Di-Simulated Crowds
by Anna Ådahl
Artist
Anna Ådahl
(Sverige, född 1973)
Date2018
Medium3-channel video installation, color, stereo sound
Dimensions13:00 min
ClassificationMoving Images
Credit LinePurchase 2021 (Swedish Acquisitions 2021)
Countries
Object NumberMOM/2021/333
CollectionsRecent Acquisitions, Svenska förvärv 2021
The artwork is not on display
About the artworkThe artist and researcher Anna Ådahl reflects on psychology and the motives underlying how artificial intelligence is trained to understand the movement and behaviour patterns of crowds. Digital tools can now read actual scenarios and deliver predictions for commercial and political purposes. They also learn to manipulate flock behaviours. Whose movements need to be controlled, and for what purpose? Each individual in a crowd has their own predetermined goal, but in the programmed collective flow patterns are formed that are as predictable as those of iron filings in a magnetic field. The faceless animations are interwoven with surveillance footage and perfectly coordinated mass choreographies. Other sequences feature live actors embodying the AI agent’s behaviours in the urban space.