Nick Verstand, 2017

http://nickverstand.com/projects/aura/

AURA (2017) is an audiovisual installation that materialises emotions into a perceptible, physical form. The audience’ own emotional experience manifests as organic, pulsing light compositions of various form, colour and intensity. The installation visually tributes to the Solid Light Works by artist Anthony McCall, further exploring light as a medium.

The transformation of emotions into light is accomplished by a scientific system, developed in collaboration with the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research. Using multiple wearable biosensors, the system registers brainwaves, heart-rate variability, and galvanic skin response. From the sensors, emotional “data” is analysed and metamorphosed into its symbolic representation as light. The differences in individuals’ emotional responses, being influenced by a musical composition, become visible to all who are present.

AURA explores how this perceptual process influences the understanding of ourselves and of each other. The installation symbolises the materialisation of (internal) metaphysical space into (external) physical space.