Quantum Mechanics and 3D Imaging Recreate Nano-Quantum World

Visitors to Europe's largest multi-arts and conference venue will be invited to enter a virtual world and become an electrostatic force, where their energy controls the sounds and images in the room.

This unique concept is known as Danceroom Spectroscopy (DS), created by Dr David Glowacki, a chemical physicist at the University of Bristol. It will make its London premiere at the Barbican Arts Centre on 3 and 4 November.
The project is part video game, part science visualization, part art installation, and part social experiment. It transforms people into energy fields and lets them wander through a nano-quantum world which is recreated thanks to 3D imaging and quantum mechanics.

In real-time, the 3D cameras feed their data into a custom-built supercomputer which has a special program to interpret people as energy fields. There’s no limit on the number of ‘players’ and the more they cooperate, the more engrossing it becomes.

There’s also a sonic component – as people move within the space, their energy field causes the particles to slosh and vibrate. The vibrations are analysed by the supercomputer and sent out to a musician who uses the information to create electronic soundscapes.

The net result is an immersive audiovisual experience where people are able to see and hear how their energy fields interact with the invisible nano-world.

A special performance, entitled Hidden Fields, will also be part of the Barbican Weekender on 3 and 4 November. It’s the world’s first ever dance performance that attempts to choreograph atomic dynamics.

Dr Glowacki is working with an interdisciplinary team including composer Prof Joseph Hyde (Bath Spa), electronica artist Dr Tom Mitchell (UWE), digital artist Phill Tew (Pervasive Media Studio Bristol), choreographer Laura Kriefmann (Pervasive Media Studio Bristol), and a team of five professional dancers.

DS will run over the 3 and 4 November on the ClubStage at the Barbican Arts Centre in London. Three 30 minute performances of Hidden Fields will take place each day. Admission is free.