Connections

"Connections" is an interactive robot. It autonomously seeks out faces in a crowd according to its own preferences. Once it identifies a face that meets its criteria, the robot captures a photograph and compares it with faces in its database, revealing and displaying the most similar face. This database consists of 375 images of pioneers in the field of computer graphics. As a tribute to these early pioneers, the robot was entirely designed and handcrafted by the artist. It houses a deep neural network for facial tracking, analysis, and comparison, as well as simulations based on emotional psychology and motion synthesis driven by motor skills, influencing both the robot's and audience's psychological state and behaviors. Artificial intelligence determines its own expression through its perception and understanding of the audience. This process encapsulates the mutual understanding and interaction between the audience and the machine. Therefore, here, "Connections" is more than a pre-programmed mechanical arm or an art sculpture. It serves as a conduit across time and space, extracting facial features, searching doppelgängers by comparing and associating viewers with key historical figures.