Dance with the Devil —
The Algorithmic Panopticon.

The Algorithmic Panopticon is an immersive 8-channel video and sound installation arranged as a circular panopticon. It explores the resistance of the human soul in an age of algorithmic control, cycling through nine distinct facets of humanity visualized as glitching bodies and typographic code.

The physical installation is designed as a circular octahedron situated within a closed, darkened room. Eight vertical large-format displays form a central, glowing core. The audience navigates the space outside and around the octahedron, observing the digital containment unit from a peripheral perspective. This setup reinforces the role of the viewer as an external witness to the struggle between human emotion and algorithmic processing.

Playback Logic & Synchronization

  1. The narrative is driven by a continuous 25-minute cycle spanning nine emotional facets. The visual experience does not duplicate the same image across all monitors. Instead, the narrative alternates in a synchronized rhythm utilizing three distinct video layers:
  2. 1 The Identity (Facet Name & Binary Code)
  3. 2 The Subject (The glitching, struggling humanoid figure)
  4. 3 The Code (Typographic representation of the spoken lyrics)
8-channel panopticon: arrangement of the displays showing Identity, Subject and Code

Spatial Choreography

  1. The synchronized media server routes these three discrete video streams across the 8 screens, forcing the audience to physically move around the structure to grasp the full dialogue between human emotion and machine analysis.
Rigging: truss system and suspension of the 8 vertical displays

Displays

8× 100-inch (or larger)-format 4K displays (vertical orientation / portrait mode).

OLED panels are highly preferred to achieve pure black levels for the glitch aesthetics.

Deliverables

Providing the ready-to-play media assets for the exhibition server:

3× Master Video Streams (4K, looping format, perfectly synced).

1× Multi-channel Spatial Audio Master (containing the spoken word and industrial soundscapes).

Rigging

Circular or octagonal truss system for suspended display mounting.

Media Server & Audio System

Synchronized multi-channel playback system capable of frame-accurate routing of three discrete video streams.

5.1 Surround Sound system (or equivalent spatial multi-speaker array) for immersive audio mapping throughout the room.

Space

Darkened Room (“Black Box”) with high ceilings required to install the truss system.

Interested?

The Dance with the Devil — The Algorithmic Panopticon installation invites the audience to witness the struggle of the human soul in an age of algorithmic control up close — as external witnesses to a digital containment unit.

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