2023 — Duration: [to be defined] GSR device, visual signal, feedback system First presented at: [to be defined]
A director is connected to a GSR (Galvanic Skin Response) device that measures skin conductance in real time. The device converts electrodermal variations into a visual signal. This signal is transmitted to the performers in the space, who use it as a cue for altering their movement. The director does not communicate verbally: the only channel of transmission runs through the GSR. If the director’s level of physiological arousal changes, the visual signal changes and the performers react. The performers’ movement affects the director’s physiological state, which generates a new signal, which alters the movement again. The director’s intentions pass through the filter of the skin response, which cannot be controlled directly. The director may want to communicate a direction, but the GSR transmits only what the body produces. The performers receive a physiological datum translated into light, not an instruction.
Retroactive regime. Here the string is the director’s skin-conductance signal. The performers react to the visual signal generated by the GSR; their movement alters the director’s physiology, which changes the signal, which changes the movement. The circuit closes in a continuous feedback loop.
Photo: Cristina Crippa Produced by artQ13.