Sensing Presence
Thesis Faculty:
Harpreet Sareen, Namreta Kumar, Mani Nilchiani, Ethan SilvermanSensing Presence is a walk-in installation that transforms invisible internet data into physical sensation, letting participants feel the hidden density of online traffic and surveillance through an elevator.
The Question
We share digital spaces with millions of people every day, yet the internet offers no sense of that crowd. There is no warmth, no noise, no awareness that others are here alongside you. Sensing Presence asks the question what would the internet feel like if it were physical?
The Experience
Participants enter a walk-in booth designed to resemble an elevator. Each floor corresponds to a real website. Selecting a floor triggers a live reading of that site’s tracker count and traffic volume, translated into light and sound. The data is felt before it is seen.
