Universal Everything ⁄ Artworks ⁄ ► Future You
Originally commissioned by The Barbican for an exhibition about the relationship between humanity and AI in 2019, Future You is a digital mirror that presents a synthetic version of the viewer. The interactive artwork only comes to life when it is activated by someone in front it. The harder you work, the stranger and more exciting its response to your movement. There are 47,000 possible variations to its robotic shape and form, and every interaction reflecting the viewers' movement is entirely unique. When each individual’s time is up, this joyful, techno mirror collapses.
AI: More Than Human at The Barbican, London:
Lifeforms at 180 Studios, London:
Digital Impact exhibition:
Research into robotic avatars:
How do you feel when you see a synthetic version of yourself?
In Future You, you are faced with a unique reflection of your potential, synthetic self. Starting as a primitive form, it learns from your movements to adapt, suggesting an agile, superior version of you. This interactive motion-capture artwork evolves, creating a new visual response for each visitor, generating 47,000 possible variations.
Commissioned by The Barbican, London for the entrance of the exhibition AI: More Than Human, open 16 May-26 August 2019.
The exhibition received over 88,000 visitors, making it one of the most successful exhibitions to have been hosted at the Barbican Centre.
Available for licensing, screenings and exhibitions
Exhibitions
- Biennale Némo, CENTQUATRE-PARIS, Paris, 2023–2024
- Doncaster Festival of Light, 2023
- LUX: Poetic Resolution, Dongdaemun Design Plaza, Seoul, 2023
- Digital Impact, Barcelona, Spain, 2023
- Fernán Gómez Centro Cultural, Madrid, 2022–2023
- Lifeforms, 180 Studios, London, 2022
- Moved by Schlemmer – Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart, Germany, 2022
- BioMedien – ZKM Center for Art and Media, Karlsruhe, Germany, 2021–2022
- World Museum, Liverpool, UK, 2021
- Project Unfold X, Dongdaemoon Design Plaza (DDP), Seoul, South Korea, 2021
- Groninger Forum, Groningen, Netherlands, 2020
- Digital Wild, Meta.Morf 2020, Trondheim, Norway, 2020
- Every-Body: City, Technology and the Body, Inspace Gallery, Edinburgh, 2020
- AI : More Than Human, The Barbican, London, 2019
Credits
Creative Director: Matt Pyke
Creative Technologist: Chris Mullany
Realtime Look Development: Adam Samson
Sound Design: Simon Pyke
Exhibition Designer: Tonkin Liu
Studio Manager: Simon Thompson
Executive Producer: Ben Young
Commissioned by The Barbican, London
Press
- “A gaggle of nursery tots are enjoying Universal Everything’s Future You, one of the installations at AI: More than Human, the Barbican’s new exhibition on Artificial Intelligence. One by one they stand in front of the screen and delight as the robotic image on it responds to mimic their movements. What changes will these AI natives see in their lifetimes to the impact that AI will have, for better or for worse, on how we live?”– RIBA
- Google Arts and Culture
- Colossal
- AIGA Eye on Design
- AI: More Than Human at the Barbican received positive coverage in the international press and four-star reviews in The Times and London Evening Standard.
