Gestures of Survival

2026
Interactive installation
Pedal-driven image and sound

Gestures of Survival is an interactive meditation on care, in which a participant lends their own effort to keep a digital organism alive. Half insect and half orchid, the creature moves between presence and disappearance, sustained by another body’s time and energy.

Pedalling an exercise bike builds a “life reserve” that shapes both image and sound. When the reserve is low, the creature fragments into grayscale noise and distortion. As it increases, colour, definition and sonic clarity return. When pedalling stops, the reserve falls and the organism begins to dissolve again.

The work shifts attention from grand gestures to the small, repetitive actions that sustain bodies, relationships and ecosystems. Survival becomes an ongoing practice of maintenance rather than a permanent achievement.