BABYLOVE by Shu Lea Cheang

• 2005
• Network, Sculpture, Sound

• Description

  First show at Palais de Tokyo
  Paris, France

  I was invited by artist Shu Lea Cheag to build the music engine for her installation BABYLOVE. BABYLOVE is a large scale networked media installation with a rather impressive physical presence. The installation consists of 6 giant teacups, each with a 4 foot baby doll. Each teacup is equipped with a motor and driving mechanism (exhibit visitors drive the babies!) and a Moxa wireless sensor interface that sends sensor data to the baby. Each baby is equipped with a computer, a wireless connection, and my Max/MSP based software engine. This engine accesses a local server full of love songs contributed by gallery or online visitors to BABYLOVE, and shuffles and remixes the love songs live as you drive the teacup.

  The first showing of BABYLOVE during which I worked on the project was at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris. Some videos I took during that showing are here, here, and here. After Paris, I passed BABYLOVE to my genius friend Olaf who reworked the patches and took the babies the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Taichung. Another stop was a San Jose appearance during ISEA/ZeroOne.

   

• Acknowledgements

  BABYLOVE is collaborative work among more than 20 artists, designers, builders and engineers under the direction of Shu Lea Cheang. For complete documentation of this project as well as upcoming exhibition dates please refer to the babylove website.