Commons Sense
Community sensing project (2018)
I co-designed Commons Sense – an exhibition at Knowle West Media Centre to explore how every day things are being ‘sensed’ by smart technologies, and how data is being collected.
The work asks questions about what information can and should be collected, and if this data being used for the common good or corporate gain. We invited people to explore these questions through a range of interactive exhibits, artworks, and activities. People were invited take part through role-play: They found out, visualised, and collected data based on a randomly assigned roles – giving them the opportunity to explore different perspectives. We also added multiple-modes of interaction, making the data feel tangible. The exhibition opened in May 2018 and ran until November 2018.
Collaborators: Pete Bennett, KWMC (Martha King, Fiona Dowling, Luke Sweeney)
We invited people to take on a role at the start of the exhibition, and this guided their experience.
There were a number of ways to play with data – weaving your journey into a map with string, navigating data sets with a joystick, and interacting with sensors.
Throughout the exhibition there were prompts to add your own ideas or data onto a print out. At the end you have a choice in how to share this information -openly display it on a notice board, delete parts of it with a sharpy and then display it, destroy it with a paper shredder, or keep it private by taking it home.
