ::vtol:: explore relationships between living beings and technological systems, and he investigates how people interact with machines that demonstrate lifelike behaviors. The installations then respond to human presence in ways that suggest awareness or intention. Below, we continue our conversation with the transdisciplinary artist and researcher, who tells us the beginning of his artistic journey, his creative process, the backstories of the projects he presented at Sónar+D in Barcelona, and the ways he sees the ever-evolving climate of contemporary digital art.

the exhaled air (its pressure and flow rate) activates the generative process

Interview with Dmitry Morozov, known as ::vtol::

Designboom (DB): Your practice spans kinetic sculpture, robotics, sound, and code-driven installations. Can you walk us through your trajectory as a transdisciplinary artist and researcher? What were some of the pivotal moments or turning points that shaped your current approach?

Dmitry Morozov / ::vtol:: : I started my journey as an artist completely unaware that I was one. I understand that this sounds unusual or even strange, but I truly became a media artist before I even realized it myself. Initially, I became very fascinated with electronic experimental music: formless, strange, and endlessly testing new ways of extracting and creating timbres. This led me into the world of electronics as a DIY practice: circuit-bending, DIY synthesizers, and so on. I began building my own synthesizers and strange controllers for creating and manipulating sound around 2006-2007. At that time, I didn’t yet understand that there was a vast scene where interactive art, multimedia, music, and sound art intersected. 

The format of installations, sculptures, or performances didn’t interest me much back then, although many of my early objects were in some way related to them. Everything changed when a few of my more knowledgeable friends in this practice told me that with my skills, I could easily fit into much more prestigious events like exhibitions and contemporary art festivals, unlike the underground noise concerts I was used to. All it took was to make my ‘instruments’ larger and more friendly for audience interaction. I tried it, and I really enjoyed the audience’s reaction; seeing viewers interact with your work is incredibly energizing.

‘топот-м’ explores the concept of an extended body

::vtol:: (continues): By that time, I had already created many instruments for other musicians, such as Aphex Twin, but usually, my instruments ended up in studios and collections, and you rarely receive feedback or get to observe how they are used. With interactive art, everything is quite different; essentially, you witness the act of interaction or observation, which is the artwork itself. It emerges at that moment, not when you finish creating the mechanism. At first, my works only included sound, but very quickly the media expanded – light was added, movement, more complex interactivity; the works became more conceptually thought out, addressing various complex themes – sometimes social, sometimes very abstract or historical (for example, media-archaeological). 

In fact, when you master one technical language as your tool – like electronics or programming – other ‘mediums’ become clearer and easier to learn quickly. The main thing is to understand the logic of data and signals and how they can interact with each other if needed. This rapidly and easily expands your expressive range. Thus, I quickly shifted to kinetic and robotic works, and since programming is necessary for their operation, you begin to see the potential in works that primarily consist of code, regularly venturing into that territory (for example, my project Hotspot poet). I believe that the combination of different media can greatly support each other when revealing a particular concept, especially if it is embodied in a design and visually appealing object.

‘you, me and all these machines’ is a performance for voice and electronic devices

DB: Your projects often carry a strong DIY ethic, open-source tools, hacked hardware, self-built systems. How do science, tinkering, and the ethos of experimentation inform your creative process? What role does risk or failure play in how you develop new work?

::vtol:: : DIY is the most important ideology in my work. I believe that an artist should do as much as possible by themselves and use as little ready-made material or outsourcing as possible. Of course, this approach can lead to absurdity, and one might even start making electronic components themselves (like my project Resistor) or wires, but I am endless in this pursuit, and whatever happens, happens. Essentially, the more that is done exclusively by you in your work, the more it reflects you, although this is not so simple in technological art. This leads to many mistakes – some of them are fatal for the project, while others open new horizons, often turning the meaning of the work 180 degrees. By introducing something into it that is beyond your control, you simply allow it to exist. 

Overall, I subscribe to the concept that ideas don’t belong to their authors; we are just lucky to snatch them from the flow of something and, given the right circumstances, embody them in a piece of art. Therefore, I am always happy to share both ideas and technical components of projects; this even affects their appearance. I rarely hide elements in a case; it is usually immediately clear how everything is made. In the last 5 – 6 years, I have also actively taken up teaching, which is very energizing. You systematize and structure your knowledge to share it more successfully, and this, in turn, inspires new ideas. It’s really cool to see how your students pick this up; you show them some technique that has become clichéd for you, and they suddenly apply it in a very unconventional way.

‘drop’ is a small automatic device consisting of a Geiger counter

DB: A few years back we published two of your projects, Reading My Body and Last Breath, on designboom. Can you take us inside the making of those pieces? What were the conceptual or technical challenges, and how did they evolve during the process?

::vtol:: : Reading My Body was initially inspired by some silly sci-fi movie where people had barcode tattoos that worked as passes to different zones. I liked the idea of a functional design on the body, but instead of control, I wanted it to be something more elegant. At that time, my friends were organizing a sound art festival of performances, and I decided to create a strange performance there – I would get a tattoo and make a robot that would use it as a score. 

Everything happened lightning fast; I drew the tattoo in Photoshop in probably about 20 minutes, then immediately ran to find a salon with an available artist, but it was already evening and everyone was either busy or didn’t want to do such a tattoo. Eventually, in despair, I stumbled into the last salon that happened to be on my way; everything there was in a biker-rocker style, far from what I needed, but they liked the idea when I started explaining it, and the artist did everything very quickly. I didn’t wait for the tattoo to heal and immediately started ‘building’ the object for reading it; a couple of times I touched the tattoo with the details – it was very painful and funny.

there’s a hydraulic system involved in the work ‘drop’

::vtol:: (continues): In the end, it turned out to be a very successful work – when I shot the video and posted the documentation, the project spread all over the internet. I understand that from both a sound and technical perspective, it could have been much more complex or successful, but everything turned out as it did – thanks to the DIY approach and quick decision-making! I was very pleased with myself, and a few years later, I learned that this project inspired experimenters at MIT Media Labs to conduct their research in this direction, creating smart tattoos for medical purposes. So sometimes even DIY artists can be useful to society. As for the project ‘Last Breath,’ it was born when I was in India in 2019 and became seriously ill with some virus. 

COVID was still a whole year away, so I anticipated a trend a year in advance; artists sometimes have good intuition. I was very scared of dying back then, but not because I was afraid for my life, but because I didn’t want to stop creating, playing music, and engaging in creativity. So, I essentially made myself a pre-mortem instrument, in case I could no longer move but would still be breathing. It turned out epic and even a bit brutal. This is, by the way, a good example to illustrate co-participation with a technological object – it cannot exist without me, and I cannot exist without it, but I do not define everything it does; the instrument has its own working algorithm, and all it needs from me is a flow of air. This significantly changes the hierarchy between the instrument and the performer, establishing rather a horizontal connection.

view of j2000.0

DB: This year, you presented a series of projects at Sónar+D’s Project Area. What did you showcase, and how does it build on, or depart from, your previous projects? Are there any shifts in your materials, methods, or conceptual interests that this new work reveals?

::vtol:: : I presented three works, quite different and from different periods of my life. The first work is ‘Drop,’ a small sound sculpture-fountain. The work uses a small Geiger counter that measures radiation levels. It’s a simple but very precise device capable of detecting even individual particles passing through it. There is always a slight background radiation on any point of Earth, which is absolutely normal. 

Each time one of the particles passes through the device, a drop falls from a small tube into a basin equipped with optical sensors that detect the ripples in the water after the drop falls. These sensors control a small synthesizer that produces sounds. The longer the device operates, the more complex its timbre becomes; that is, it is a sound composition developing over time, dependent on a natural phenomenon. It’s quite a meditative device.

iPot is a device for performing a digital tea ceremony

::vtol:: (continues): The second work is ‘Remember Me, Erase Me,’ which, strangely enough, has no sound. Essentially, it’s a selfie machine – anyone can approach it and take their picture simply by pressing a button. But as soon as they take the shot, the photo starts to distort as if it is being forgotten; they need to press another button to stop the degradation and print the photo. So, it’s like memories –  the longer ago something was, the worse the image is preserved, although it remains recognizable for quite some time. The third work is a collaborative project with artist Alexandra Gavrilova called ‘iPot.’ Essentially, it’s a robot for a tea ceremony. The machine heats water and then pours it into a transparent reservoir, above which there is a camera. After that, a small ball of Chinese tea falls from a tube, which looks like a blooming flower during brewing. 

This ball gradually unfolds, and the camera connected to a program tracks this and transforms its movement into digital abstract graphics and sound. After some time, this process stops, and the prepared tea is automatically poured into five small cups offered to the audience. Even in hot Barcelona, viewers were very happy to taste exquisite tea from such an unusual machine, especially after observing the entire process. Despite the fact that these works were created some time ago, they are still quite new, and in response to your question, I would say that the most significant change is a certain lyrical and poetic quality in my works that has become more characteristic of me in recent years. Perhaps long interaction with technology has generated in me a desire to convey increasingly human qualities using non-human agents.

‘reading my body’ is а sound controller that uses tattoo as a music score | read more here

DB: Looking ahead, what excites you most about where digital art is going? Are there any current trends or technologies you find troubling, ethically, politically, or artistically?

::vtol:: : I am closely following how contemporary digital art is changing. There are aspects that I really like – such as the fact that materials and many technologies are becoming increasingly compact and accessible. However, there are other things that I like a bit less – like how everyone has jumped on the AI bandwagon, even when it may not be particularly relevant to a specific project. The technology itself is wonderful and holds endless potential, but I often see its use merely in favor of trends. 

It would be foolish to deny its significance for art, but personally, I use it very little; perhaps that will change in the near future. What I undoubtedly appreciate is that AI has greatly simplified programming for people who have never learned it, and most artists are initially quite distant from programming. The way ChatGPT can skillfully handle code and assist in creating programs of various levels is astonishing; I see how quickly my students are progressing because of this. It opens up new horizons in art.

‘hotspot poet’ distributes wi-fi masked as wireless network

project info:

artist: ::vtol:: | @vtol_

name: Dmitry Morozov

The post inside the world of ::vtol:: and his kinetic sculptures, robotics and code-driven installations appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

Sónar+D addresses the use of quantum science in art, making music with AI, experimental video games in performances, and what the future looks like in the creative industries in a series of talks at Sónar 2025. The event runs from June 12th to 14th, 2025, at Fira Montjuïc in Barcelona, Spain, as part of the annual electronic music and digital art festival. On these days, over 100 lectures, exhibitions, workshops, and performances take place at once. designboom also hosts discussions during the festival, interviewing artists Yolanda Uriz, Dmitry Morozov aka ::vtol::, and George Moraitis on their practice and the making of their modern art, sound performances, and stage designs.

Yolanda Uriz uses physical phenomena, vibration, electromagnetic waves, and chemical molecules to decode sound, light, and smells in her installations and performances. This adoption of sound is also present in Dmitry Morozov aka ::vtol::’s robotics and installation, placing emphasis on the link between emergent systems and new kinds of technological synthesis. Even George Moraitis works with sound to narrate memory, experience, and a sense of history through sound art, audiovisual installations, and two-dimensional works and performance. Designboom’s talks take place on June 12th from 5:30pm. Historically, Sónar+D was established in 2013 as a platform for creatives to examine the ways technology, and now AI, influences art, music, and even society. This edition’s conferences focus on three main thematic areas: AI + Creativity, Futuring the Creative Industries, and Worlds to Come.

Meet us at Sónar+D – tickets here!

images courtesy of Sónar, unless stated otherwise | photo by Cecilia Diaz Betz

AI + Creativity explores the politics of the new technology

For the AI + Creativity during Sónar+D (tickets are available here), the section explores how creatives can use AI production, music, and audiovisual design. The talks also dive into the ethical and political aspects of artificial intelligence. They complement the other creative interviews in other sections, including designboom’s conversations with multi-sensory artist Yolanda Uriz, transdisciplinary artist Dmitry Morozov aka ::vtol::, and multimedia artist George Moraitis. The discussion starts with Introducing AI & Music powered by S+T+ARTS, a forum that leads the discussion of AI and sonic creativity. In another room, Libby Heaney performs Eat my Multiverse performance using quantum computing for visuals, sounds, and music development. Jordi Pons’ Artistic Trends, Music & AI discusses new musical genres and sonic structures from AI algorithms, while Rebecca Fiebrink hosts Design your dream music AI tool, a session on AI tool design accessible to users without programming knowledge. 

Joanne Armitage’s Automating Bodies: Power, Music and AI explores the power dynamics when users adopt AI for creative production. The talk includes examining gender bias in algorithmic music, too. It’s about machine learning and treating it as ‘resonant entities’ in Marije Baalman’s A Musical Understanding of AI as Resonance, while there’s also a masterclass on using real-time audio machine learning for culturally specific sound with Lamtharn (Hanoi) Hantrakul, known as ญาบอยฮานอย (yaboihanoi). The viewers can, or should participate in AI Performance Playground, an AI & Music Hacklab that allows visitors to use AI as an actual instrument. In this section, +RAIN Film Festival also shows films produced with AI models and AudioStellar’s Territorios sonoros emergentes demonstrates how motion tracking and AI can power dance for visual and sonic performances. At the same time, Maria Arna premieres Ama, a live musical performance using AI with the human voice.

Sónar+D addresses the impact of AI in music, art and more through a series of talks during Sónar 2025

Discussions on present and future of creative industries

Inside the Futuring the Creative Industries section, conversations spotlight the changes and opportunities within the creative sector amidst new technologies including, but not limited to, AI in music and art, cultural management, communication, advertising, experience design, and trend research. The ‘How to Future the Creative Industries’ forum features experts from institutions like the New Museum, HERVISIONS, Onassis Foundation, Serpentine Gallery, NewArt Foundation, LAS Foundation, Kapelica, gnration, and Tabakalera.

The session explores the role of cultural institutions in sharing new ideas and trends within a media-saturated environment. Trend analysts Berta Segura and Francesca Tur host ‘Hacking the World,’ which analyzes how marketing, geopolitics, technology, and digital culture transform creator profiles, audience formation, and artist-public interaction. The intersection of cultural heritage and digital technology is explored through ‘Lux Mundi,’ an audiovisual experience reinterpreting Romanesque fresco paintings. Artists Alba G. Corral, Massó, Desilence, and Hamill Industries collaborate with Tarta Relena for this Generalitat of Catalonia initiative.

the event runs from June 12th to 14th, 2025, at Fira Montjuïc in Barcelona | photo by Nerea Coll

Still inside the Futuring the Creative Industries section, creative collaboration and technology integration are also central. TIMES, a European network, presents ‘The Crossing’ with contributions from Margarida Mendes, Chris Watson & Izabella Dłużyk, and Saint Abdullah, Eomac & Rebecca Salvadori. Arts Korea Lab hosts ‘Future Thinking,’ where Korean creators like WOMAN OPEN TECH LAB, Earth-topia, Seungsoon Park, Hwia Kim, and Tae Eun Kim present their projects. AlphaTheta showcases its euphonia rotary mixer and virtual reality DJ suite. Music2.0 and JSPA explore the history of Japanese synthesizers.

MusicTech Europe, in collaboration with Barcelona Music Tech Hub, features the Music Tech Europe Academy startup presentations and ‘MusicTech Dialogues’ on data use in the creative economy. The event also includes interviews with artists and participants. Designboom interviews Yolanda Uriz, Dmitry Morozov aka ::vtol::, and George Moraitis in Lounge+D, and Time Out London also hosts live interviews. W1 Curates presents art and music collaborations on the screens of Stage+D, featuring artists such as Max Cooper and Goldie.

Actress & Suzanne Ciani present ‘Concrète Waves’ during Sónar by Day at Stage Complex+D

The last is the Worlds to Come, a thematic area that explores speculative futures and human-technology interfaces. It examines the relationship of today’s technology with culture and society. Quantum computing and non-binary perspectives are examined in Libby Heaney’s ‘Eat My Multiverse’, which uses quantum computing in an artistic context. This presentation focuses on re-evaluating current global conditions. Space exploration is a recurring theme. Xin Liu’s ‘Cosmic Metabolism’ discusses scientific and poetic elements of her work, including her personal genome exhibit, ‘A Book Of Mine’. The program also investigates human interaction with technology and environment. Albert.DATA’s ‘SYNAPTICON’ performance demonstrates real-time brain activity using brain-computer interfaces. 

Danielle Braithwaite-Shirley’s ‘WE CAN’T PRETEND ANYMORE’ offers an interactive digital narrative exploring the history of Black trans individuals. Tega Brain’s ‘Questions of Automation’ addresses digital sustainability through creative coding and DIY strategies, highlighting political and environmental concerns. Discussions extend to social innovation and community building. ‘Portals: Talks of Worlds to Come’, presented by The Social Hub, features a panel of experts discussing design, sustainability, and cultural innovation in shared spaces. The program also includes performances, such as Luis Garbán (Cardopusher) with ‘DESTRUCCIÓN’, an audiovisual project combining reggaeton, industrial, and breakcore. Each of these talks and forums contributes to the overall purpose of Sónar+D, which is to create a space for knowledge exchange between different professional fields. These programs coincide with the Sónar 2025 festival, which runs between June 12th and 14th.

Stage+D by MEDIAPRO, Playmodes, UPC-Telecos present Astres | photo by Nerea Coll

Lux Mundi installation by by Alba G.Corral, Massó, Desilence & Hamill Industries with Tarta Relena at Sónar+D

Sónar+D shows a replica of the apse of Sant Climent de Taüll to host Lux Mundi

Yolanda Uriz’s Chemical Calls of Care | image courtesy of Yolanda Uriz

Chemical Calls of Care (2024), an installation on audio-olfactory communication | image courtesy of Yolanda Uriz

Edge is a kinetic, sound and light object | image courtesy of ::vtol::

iPot is a device for performing a digital tea ceremony | image courtesy of ::vtol::

Schematic by George Moraitis | image courtesy of George Moraitis

Xe by George Moraitis | image courtesy of George Moraitis

project info:

event: Sónar 2025 | @sonarfestival

program: Sónar+D

location: Palau de Congressos de Fira Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain

dates: June 12th to 14th, 2025

photography: Cecilia Diaz Betz, Nerea Coll | @ceciliadiazbetz, @nereacoll

entry: tickets here

The post sónar+D discusses quantum science in art, music by AI & future of creatives in series of talks appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

Sónar+D 2025 reveals the full list of exhibitors, including programs on alternative uses of AI in music and arts. The event takes place between June 12th and 14th at the Palau de Congressos de Fira Montjuïc in Barcelona, Spain, as part of the Sónar festival and Sónar by Day. Sónar+D 2025 features over 100 activities aimed at creators, industry professionals, and visitors. These programs focus mainly on three themes. AI + Creativity explores the impact of artificial intelligence on artistic and music production; Futuring the Creative Industries examines industry changes and opportunities; and Worlds to Come looks into the relationship between technology, culture, and society.

Sónar+D 2025 also includes interactive forums, panel discussions, master classes, performative conferences, workshops, multidisciplinary performances, and an exhibition space showcasing projects. It extends beyond AI in music and arts as it covers topics such as digital sustainability, non-binary futurism, terraformation, space exploration, neurohacking, and internet culture trends, including critiques of techno-feudalism. Since it coincides with the Sónar festival, visitors also have access to over 50 concerts and DJ sets across different stages and spaces.

all images courtesy of Sónar

Audiovisual projects across sónar+D 2025 events

Sónar+D 2025 continues the theme of alternative uses of AI in music and the arts. Under the subject of ‘Introducing AI & Music’, experts from Stability AI, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, and University of the Arts London discuss the latest AI applications in sounds. In other events, projects spotlight AI in music through audiovisual arts, interface design, and performing arts. Then, there’s the +RAIN Film Festival, which showcases AI-generated films, with creators sharing insights into their production processes. The event also hosts SUMMIT, an open forum on AI and creativity, as well as SCREENING, which is a session featuring AI films.

SINAPSIS, a closed-door session, serves as a platform for new AI-driven audiovisual projects. Other highlights during the Sónar+D 2025 and the use of AI in music and arts include a session with Rebecca Fiebrink on designing AI tools for music creation. There’s also a masterclass by Thai artist yaboihanoi on integrating AI with traditional music and a presentation of AudioStellar, a data visualization-based AI music software. Sónar+D 2025 hosts AI-driven live performances by Maria Arnal, patten, Ville Haimala, and R-010 & Venerandi. Then, the AI Performance Playground brings together 12 participants from various disciplines. For three days in the hacklab, they experiment with AI tools. They’re led by researchers from Queen Mary University of London and La Salle-URL’s IASlab.

Sónar+D 2025 reveals programs on alternative uses of AI in music and arts

AI in music and stage design to explore origins of computing

Under the ‘Futuring the Creative Industries’ theme, Sónar+D 2025 provides programs, forums, debates, presentations, and case studies on cultural management, curation, advertising, experience design, and trend research. Some of the key sessions include ‘How to Future the Creative Industries,’ featuring experts from the New Museum, Onassis Foundation, and Serpentine Gallery. There’s also a discussion on the transformation of cultural curation with curators from Le Guess Who?, MACBA, and Sónar. Workshops such as ‘Hacking the World’ examine how technology and digital culture are reshaping audience interactions and creative work.

Sónar+D 2025 showcases a digital reinterpretation of Sant Climent de Taüll’s apse in ‘Lux Mundi.’ It’s an artwork created by digital artists and musicians. TIMES, a European network of festivals, presents two co-creations: ‘Białowieża’ by Chris Watson & Izabella Dłużyk and ‘A Forbidden Distance’ by Saint Abdullah, Eomac & Rebecca Salvadori. A TIMES project, ‘The Talk,’ blends music, research, and stage design to explore the origins of computing. MusicTech Europe returns with a program co-organized by Barcelona Music Tech Hub, concluding with the presentation of startups from the Music Tech Europe Academy and a session on data use in the creative economy.

the event takes place between June 12th and 14th at the Palau de Congressos de Fira Montjuïc in Barcelona

‘Worlds to Come’ is another theme at Sónar+D 2025. Here, AI in music and the arts emerges with quantum computing, space exploration, and digital sustainability. Artistic narratives are present through talks, performances, and audiovisuals. Highlights include Libby Heaney’s ‘Eat My Multiverse,’ which applies quantum computing to art from a non-binary perspective. Then, Xin Liu’s ‘Cosmic Metabolism’ explores extraterrestrial environments.

Albert.DATA demonstrates real-time neurohacking in SYNAPTICON. Danielle Braithwaite-Shirley’s session ‘WE CAN’T PRETEND ANYMORE’ engages audiences in Black trans history with digital storytelling. Tega Brain’s ‘Questions of Automation’ addresses environmental and technological sustainability. Alice Sparkly Kat and Manuka Honey’s ‘Listen, the Stars Are Talking’ reinterprets astrology’s role in pop culture.

presently, Sónar+D 2025 features over 100 activities

Sónar+D 2025 also features audiovisual narratives and performances. They’re in line with the alternative uses of AI in music and arts. ‘The Drum and the Bird’ by Forensis and Bill Kouligas examines German colonialism in Namibia through generative soundscapes and 3D cartographies. Then, Julieta Wibel and Mike Fernández analyze the aesthetics of contemporary digital pop in ‘Math Thrash.’ There’s also the dance company laSADCUM and YESSi PERSE, who critique big tech’s influence in ‘CYBERMEDIEVAL.’

Other performances include ‘replica — relic’ by Dania and Mau Morgó. It incorporates 3D-scanned Mesopotamian instruments. ‘Thức Tỉnh’ by Animistic Beliefs and Jeisson Drenth explores cultural identity through music and visuals. Additional acts include Safety Trance’s fusion of reggaeton and industrial in ‘DESTRUCCIÓN,’ Vica Pacheco’s electroacoustic ‘ITA,’ and an audiovisual performance by Alice Sparkly Kat in collaboration with Akuyte.

Sónar+D 2025 also includes interactive forums, panel discussions, master classes and more

Sónar+D 2025 holds its largest interactive exhibition to date with the Project Area. It showcases over 60 projects in technology, design, and radical thought, as well as designs hinting at the uses of AI in music and the arts. Most projects were selected from 500 submissions to Sónar’s Open Call. Additionally, the festival launches the New Communities program. Sónar+D 2025 expects to announce the details of this participatory initiative soon. So far, the team says it dedicates part of its schedule to creative, scientific, marketing, and technology communities.

Alongside Sónar+D 2025 and its programs on AI in music and the arts, Sónar Week takes place from June 10th to 15th in Barcelona, Spain. It transforms the city into a hub for music, innovation, and creativity, in collaboration with cultural and musical institutions. The event begins with the third edition of +RAIN Film Festival, an AI-generated film festival co-organized with Universitat Pompeu Fabra. On June 12th, Sónar’s 32nd edition officially opens with a concert at the Palau de la Música Catalana. It presents works by Steve Reich and award-winning composer Raquel García-Tomás. The team reveals additional programming soon. It includes this year’s SonarMies cycle at the Mies van der Rohe Pavilion and new partnerships with Foto Colectània and the Fundació Miró.

the event extends beyond AI in music as it covers topics such as digital sustainability and non-binary futurism

events on terraformation, space exploration and neurohacking are present as well

Sónar+D 2025 holds its largest interactive exhibition to date with the Project Area

Project Area showcases over 60 projects in technology, design, and radical thought

some events explores the impact of AI on artistic and music production

project info:

event: Sónar 2025 | @sonarfestival

program: Sónar+D

location: Palau de Congressos de Fira Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain

dates: June 12th to 14th, 2025

The post sónar+D 2025 unveils exhibitors’ list with programs on alternative use of AI in music and arts appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

Sónar 2025 in Barcelona releases its musical program for the festival, with the use of AI in music-making as Sónar+D’s theme. So far, there are a total of 117 live shows, DJ sets, and performances taking place across 10 stages in Barcelona between June 12th and 14th, 2025. The event also pays homage to the late Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto with the performance of close collaborators and electronic music icons Alva Noto and Fennez. Just like in the previous year, the Barcelona festival has two venues, Sónar by Day in Fira Montjuïc and Sónar by Night in Fira Gran Via. The Sónar 2025 festival in Barcelona is part of the Sónar Week, which runs from June 10th to 15th.

For six days, collaborations, events, and co-productions also take place outside the two venues. The week starts with the 3rd edition of +RAIN Film Festival. It is the Artificial Intelligence-generated film festival co-organized by Sónar+D and the Universitat Pompeu Fabra. It continues with the OFFSónar parties at Poble Espanyol, where artists and labels in international club culture gather in one place. The official opening concert of Sónar takes place on June 12th at the Palau de la Música Catalana. The festival gears up to announce the installation for the SónarMies cycle at the Mies van der Rohe Pavilion in the next few weeks.

all images courtesy of Sónar

Afrobeat, UK rap and Andean polyrhythms in live performances

Between Sónar by Day and Sónar by Night during the Sónar 2025 festival in Barcelona, the lineup crosses different genres: Pa Salieu’s afrobeat and amapiano-inspired take on UK rap and drill, Sega Bodega’s blend of club and pop music, Dengue Dengue Dengue’s Andean polyrhythms, and triple Latin Grammy winner Nathy Peluso’s Club Gasa remix album. House and techno artists are present too. It includes Dixon’s dancefloor mastery, sublime house from Josh Caffé, Skee Mask b2b Actress, Alinka b2b Shaun J. Wright, and, for the first time, Brooklyn selectress Dee Diggs performing with ‘90s house legend Ultra Naté. Familiar faces return as well, including a collaboration between Matthew Herbert and multi-instrumentalist Momoko Gil as Herbert & Momoko.

Then, Boiler Room makes its debut at the festival with a stage at Sónar by Night on June 13th and 14th. Sónar by Night also sees the return of Sónar’s collaboration with Printworks London, with the co-curated SónarLab x Printworks. Here, a 6 x 10m vertical screen, horizontal lighting across the dance floor, and on-point programming come together for the festival celebration. The live sets also include performances by Plastikman, Arca, and Polo & Pan. There’s also Eric Prydz, CHROMA AV/DJ, Peggy Gou, Max Cooper, and Cora Novoa and Daito Manabe. Then, Four Tet, Vintage Culture, Helena Hauff and Barry Can’t Swim. Skrillex b2b Blawan and Armin van Buuren b2b Indira Paganotto, and Rone with the (LA)HORDE collective and the Ballet National de Marseille join the ensemble. There’s also Yerai Cortés and his ‘Guitarra Coral’, Maria Arnal, Tarta Relena, Samantha Hudson, and many more.

there are a total of 117 live shows and DJ sets between June 12th and 14th, 2025

Sónar+D looks into the use of AI in music

Sónar+D returns to the Sónar 2025 festival in Barcelona. The event aims to unveil the full program of conferences, presentations, workshops, and projects in the next few weeks. So far, the theme centers on the use of AI in making music. There’s ‘AI + Creativity’ which demonstrates the tools and unconventional creative approaches to AI.  The series aims to explore the different uses of AI in a variety of technology, including in the music industry. The program’s theme focuses on ‘futuring the creative industries,’ which looks into the curation and creation future of the said fields by 2030. There’s another program called ‘Worlds to come.’ Here, the events discuss quantum computing, non-binary futurism, terraforming and interstellar travel, and more.

Then, the AI & Music powered by S+T+ARTS program returns for its third year at the Sónar 2025 festival in Barcelona. It showcases artistic projects, creative proposals, and scientific research focused on AI and musical creation. At the present time, Ville Haimala (half of the duo Amnesia Scanner) joins the lineup to present his new solo album ‘Hyporeal’.  Other album presenters include British experimental musician and audiovisual artist patten (pseudonym of Damien Roach), as well as Madrid-based artist R-010 and vocalist Venerandi. The latter is set to demonstrate sound using digital neural networks and the human voice. There’s also Maria Arnal, who’s working on a project with more than 14,000 voices that are training an AI which will be integrated into the show.

Dengue Dengue Dengue | photo by Alejandro Loayza Grisi | masks by Twee Muizen – Edu Giradiscos

The Sónar 2025 festival in Barcelona is also part of the cooperative project TIMES (The Independent Movement for the Electronic Scenes), co-founded by the European Union. The initiative is set to gather 10 European festivals. They produce original new performances that combine music and visual arts, as well as co-curate a series of shows. 

For the 2025 edition, Sónar has collaborated with Insomnia (Tromsø), Terraforma (Milan), Semibreve (Braga), Atonal (Berlin), and Unsound (Kraków). They present six co-curations and two artistic residencies. Together with Insomnia, Sónar announces Norwegian DJ Niilas. He brings a dreamy and melancholic twist to club music. He also joins the previously announced ABADIR with Arab-origin electronic music.

Project Area by Cecilia Diaz Betz

Alongside Terraforma, the festival in Barcelona features Catalan violinist Asia and the eclectic selector Paquita Gordon. Curated alongside Semibreve, Grand River and Abul Mogard perform their ambient-drone collaborative album In uno spazio immenso. As part of the project, the first two artistic residencies have been developed. The first has resulted in two audiovisual shows: Saint Abdullah, Eomac & Rebecca Salvadori present A Forbidden Distance, a collaboration between three electronic musicians and a filmmaker exploring the impact of migration on identity. 

Then, Chris Watson & Izabela Dłużyk present Białowieża, a field recording work from the last primeval forest in Europe, Puszcza Białowiesża, on the Poland-Belarus border. Both projects have been co-created with the festivals Berlin Atonal, Semibreve, and Unsound. The second artistic residency for the TIMES at Sónar 2025 festival in Barcelona features Heith, James K, and Günseli Yalcinkaya. They present The Talk, an experimental project incorporating different formats such as discussion, audiovisual projection, and, of course, live performance.

Sónar+D looks into the use of AI in music during Sónar 2025 festival in Barcelona

Sonar de Noche | photo by Nerea Coll

Sonar Club by Adriatique | photo by Nerea Coll

Stage+D Playmodes and UPC Telecos present ‘Astres’ | photo by Nerea Coll

Stage+D Playmodes and UPC Telecos present ‘Astres’ | photo by Nerea Coll

Sonar Club by Charlotte De Witte and Martini Ariel

project info:

event: Sónar 2025 festival | @sonarfestival

location: Fira Montjuïc and Fira Gran Via, Barcelona, Spain

dates: June 12th to 14th, 2024

photography: Alejandro Loayza Grisi, Nerea Coll | @alejandro.loayza.grisi, @nereacoll

The post sónar 2025 unveils festival lineup in barcelona with use of AI in music as theme of sónar+D appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

Halldór Úlfarsson has developed Halldorophone, a cello-like and electro-acoustic string instrument that plays rich sounds using feedback. It is one of the few instruments that is mainly built around the concept of feedback. The design of Halldorophone is based on creating feedback, an intentional decision on the artist’s and designer’s part. It happens when the sound from the instrument is captured by a microphone or pickup, amplified, and sent back into the instrument. This feedback creates a loop, and the sounds the instrument produces come from its coupled strings.

The instrument maker and designer brought his invention to Sónar+D 2024, where Halldorophone was exhibited as part of the Intelligent Instruments Lab, amongst other musical systems designed in the research lab. The visitors were able to try it out, with some of them realizing and jestfully commenting that what they were playing wasn’t a cello. This yellow halldorophone was developed at the lab in close collaboration with Dr. Adam Pulz Melbye, who wrote algorithms, did user experiments, and investigated how people perceive such strange instruments.

all images courtesy of Intelligent Instruments Lab | video filmed and edited by Rafn Rafnsson at The University of Iceland

How does Halldorophone work and produce sounds?

The coupled stings that Halldór Úlfarsson places on the musical instrument consist of four separate strings. The first ones are the main strings the musician plays directly, since they’re right on the body. The rest are the ‘sympathetic’ strings that vibrate on their own when the main strings are played. Each string has its own pickup, which may be comparable to a microphone. This device captures the sounds that the individual strings make, and the performer has control of each string via an inbuilt mixer. There is an amplifier and a speaker that play the amplified sound back into the body of the instrument, thus generating the phenomenon of feedback.

This makes the strings vibrate, resulting in a feedback loop where the sound keeps cycling between the strings, pickups, micro-computer, amplifier, and speaker. The yellow Intelligent Instruments Lab halldorophone has an embedded Bela micro-computer that processes the sound as part of the audio signal chain before it goes back out into the instrument. The Bela microcomputer sits under the mixing board of the instrument. Here, intelligent algorithms augment and control the natural system of feedback so that it can generate more interesting behavior. 

Halldór Úlfarsson creates Halldorophone, a cello-like and electro-acoustic string instrument

INTELLIGENT ALGORITHMS FOR RICHER ‘FEEDBACK’ CONTROL

The feedback system allows the Halldorophone to create continuous, rich sounds called drones. The musician can even adjust how loud each string’s sound of the musical instrument is in the overall mix. Aside from the loudness of the string’s sound, they can also toy with the volume of the speaker. By adjusting the speaker’s volume, the player can control how strongly the strings vibrate and how intense the feedback is.

The feedback and electronic components let the musician control the sound to some extent, making the drones have complex, interesting tones. Overall, the cello-like and electro-acoustic string instrument has four main strings. These strings can be played using a bow or by plucking with fingers, but as seen in the video above, the resonant sounds may also be produced by gently and slowly rubbing the strings onto their frame. 

the string instrument plays rich sounds using feedback

The fingerboard, or the part where the musician presses the strings, is fretless. It means it doesn’t have metal bars like a guitar, so they can smoothly slide to different notes. Just below the main strings, the sympathetic strings lay,  not directly played by the musician.

There’s no bowing or plucking involved for them since they vibrate automatically when the musician plays the main strings. They’re the ones who help create a continuous background sound, as if they were echoes. The player can also connect the sound strings of Halldór Úlfarsson’s musical instrument to external audio equipment. 

feedback happens when the pickup captures the sound from Halldorophone

This can allow musicians to use digital sound processors or effects pedals and manipulate or play with the sound. In this way, they can add reverb, delay, distortion, or other effects to the Halldorophone’s sound, similar to how electric guitarists use pedals. 

The Halldorophone, designed specifically to feedback the strings and the instrument, gained some recognition in early 2020. It was when Icelandic composer Hildur Guðnadóttir won the Academy Award for her original soundtrack to the movie Joker, some of which was composed using a halldorophone.

the feedback system allows the Halldorophone to create continuous, rich sounds called drones

the musician can adjust how loud each string’s sound of the musical instrument is

detailed view of the electro-acoustic string instrument, Halldorophone

the feedback and electronic components let the musician control the sound to some extent

the cello-like and electro-acoustic string instrument has four main strings

the vibrations help create the feedback loop

project info:

name: Halldorophone | @halldorophone

design: Halldór Úlfarsson

composer: Hildur Guðnadóttir

lab: Intelligent Instruments Lab | @intelligentinstruments

micro-computer: Bela | @belaPlatform

The post cello-like, electro-acoustic string instrument halldorophone produces sounds using ‘feedback’ appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

‘Can AI know who I am just by looking at me?’ This was the question that multidisciplinary duo mots asked themselves as they began to create their latest artwork, AI & Me. The installation, recently exhibited at Sónar+D, the digital leg of the Barcelona design festival, offers a playful exploration of identity through the eyes of artificial intelligence. By challenging participants to consider how AI perceives and interprets their appearance, the work sparks a broader conversation about the implications of the technology’s judgments, beyond novelty.

The experience begins with ‘The Confessional’, a candid wireframe cube where a camera merely glances at the individual and delivers a blunt opinion based on their outward appearance. While its comments are honest, raw, and sometimes rude, it was built as an interactive machine that exposes without intent our addiction to validation and the sobering idea that being reduced to data points can, in fact, be entertaining.

all images courtesy of mots unless stated otherwise

mots questions implications of ai beyond novelty

The multi-piece installation builds up in real-time, based on the interaction with its participants. A few minutes later, the participant’s ‘Siblings’ come alive across multiple LED screens where AI shows crowds of people who look very similar (as siblings) to those who were inside The Confessional.‘Imagine this: If AI already has such a deep understanding of us, what if it began creating digital twins, the brothers and sisters we never knew existed? If we can be copied so effortlessly, what truly defines our individuality? In this vast sea of data, in an age dominated by social media and artificial intelligence, how do we remain unique? Do we even matter to these intelligent machines, and if so, why?’ questions the team at mots.

Further on, if the machine really likes someone, it starts generating different versions of that individual. Beyond, it dreams up pictures of individuals doing things they’ve never done before. ‘And since we can’t remember everything, who’s to say those made-up pictures aren’t real memories we’ve lost?’ the duo contemplates. Another component of AI & Me is ‘AI Ego’, a piece composed of a series of CRT monitors displaying the participants of ‘The Confessional’ in surreal and completely fabricated scenarios, imagined by AI.

multidisciplinary design duo mots presents AI & me

AI & Me serves as a crucial conversation starter about the ethical dimensions of AI in our lives. By confronting us with raw, unfiltered judgments and hypothetical alter egos, the work by mots underscores the pressing need to consider the biases and labels that AI can perpetuate. Each seemingly playful depiction carries the weighty reminder that our data isn’t just fodder for algorithms—it’s the essence of our identity, privacy, and individuality. The work can also be seen as a lens focusing on the future of our digital selves and the value we hold in a world where machines are watching and possibly, remembering our every move. While the work started as a collection of pieces showing how AI sees us, it has evolved to illuminate how much humanity is okay with letting a machine judge our looks, all just to find out what it thinks about us.

mots recently exhibited the installation at Sónar+D, the digital leg of the Barcelona design festival

The Confessional delivers a blunt opinion based on your outward appearance | image courtesy of Joseph Jean-Marc

a playful exploration of identity through the eyes of AI

the multi-piece installation builds up in real-time, based on the interaction with its participants

if the machine really likes someone, it starts generating different versions of that individual.

beyond, the AI dreams up pictures of individuals doing things they’ve never done before

the participant’s ‘Siblings’ come alive across multiple LED screens where AI shows crowds of people who look similar

‘The Confessional’

project info:

name: AI & Me
artist: mots

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: ravail khan | designboom

The post mots’ quippy AI installation at sónar+D judges you based on your appearance appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

As Sónar, Barcelona’s vibrant electronic music and digital culture festival, kicks off, Love Hultén’s whimsical synthesizers celebrate the playful intersection of modern technology and traditional craftsmanship. In an exhibition curated by designboom, the Swedish artist showcases his unique blend of sound and visual art at the festival’s digital leg, Sónar+D. While this year’s spotlight falls on the use of AI in the creative spheres, for Hultén, tactility holds reign in the digital age. ‘The instant feedback we get when interacting with something physical connects all the right dots in ways a digital interface never could,’ he tells us during our interview (read our conversation here).

Alongside Sebastian, the pinching MIDI crab, and Tegel, a nature-inspired work that translates biodata from organic material into audio, Hultén unveils his latest sound machine — Y-17. Crafted especially for the occasion, here, a synthesizer meets a ferrofluid visualizer. A gooey liquid within a wooden encasing is brought to life, dancing hypnotically in sync with tunes composed via the keypad.

all images courtesy of Love Hultén

y-17’s ferrofluids dance in sync with the music

Y-17, like a yellow otherworldly creature sprouting antennas, takes its cues from miscellaneous vintage toys, lending it a nostalgic yet futuristic character. During our conversation, Love Hultén described his aesthetic as ‘taking steps in different directions simultaneously by using fragments from both past and today,’ which is vividly embodied in the synth’s playful, retro-futuristic design.

For Sónar+D, the artist fits a simple mono synthesizer with a built-in looper and a 17-note keybed using tactile computer switches. A ferrofluid audio visualizer, where a colloidal liquid composed of nanoscale ferrimagnetic particles, reacts to a system of magnetic fields activated by the user’s touch. Connected to the synthesizer, an electromagnet connected to the audio input pulses with the music’s energy, animating the ferrofluid in response in a mesmerizing visual symphony. 

Sónar+D kicks off in Barcelona

Love Hultén unveils Y-17 for the first time

a synthesizer meets a ferrofluid visualizer

a yellow otherworldly creature sprouting antennas, taking its cues from miscellaneous vintage toys

F-17 embodies Love Hultén’s playful, retro-futuristic philosophy

a simple mono synthesizer with a built-in looper and a 17-note keybed using tactile computer switches

image © designboom

Desert Song | image © designboom

Sebastian | image © designboom

project info:

name: Y-17

designer: Love Hultén | @lovehulten

program: Sónar+D | @sonarfestival

dates: June 13th — 15th

The post synth meets ferrofluid visualizer: love hultén unveils new Y-17 with designboom at sónar+D appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

designboom partner Sónar and Gaudí-designed ‘living museum’ Casa Batlló are launching the world premiere of Music:Response, a brand new audiovisual installation, in Barcelona. The groundbreaking experience marks the inauguration of THE CUBE, a partnership between both institutions that joins electronic music and digital art in an immersive 360º space, located in Casa Batlló. Set to kick off on May 24th, Music:Response features re-worked music by The Chemical Brothers, and kaleidoscopic visuals by Smith & Lyall. 

all images courtesy Sónar

the chemical brothers meets smith & lyall

Presented across six LED screens at THE CUBE in Casa Battló (see more here), and in full stereo sound, the Music:Response audiovisual installation brings a new dimension to the creative universe that has evolved from the collaboration between Smith & Lyall and their live artistic directors. It also follows the record-breaking success of Electronic: From Kraftwerk to The Chemical Brothers at The Design Museum, London. ‘Gaudí created fantasy worlds with his buildings, with their own rules and logic. They are immersive environments in which you have the feeling of being outside the normal world, an escape from reality into the sublime. The Chemical Brothers’ universe shares this same spirit and has also become a self-contained world,’ writes the British duo. 

Music:Response at THE CUBE

a 13-minute and immersive audiovisual experience 

Upon entering the space, visitors are immersed in iconic characters and abstract visuals for that play on feelings of tension and release. Inspired by the tradition of ‘Visual Music’, the 13-minute show offers a visceral, synaesthetic experience that emulates the transformative and liberating power of music.  On Friday June 14th, the artists will be discussing their work on Music:Response, and the visuals created for The Chemical Brothers live show over the years at the SonarAgora stage at Sónar by Day. More information on the talk and the wider Sónar 2024 program can be found here. Tickets are on sale at casabatllo.cat (limited capacity). 

presented across six LED screens

Sónar and Casa Battló are launching the show on May 24th

kaleidoscopic visuals by Smith & Lyall.

evoking release and tension

project info:

name: Music:Response

location: THE CUBE, Barcelona

organized by: Sónar | @sonarfestival and Casa Batlló | @casbatllo
visuals: Smith & Lyall | @smithandlyall

music: The Chemical Brothers (Tom Rowlands & Ed Simons) 

duration: 13 minutes

dates: May 24th – July 31st, 2024 

The post sónar and casa batlló unveil audiovisual show from the chemical brothers and smith & lyall appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

From a music box that filters marbles as it whirs, to a synthesizer animated by 25 sets of plastic teeth, Love Hultén’s whimsical contraptions are a glimpse into his fascination with retro-futurism, sci-fi, and the handmade. With a childhood marked by joyful memories of hours spent at the arcade and quiet moments dismantling electronics to uncover their secrets, Hultén’s works present ‘a personalized view of the world, via objects’, he tells designboom during our interview.

The Swedish audiovisual artist’s journey began with a curiosity for the inner workings of technology, yet it was during his formative years studying design that he stumbled upon a new love: wood. ‘I started to experiment with audiovisual contraptions combining traditional craftsmanship with modern technology, and found my niche,’ he shares. Finding solace in the warmth and versatility of the natural material, he has since explored playful zany yet understated expressions across his synths, game consoles, and more. Most notably, in an era of digital fabrication and a landscape dominated by screens and interfaces, Hultén’s practice remains quaint, considered, tactile, and thoughtful. Converging analog with electronic, each of his bespoke creations eschew the monotony of mass production, embracing creative individuality to produce works that he hopes will withstand the test of time. 

At the upcoming Sónar+D festival, designboom will present Love Hultén’s Sebastian, the MIDI crab, and Tegel, a nature-inspired works that translate biodata from organic material into audio, while unveiling a brand new piece created especially for the occasion. Ahead of the exhibition, we spoke to the artist to learn more about his aesthetic inspirations, his fusion of woodworking and electronics, his views on the importance of tactility in the digital age, and more. Read the full conversation below.

all images courtesy of Love Hultén

interview with the artist: bridging woodworking & electronics

designboom (DB): What sparked your fascination with woodworking and electronics, and how did you begin to intertwine these two mediums?

Love Hultén (LH): As a young boy I used to tear electronics apart trying to understand their insides. I guess I’ve always had a thing for that. During my bachelor years at Design HDK-Valand (Sweden) in 2010 I stumbled upon wood and fell in love. I started to experiment with audiovisual contraptions combining traditional craftsmanship with modern technology, and found my niche. The industry is pretty monotonous and I guess I offer something different. A personal view on the world, via objects. The lack of competition gives me a lot of creative freedom as well. My pieces are one-offs and while often being very conceptual, they still have to work in order to become genuine alternatives, be something more than just eye-catching objects.

the Swedish audiovisual artist and woodworker handcrafts snythesizes and game consoles

DB: Your works have a very playful, retro-futuristic aesthetic. What have been your key sources of inspiration that developed this visual language?

LH: Dieter Rams’ perspectives on design have always been a big influence for me, but I’m also very attracted to mystique in general. My pieces are usually based on something I’ve come across recently; an interesting object perhaps — anything that sparks my imagination. I then often scour my mind for function, a purpose that could connect with my visual idea in an interesting way. When I find a satisfactory mix between usability and aesthetics, it’s a go. But I can also work the other way around as well, using function as a design trigger. I play a lot with values and standards, suggesting a different perspective on how to relate and interact with objects. The smashed-up references in my work have a triggering effect I think.

Nostalgia is involved to a certain extent, yes, but it’s not looking backwards. It’s taking steps in different directions simultaneously by using fragments from both past and today, creating unique and balanced objects. I think the blend of past and present is much more interesting than just putting something on repeat.

Sebastian — inspired by the voyages of oceanographer Jacques-Yves Cousteau

from biodata to sound

DB: Both Desert Songs and Tegel fuse nature and technology, utilizing biodata to generate sound. What inspired this exploration?

LH: I’ve always had a special love for those bio stations seen in sci-fi movies. They take something very familiar and place it into a strange abnormal context. I wanted to create something inspired by that, a biolab environment. Desert Songs was a big personal project of mine, and something I’ve been into for a while — translating biodata from organic material into audio. The installation translates biodata into MIDI. It’s not magic and the plants are not composing, it’s simply biofeedback creating true organic randomness. Tiny changes in electrical current — the plants act as variable resistors. Cacti were used for this project due to their very sparse and sporadic activity. The cacti garden includes a few different specimens hooked up to probes, and outputs for individual plants can be changed as you go using patch points upfront. I also made a custom MIDI visualizer mimicking chloroplasts under the microscope.

I made a second smaller piece shortly after, Tegel, this time using a small deciduous tree for more bio-activity. I would love to take this concept further in the future, upscaled — Per Kirkeby style.

the playful synthesizer is a solenoid concept using MIDI notes as triggers

DB: Can you walk us through the creative process of Sebastian? Which technologies made this happen and how did you ensure to integrate methods of traditional craftsmanship alongside this?

LH: I did a fun commissioned synthesizer a while back. This client in particular was an ex-diver and wanted an oceanic theme, specifically something aesthetically inspired by the voyages of oceanographer Jacques-Yves Cousteau. He wanted some kind of audio visualization as part of the setup and that gave me the idea of a small red crab dancing to the audio. After some thinking I came up with this solenoid concept using MIDI notes as triggers. It was mechanically challenging getting legs and claws to move organically but I eventually got it right. I really liked that small crab, and knew I wasn’t done. I started to design a more dedicated crab synth shortly after. Smaller synth, bigger crab. I named it Sebastian (The Little Mermaid). The casing is made from sheet stock composite wood, then garnished with fake wood grains using a laser engraver. I’m basically mimicking hardwood using residues from the hardwood industry, that’s a circle of life right there.

tactility and traditional craftsmanship in the digital age

DB: By integrating analog, tactile elements into your works you create a more personal, multi-sensory experience. How do you see this approach fostering a deeper connection between the audience, your art, and technology — particularly in a digital landscape where interactions are often confined to screens?

LH: There’s a lot of consumer based nostalgia in the western world right now, but I also think a lot of people today are in need of tactility, something genuine to lay our hands on. Surrounded by throwaway excess touch screen products and desperately craving the latest phone model, I think we’ll develop a craving for handcrafted and tactile objects. The instant feedback we get when interacting with something physical connects all the right dots in ways a digital interface never could.

Desert Songs uses Plantwave – a small device that translates biodata from organic material into MIDI

DB: With mass production and digital fabrication prevalent in the digital age, what draws you to handcrafting your pieces?

LH: I’m quite inspired by mid-20th century concepts, when we had a different view on quality and craftsmanship. Material knowledge in combination with accomplished execution. For instance, using a material that grows a unique patina without regular maintenance and daily care extends the expiration date of a product: it will breathe through time, rather than get suffocated by it. I’d like to be part of creating objects that sparkle and live on through generations.

DB: What can we expect from the new piece that you’ll be unveiling at Sonar+D?

LH: I’m still figuring that out. I have a visual idea, but still working on the concept around it. You’ll just have to wait and see.

‘it’s biofeedback creating true organic randomness’

Tegel fuses nature and technology

the device uses a small deciduous tree for bio-activity

CHD-4 drum machine turns patients’ heartbeats into rhythmic soundscapes

sound machine TE-LAB is a custom-built sequencer made from wood-like modules

project info:

artist: Love Hultén

designboom is presenting the sound machines and synth works of Love Hultén at Sónar+D from June 13th to 15th, 2024, in Barcelona – read more about the program here.

The post love hultén on bridging woodworking with electronics for his whimsical synthesizers appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

At Sónar+D, designboom is presenting the sound machines and synth works of Love Hultén (read our interview with him about the festival here) as part of the festival’s exhibition grounds. Sónar+D falls under the umbrella of Sónar 2024, Barcelona’s festival of music, innovation, and creativity, which runs from June 13th to 15th, 2024. During the three-day celebration, the use of AI in the creative industries becomes the main focus of, but not limited to, Sónar+D’s theme. Visitors to the Sónar+D can walk around the exhibitions and see, test, and experience creative technology and innovative art that employs research, AI-generated visuals, and experimental video games.

designboom presents Love Hultén at Sónar+D 2024 | images courtesy of Love Hultén

Synth and midi sound using plants and A crab

Inside the Project Area of Sónar+D, designboom welcomes visitors to the exhibition of some of Love Hultén’s sound-generating art, including a new machine made and tailored specially for the festival. Fans of the audiovisual artist are able to see and try out Sebastian, the MIDI Crab. In this machine, a keyboard with large-sized keys in white and red produces MIDI sounds when pressed, all the while the crab encased in a clock-looking container above moves, clinches and pinches its pincers and legs.

Tegel is set to make an appearance as well, which is Love Hultén’s sound sculpture based on the biodata derived from plants. In this installation, a small device translates the biodata from organic material, the plants, into MIDI. The plants are not composing their own music, but simply giving their biofeedback, or the tiny changes in their electrical current. Love Hultén’s role is to echo these sounds into synth tunes, sharing them with the visitors of the festival too.

Full list of Sónar+D exhibitors unveiled

The Sónar+D’s exhibitors allow have a lot in store for their visitors during the event. These creatives and artists and their works include +RAIN Film Festival presented by UPF & Sónar+D, 3 out of 7 A MAZE. Awards 2024 Winners, Aalto University, All Our Minds, AlphaTheta, Andy Gracie x .NewArt { foundation;} – Massive Binaries, Anecoica Studio Sileno, ANTONUS, Arts Korea Lab, AudioStellar*, Barcelona Supercomputing Center – Art-driven innovation, BAU, Centre Universitari d’Arts i Disseny – SINAPSIS, Befaco, Candela Rodríguez x ESDI – (MI CUERPO DIGITAL) creación y extensión de identidades a través del arte digital, and Carla Molins-Pitarch – CITM (UPC) – Life Blocks, a Phygital Kinetic DNA Experience.

Included as well are: Col·lectiu Axolot – Eixam, Componental – Dubby, DataMind Audio – Combobulator, Endorphin.es, ESPRONCEDA / IMMENSIVA – KIELI, Ferran Lega Lladós – Thymus Vulgaris, FHV – Vorarlberg University of Applied Sciences – FOHRAMOOS. Gabriel Helfenstein, Fantasia Malware – Okthryssia and Saturnia’s Bureaucratic Adventures, GameBCN – The videogame incubator, Harriet Davey and snake_case – Energy Drinks and Bisexual Lighting, IED Barcelona – Unwoven memories, Institute of Digital Fashion – WATCH, PLAY, SCAN, SIT, LAY on IoDF: Leanne Elliott Young and Cattytay, Intelligent Instruments lab, IRCAM Forum, Krea, La Salle – Campus Barcelona, LAURA BENETTON X IRB BARCELONA – WFP DANCE, LCI Barcelona – GROOVIFY, and Love Hultén presented by designboom.

Desert Songs | read more about it here 

Visitors also expect projects and artworks from LOWKEYMOVES – Laura AI, Making Sound Machines, MONOGRID – Momentum, Moth Quantum – Quantum Sonification: Harness Qubits for Musical Innovation, mots – AI & Me: The Confessional and AI Ego, Music Technology Group, UPF – Essentia, Mutan Monkey Instruments, NANO Modules, Neuroelectrics – Enakd, Nina Protocol, OXI ELECTRONIC INSTRUMENTS, Patching Panda, Post-computer – Graphicsynth, Rhett TSAI (蔡宇潇) – How Deep Is the Dark Water? (乌水有多深) – With the support of Casa Asia, Roel Heremans – The NeuroRight Arcades, sbrk devices – zerua nahasi, Sebastian Schmieg – Prompt Battle Training Station, Segmento Futuro – Pas De Deux, Shared Campus, SOUND OBSESSED – Temporal Tide: Sonified Narratives for a Sustainable Future, and Stability AI – Stable Audio.

They can also witness Studio Above&Below – Regenerative Symphony With the support of S+T+ARTS in the City, Team Rolfes – 321Rule: T.R.A.C.T Explorer, Technology, Performance & Society / University of Music and Theatre Munich – Seven Things About Late Technoculture (academic papers for fast life), Tesseract Modular, The Generative Art Museum, This is Not Rocket Science, Trondheim Academy of Fine Art (NTNU) – Artistic research and Entrepreneurship, UKRAiNATV / StreamArtStudio – EUROPEAN STREAM ART NETWORK – PROTOTYPING, and Vostok Instruments. During the exhibitions, technology and art are both used to create installations and artworks, from sounds to visuals as well as AI-generated productions.

Desert Songs

Love Hultén is creating a new piece that will be presented at Sónar+D

FM Scope

Tegel | read more about it here 

Tegel

Sebastian

Sebastian

project info:

event: Sónar 2024

program: Sónar+D

dates: June 13th to 15th, 2024

location: Fira Montjuïc. Avinguda Rius i Taulet, Barcelona, Spain

audiovisual artist: Love Hultén

presented by: designboom

The post sónar+D reveals full list of exhibitors including love hultén’s works presented by designboom appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.