In this project I had the pleasure of collaborating with Information Experience Design graduate Daniele Giannetti on an artwork titled “Instance”. The piece was exhibited from 12th of October and until the 4th of November 2018 in Grizedale Forest Visitor’s Centre Project Space. Visit the excibition’s website to find out more.
The concept of “time” has had many interpretations in physics. In special relativity it is interchangeable with space and can be bent and twisted. In nuclear physics it mandates the decay of atoms. Its direction is defined through entropy, framing every single event in a continuous steam. In between each infinitesimally short slice, an infinite universe pulsates. Within each moment secrets are hidden like rare metals coursing through the earth. As artists we capture and represent moments. As scientists we seek them.
In the search for Dark Matter “time” is a double edged sword. The optimists may claim that it is only a matter of time until Dark Matter is directly observed. With bigger instruments, newer technologies and larger groups of scientist, discovery is just around the corner. The pessimists may claim that depending on the interaction strength the direct detection of Dark Matter may be too rare to ever confirm with certainty. The undecided can only hold their breath and wait.
Some moments are too rare to capture. Some may be too short or too long. Within this framework and during a brainstorm session focusing on using natural elements, the process of erosion was considered. A drop of water may not carry enough force to change a rock, however, millions of drops can carve mountains. Erosion cannot be captured in a single moment. Neither can a single drop be used to predict and describe erosion.
This art piece tries to capture the anticipation contained in an instance. Water suspended over a rock, frozen in time and space. We can imagine the water splashing, we can even hear the sound it would make. Dark Matter is an instance away from discovery. An instance that will terraform our view of the universe, shaping our future understanding.