Biotopia
This project aimed to develop an interactive installation concept exploring diversity. I chose to focus on the impact of climate change on biodiversity - specifically, how rising global temperatures disrupt ecosystems and drive species to extinction. My work serves as a metaphor for various studies on climate change and its threat to biodiversity, which predict that continued warming will lead to a drastic decline or extinction of numerous plant and animal species. The concept blends mixed reality with physical props, allowing viewers to experience the effects of climate change firsthand, both visually and emotionally.
When the user first enters the gallery space, it feels hollow, featuring only minimalistic, low-poly rocks, a tree, and a beehive. These elements appear lifeless and static, creating a stark contrast to the dynamic mixed reality experience that follows. Through the headset, the room comes to life - plants sprout from the ground and walls, growing before the user’s eyes, while animals appear all around them. These animals interact with the physical props: birds perch on tree branches, frogs and lizards crawl over rocks, and bees buzz around the beehive. This seamless blend of physical and virtual elements enhances immersion, drawing the user deeper into the experience.
This is where another key part of the interaction comes into play. In addition to the mixed reality headset, the user wears a watch-like interface that displays the environment’s temperature. With each slight increase, animal species begin to vanish, their sounds fading into silence. Plants wither, turning dry and brittle as their flowers, leaves, and fruit fall away before disappearing entirely. Bees drop to the ground, and birds cease to chirp, reinforcing the unsettling impact of rising temperatures.
