Naoko Tosa Overview

As social animals, we are forced into constant acts of duplicity. Certain situations demand that we act ebullient when we feel depressed, polite when we feel hatred, social when we feel hermetic. Such is the conflicted nature of the social mask.... [more]

As social animals, we are forced into constant acts of duplicity. Certain situations demand that we act ebullient when we feel depressed, polite when we feel hatred, social when we feel hermetic. Such is the conflicted nature of the social mask. Exchanging these masks at a moment's notice seems to be the necessary protocol for most humans. The Japanese multimedia artist Naoko Tosa is deeply concerned with these psychological boundaries. New technologies allow her to dig beneath the surface of the mask with Interactive art. In her piece "Unconscious Flow" (1999), she brings the concept of the lie detector to a whole new level. A computer maps the heartbeats of two participants who are instructed to touch hands. The computer then interprets their physical responses and generates images that correspond to the perceived feelings. Two mermaids dance on-screen, the symbolic gauge of the participants' levels of relaxation and interest. "Unconscious Flow" is a real-time work that makes visual art out of otherwise-hidden intimacy. "Interactive Poem" (1996-1998) also operates on the principle of exchange. A computer called MUSE was programmed to recognize emotions and mood in speech. Originally, the computer simply generate images according to the speech inflections it heard. Then Naoko Tosa went further by equipping MUSE with a poetic interface, so that human and computer actually communicate. Poetic phrases are exchanged based on the reactions each has to the other (the human responding to images, MUSE reacting to sensitivity information). The result is a new collaboration that liberates poetry from the static page and directs it toward a new form of oral tradition. Naoko Tosa received a Ph.D. in Art and Technological Research from the University of Tokyo. Epitomizing the term "mixed media", she combines elements from psychology and science to create experimental works using film, video, computer graphics, and animation. She has even dabbled in interactive theater, changing storylines according to the emotions of the audience. Her work has been exhibited the world over. [show less]