September 24th - October 4th, 2015
----------------------------
The installation version of Swarming Emotional Pianos features video documentation of an actor that silently expresses the emotions of surprise, anger, fear, sadness, sexual arousal and joy over the course of twenty minutes, at timed intervals. During this video recording, Gee attached biosensors to the actor in order to capture data related to his physiological emotional state through breathing, heart rate, sweating, and blood pressure. Seeking out the poetic spaces of translation between the micro-events of emotional experience and the body, the video projection is surrounded by a fleet of chime robots activated through this biosensor data. The activation of the robots gives rise to an abstract musical piece that reflects the actor’s control and emotional intensity. This project, reflective of affective computing research, enables Gee to explore the complex relationships between body and mind in human emotions.