WoodEar Screenshot

A tree is a biological network: roots gathering water and nutrients, leaves using sunlight to produce food, and phloem and xylem running throughout to move water and nutrients across the structure. WoodEar attempts to extend the dynamic qualities of this biological network into the digital network.

A series of sensors attached to the tree stream data on the state of its environment – light, temperature, air pressure, and wind. This live data is merged with photos and recordings of the tree’s immediate surroundings into a generative application/installation.

By downloading and running the application, anyone can access the live environmental experiences of the tree – one that may be very distant from them, but that still shares the same air, sky, earth, and water.

WoodEar (2012), a commission by Turbulence.org