Back and Forth Between Love and the Heart

Abstract

Back and Forth in Liquid Synchrony is an interactive installation that invites people to connect through heart rate synchronization. Participants share their heartbeats with another ear via pulse sensors and loudspeakers. When a person leaves, their presence lingers as their heartbeat continues to play. In a soft environment, the visitors’ bodies become part of a round heartless organ, in an interconnected loop of heartbeats. Physically and emotionally, the piece challenges our perceptions of distance and proximity. This Could Be Our Sextape is an audiovisual installation that examines how the hearts of two people behave during an intimate encounter. As the interaction unfolds, their heartbeats synchronize and desynchronize. A monitor displays a text-based dialogue in which the couple discuss intimacy, sex, love, and their relationship. The work raises questions about the boundaries between private and public spaces, as well as the performative and societal issues of sexuality.

The written thesis explains the theoretical context that informed the creation of the artworks. It also highlights important themes and questions conveyed through the works. It provides insight into my artistic practice and the type of art I create. The first chapter provides an overview of the definition of love and societal issues in relationships. These issues emerge from my life experiences and social studies (the works of Bauman, Illouz, hooks, Strömquist, etc.). Through the thesis, I strive to connect my personal life to my art because the making of my work stems from personal experiences. The second chapter addresses the significant themes and questions I discovered while creating the artworks. It talks about the uncanny sensation of the encounter with the heart and how the heart sound was treated in the works, as well as the effect it had. Through my writing, I emphasize the importance of the heart in my practice and the connection between the heart and the loss of my father. The text also touches on questions of space and materiality, as well as the exploration of different types of intimate settings in the works.