By Theresa Reiwer
Decoding Bias was a performance of an AI self help group. Eight Virtual Avatars were displayed on screens, each equipped with it’s own speaker. Positioned in a circle like one would imagine a self help group.
Each AI developed a character and now has to deal with it, they try to free themselves from their discriminating algorithms. While discrimination and exclusion is already programmed into them.
Before the beginning, when entering the room, there was low lighting and already a lower range drown sound which set a mood. Which already set a tone of tension in my opinion.
The performance worked a lot with drone sounds / pads in general in the background, which contributed a lot to the overall mood together with different colored lights. The pads changed over time I noticed them to get higher pitched when something was happening, or when I felt more tension.
As the voices from the characters come from the loudspeakers positioned at the screens one would immediately know who was talking and from what direction the voice was coming from.
I liked that they used the speakers in the circle not only for the individual voices, but also for the sounds and music. Sounds moved around sometimes, mainly in a circle, that brought movement to the installation
Sometimes a voice would shift from it’s position to all the speakers. Which had a nice effect as these were AI characters and they could be everywhere and not only in their Avatars.
When all of them were talking simultaneously I really felt like I’m in the middle and in the situation.
They worked with an upbeat well known pop song, which lifted the mood in the room instantly after a darker/ heavier scene which I was curious to notice.
Although the topic can be a bit heavy, this installation had an overall more positive approach to it.
