As the global becomes local, and much of life is lived through screens, we are constantly inundated with the “better” versions of almost anything – including ourselves. Whilst this can sometimes act as inspiration, there is also a much darker side that can lead to anxiety and even further to depression. Bald Man Wearing Glasses is an experiential installation around the topic of internet anxiety designed to foster conversation and thoughts on an issue that affects everybody who uses the internet. By putting the viewer directly in the centre of the experience it attempts to simulate feelings of unease and unbalance, through direct comparison of oneself in a circumambient digital infinity mirror.

How it works

The project itself functions using a series of API’s to “recognise” the viewer, and then from this description creates an image search, with the results projected around the viewer, in an infinity mirror structure (built using a circular two way mirror and a ring around that made from regular mirrors). This creates the feeling of being surrounded by an uneasy, fractal display of how the internet sees you, forcing the viewer to confront their comparisons. To activate, the viewer is invited to step inside, triggering a proximity sensor and activating the camera, in turn triggering the rest of the experience.