/ Individual, Family and Community Behaviors
/ Body and Environment Temperature

The team observed and documented individual, familial and group behaviors connected to the daily activities of three species of Penguins—Adelie, Chinstrap and Gentoo. The expedition coincided with the season for incubation, birth and care of baby penguins allowing the team focus more closely on the parental protection of penguin chicks. Multiple cameras were used to capture over 3,000 photos and 100 videos of penguin activities including incubation, feeding, fighting, hunting and more. Using an infra-red camera at various colonies, the team also measured the temperature variation of penguin chicks and eggs and gained a detailed thermal study of penguin behaviors under the extreme environment.

The data is converted into an interactive and informative mobile application where users can learn more about the penguins’ behaviors using images, videos and infra-red data taken in Antarctica.

Global warming is often discussed in terms of weather and climate changes but one often forgets the physiological impact on the wildlife. Newborn animals are the most vulnerable to even minor changes in temperature and environment. This mobile application allows users to learn more about various threats to the penguin chicks’ survival. In addition, users can also view the thermal images of the penguins to remind them how the most minor changes in the natural environment can endanger the wildlife to a fatal extent.

Chan Yik Hong worked together with Wong Chun Kit on an academic exchange in Tsinghua University, where he served as a volunteer teacher in a Guizhou rural primary school. Yik Hong is also a member of the CityU AppsLab which aims to motivate students to develop their own mobile applications and enhance their interdisciplinary knowledge and skills.

Wong Chun Kit brings marketing experience to translate pure research data into an educational and interactive mobile application to all children and students who are interested in the research findings of penguins.

Chak Gan Cheong is an energetic traveler who has visited several countries on his own, such as Germany, England, France, Switzerland and Thailand. He is also an active learner that studies cultural diversities among different countries.

/ GPS and Multiple Camera Perspective of Kitesurfing Performances
/ Wind Direction and Speed

Wind data was collected using empirical information from the sensors of the scientific research vessel Akademik Ioffe and a series of conducted performances in Antarctica using kitesurfing equipment. Four different performances were recorded and captured in 360 degrees using GPS tracking, five simultaneous cameras surrounding the performance, and two cameras mounted on the kitesurfer and kite to capture a complete, multidirectional perspective. The kite’s response to both the Antarctic wind and the controls of the surfer create a unique man+nature+machine understanding of a relational system.

Connecting the findings to Hong Kong, the gathered data is transformed into a 3D animation and interactive display that shows the free movement of wind in Antarctica compared to Hong Kong’s restricted airflow. Specifically, the animation describes the ‘wall effect’ of Hong Kong’s skyscraping architecture (a variation on ‘the canyon effect’ found in many highly-built cities) which funnels or blocks winds out of the city almost suffocating inhabitants in lethargic hot and polluted air.

The frantic, furious movement of an airborne kite becomes a way of tracing a force that profoundly affects our lives and environment: the wind. Our animation is based on the path and movement of a kite flying freely in Antarctica that is gradually restricted by a visualization of Hong Kong building construction. It is our way of highlighting the consequences of the ‘wall effect’. Our dense concrete jungle blocks the cooling entry of wind and drives up the city’s energy use. We hope our story helps people understand the complexity of the evolving relationship between the wind and our over-built cities, reminding them that the breeze they feel across their faces is also a valuable and endangered resource.

Russian full time international student Vladimir Baskov is a born adventurer and has achieved the level of Assistant Instructor issued by the International Kitesurfing Association. Vladimir is a student representative in the Board of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, has won awards for his academic improvement and holds the position of class representative for the second year in a row.

Angson Chow is a local filmmaker and conceptual artist who was a finalist for the Incubator for The Film and Visual Media in Asia Festival. Angson is also part of the Discovery project in the School of Creative Media where his trajectory in academia is part of the schools’ study of arts-centered research education.

Leoson Cheong (Cheong Tai Leong) is a multi-media artist from Macau, familiar with 3D animation and programming skills with a keen interest in making interactive devices. His documentary film about his work “The Wishes of Macao Animators” appeared in Macao Indies in 2012 and his animations were selected in the 8th and 9th Macau Design Biennial.

/ UV-B Radiation Levels
/ Growth Patterns
/ GPS and Cardinal Direction

As the ozone layer increasingly thins over Antarctica, the UV-B radiation intensifies on the surface influencing the growth of its already-struggling vegetation. The research showed that the UV intensity in Antarctica is ten times more lethal than in Hong Kong. However, the Antarctic lichen are adapting for tolerance to ozone depletion through their natural antioxidant molecules. Antioxidants are one of the key ingredients in cosmetics, skincare and sunblock products due to their ability to inhibit free-radical damage for all skin-types. Using a UV meter, strings and transparent grid sheets, we measured levels of UV radiation and abundance of lichen across several sites in Antarctica to gain a better understanding of UV radiation damage and some of the earth’s own natural defenses.

The artwork uses the most essential of all beauty items—the mirror—as an interactive display system that both reflects and reveals. Using the photographs taken in Antarctica, lichen colors and patterns are pressed between the glass and polished silver surfaces. We see both the surface due to the intricate lichen patterns and our reflection due to the mirrors We look both at and through the mirrors and see our skin aligned with and yet interrupted by a much tougher protective surface—a small living form that is stronger than us.

First hand experience in Antarctica taught us the seriousness of the ozone hole as every team member’s skin burned quickly even with thick layers of sunblock. However, the Antarctic lichen are adapting for tolerance to ozone depletion and thriving. To see how our skin was damaged while studying the resilience of lichen reminded us of nature’s ability to both destroy and adjust. By recreating the naturally beautiful lichen patterns onto mirrors, we hope to visualize this complicated dichotomy—as the lichen thrives, our beauty fades in the reflection. The artwork serves as a reminder for skin care: we see our beauty obstructed and disappearing while the lichen grows, making the mirror a metaphor for the evolving danger to our ecosystem and our personal health.

Having both spent an exchange semester in the United Kingdom, backpacking friends Mani and Twinnie are world travelers visiting and forming friendships in over 10 international countries. Biologist Twinnie Lo has participated in an aquatic animal study in Norway about behavioral changes in starfish caused by changes in their living environment. Engineer Mani Wong was a student environmental protection ambassador for Hong Kong and the Director of External Affairs of the HK200 Association under The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups.

/ GPS and 360-degree Photographic Images
/ Cultural and Historical Narratives

Throughout the journey, the team photographed key shapes and forms they encountered that revealed deeper symbolic meaning about the environment, history and culture of Antarctica. Objects were documented through 360-degree photography as well as their importance, location, and other measurements.

The team has built a story-telling device inspired by the praxinoscope, an early media device that was integral to the origins of film and animation. The brief but important popularity of the 19th century praxinoscope is one of the few moments in cinema history where a physical shape—a mirrored diamond—was part of the presentation. Using this device and converting the expedition photographs into animation frames, they have written a narrative that is told through the sequencing of the shape data.

Shape is the most basic and direct recognition of the world in human beings’ eyes. On the expedition, we encountered forms that were completely unfamiliar to us yet clearly defined the location without any words needed. We wanted to “shape the story” with this project to test whether sequenced 3D forms could act as a narrative device. Throughout the journey, we chose key shapes that revealed deeper symbolic meaning about the environment, history and culture of Antarctica. Using an early animation device, the forms become visual cues to a story that we hope will draw attention to the need for environmental protection.

Jason Tang and Joshua Cui, a combination team of science and art, are two mainland China full-time students and members of the Chinese Students and Scholars Association. They are both interested in music, long-distance travelling and data visualization.

/ Microscopic Images and Video
/ GPS
/ Water Temperature, Salinity, Turbidity
/ DNA Sequences

The team collected 20 water samples from the seas around Antarctica, Argentina and Hong Kong, recording the exact time and GPS location of each sample as well as environmental parameters like water temperature, salinity and turbidity. Through an optical microscope, photos and videos of diverse phytoplankton and protozoa were documented and then analyzed through their DNA sequences.

The artwork uses a 5-meter dome as an immersive environment. The images of the microscopic organisms are re-animated to reconstruct the tiniest group in the massive ecosystem. The organisms’ DNA sequences of varying nucleotides are also transformed into musical notes and chords. The animation and music combine in a melody of micro-organisms.

The most negligible thing to our eyes could be the most significant thing in nature. In most ecosystems, plants lie at the base of the food web, providing nourishment for many other organisms. In the harsh Antarctica ecosystem where plants can barely survive, aquatic micro-organisms have taken up this vital role as producers due to their amazing flexibility. By displaying these humble, lowly life forms above our heads we hope to literally and metaphorically elevate their status. We hope that by making these tiny creatures visible and audible to the audience, it helps us appreciate the marvelousness of nature as well as its relationship with man.

Science student Tse Sau Man is interested in bridging the gap between man and nature, science and art. Liao Shun is a travel lover and has experience in big data mining for bio-information. He won runner-up in the Creative Software competition held by Tianjin University. Shen Xiao Yan was one of 50 students selected from a China-wide competition to attend the Institute of Neuroscience Summer School held by the Chinese Academy. While there, she studied current neuroscience and did a laboratory internship on neural signal transduction. She is using her science skills in the new Arts/Science degree now offered at the School of Creative Media.

/ Texture, Shape, Geometry
/ GPS
/ 360 Degree Photographic Images
/ Thermal Readings
/ Underwater Video

The team researched the geometry and surface texture of dozens of icebergs using 360 degree photo technologies and underwater camera hardware.  Most architectural elements used in modern building are rooted in Euclidean geometry, while the geometry found in nature is non-Euclidean, fractal and organic.  Despite their non-Euclidean formation, icebergs are still shaped and manipulated under a certain natural logic.

The team selected five distinct textures in their iceberg research, studied their geometry carefully, and modeled them through 3D architectural software.  The giant ice structures found in Antarctica are interpreted through digital fabrication and then generated into a series of vertical architectural elements with the surficial and volumetric qualities found in their research.  Presented as a type of sculpture to emphasize the play of light and shadow on the textures, the materials used are environmentally responsible and offer visitors a unique tactile experience.

Our artwork expresses the fragile beauty of icebergs. We studied and documented the shape, size, structure and texture of different icebergs found along the journey and viewed them through the lens of architecture.  The form and surface of the icebergs often tell the story of their state of decay as each is under the process of melting and weathering by natural and human forces. By displaying the icebergs’ fragile but exquisite structural details, we hope to demonstrate how our own actions might impact a single iceberg as far away as Antarctica. In addition to this personal connection, we also hope that our research adds to the knowledge regarding the tectonic aspects of icebergs and indirectly improves understanding of the structural implications of climate change in Hong Kong and elsewhere.

Angie Ngan has travelled extensively in Asia and Europe and is an honored member of the Hong Kong Red Cross receiving awards for Best Member and the highest honor of the Youth Attainment Badge.  Her architectural office design project was exhibited in the First Architectural Studies Exhibition, and she has won awards in various design competitions including the 2014 Extreme Redesign 3D Printing Contest and the International Peace Poster Contest organized by the Lions Clubs International.

Ruth Lun is one of the top students in Architectural Studies. She has received two scholarship awards and both her residential tower and office design works were exhibited in the Architectural Studies Exhibition in 2012. She was the student participant of the project ‘Sensory Urbanism: Ideal City of Percept’ in the 2013 Bi-City Biennale of Urbanism/Architecture Hong Kong.

/ Color Spectrum
/ GPS and Time

Using spectrometers and GPS, the team measured the color spectrum embedded in the natural light of Antarctica and the artificial light pollution found in Hong Kong over periods as long as five hours.  Various locations in Antarctica where no artificial light exists were measured as well as the Tsim Sha Tsui district of Hong Kong on a weekday evening—literally the most light-polluted place and time on the planet.   The wavelength data of light entering the earth’s atmosphere and the light generated by man found in each of the two datasets was visualized in 3D using procedural animation, mapped over time and converted into a thinking particle simulation.

Using a 360-degree display and 3D optical technologies, the artwork compares the spectral data of Hong Kong, heavily polluted by artificial light, and the purely natural spectral data from Antarctica.  Using the metaphor of the Aurora Australis, the southern lights, the data is interpreted, mapped over time, and presented to viewers by enveloping them in the colors hidden in different types of light.

Not all light is created equal.  Understanding the complex variations of sunlight as both a phenomenon and power source is key to global sustainable issues.  However, understanding the harmful effects of artificial light pollution is equally key.  Using 3D immersion to see the unseeable, our artwork compares the colors embedded in the pure, natural light of Antarctica with the colors in the artificial dominating light of Hong Kong, the most light polluted site on the planet. We hope this visualization will help the public better understand solar energy as well as the damaging environmental and psychological effects of urban light pollution.

One of the explorers on CityU’s Mojave Desert expedition in 2012, Mubarak Marafa is interested in the sciences and the arts and specialises in the convergence of these two fields in his work. He has published a paper in an international conference in Korea for new interfaces for musical expression and has a patent filed under his name.

Indian international student Anantika Mehra is a programmer who has served as the Captain of her High School, worked on a project for Lake Conservation and collaborated on a project to design teaching tools for Boolean Algebra. She served as the IVP of the City University International Society last year, and is currently assisting media artist and Professor Don Ritter in his latest project.

/ Recorded Video Interviews
/ GPS
/ 360-degree Video
/ Documentary Photography
/ Laser Measurement
/ Performance Documentation

The team considered the concept of isolation from a variety of perspectives. By studying and contrasting Tierra del Fuego’s notorious role as a penal colony and Antarctica’s remote environment as an outpost for scientific research, the team explored criminological, psychological and environmental topics related to isolation and connection. Ushuaia’s famously brutal prison (now a museum) was documented through panoramic technologies referencing panopticon prison and cell design. As Antarctica is a place that is exceptionally isolated, the team researched scientists’ self-evicted-and-captive actions —extreme environments as both prisons and as free zones. Enroute on the journey, people with isolation experiences were photographed, filmed and interviewed as well, giving the team deeper insight on their project.

In Hong Kong, the team initiated a live performance in Mong Kok held for six hours over two days. A 1.5 x 1 x 1 meter ‘cage flat’ covered in reflective material was placed on a busy walkway. Hidden behind the one-way surface, the student was able to see out into the crowds while those on the street could not see in. Using two cameras the student filmed the curiosity and response of the crowds surrounding the mysterious box. Through this local research project the team sought to gain insight into Hong Kong’s own extreme environment: the restricted, cage-like flats that house thousands of its population.

For the exhibition, a rear-projection system and installation allow visitors to enter a space similar to the size of the Ushuaia prison cell. Projected onto the walls are 360-degree images of the prison, text from the interviews, video from the Mong Kok performance and video filmed from inside one of Hong Kong’s ‘cage flats’. This montage of the aesthetics of isolation demonstrates a variety of perspectives on what it means to live through restrictions.

As a way to explore topics related to isolation and restriction, we wove a connective thread between Tierra del Fuego’s notorious history as a penal colony, Antarctica’s remote research stations, and Hong Kong’s forgotten poor. Hong Kong being ‘the Pearl of the Orient’, it is difficult to conceive that tens of thousands of poor and elderly live in homes neither bigger than a prison cell nor a remote scientific base. Indeed, Hong Kong is another type of ‘prison’ isolating them from one of the world’s most dense cities while living in the middle of it. By collecting personal stories from all three sites—Hong Kong, Argentina, and Antarctica—and creating a performance in the crowded streets of Mong Kok, we looked at metaphorical ‘prisons’ from structural, criminological, environmental, cultural and psychological aspects. Our installation communicates the look and feel of isolation as an extreme environment in and of itself and we hope our research might help all of us reach out to those in need who are isolated yet in the crowd around us.

Both Tsang Hoi Yu and Lee Ka Ki, Kathy study social sciences and are enthusiastic about exploring social issues related to the interactions among people, society and the environment. By studying both criminology and psychology, Yu seeks opportunities to discover and interpret the psychological status of people under different social and environment settings. Kathy is also interested in finding the interaction patterns and connections between people. Kathy studies and utilizes diverse media technologies and communication methods to unfold situations from fresh perspectives.

/ Personal Interviews with Participants
/ Item Photo, Weight, Measurement, Value, Origin, Importance
/ GPS and Time

The international monetary system is so connected to our culture that we forget that prior to money, there existed a complex network of bartering and trading. With no currencies, money circulation or government regulations, Antarctica continues to exchange in this tradition; liquor is traded for clothing, data for medicine, and equipment for services. To research both the economic system and the personal social interaction built into it, the team collected data by creating a hands-on barter experience during the length of the expedition. Small yet culturally unique items from Hong Kong (e.g. stamps, postcards, coins) were exchanged for other goods and services with the people the team encountered. Each item traded was photographed, measured and weighed and information regarding its manufacturing location, approximate value and the time and location of the trade were also recorded. Tree diagrams followed the journey of each item demonstrating a complex network of exchanges despite the banality of the objects. The team also documented the social interactions that were part of each trade revealing an economic system that includes sharing the backgrounds, histories, cultures and nationalities of the parties trading.

The trades are recreated and narrated through a game application that allows viewers to guess perceived value of the objects through bartering. The details of each item and the nationalities of the trading parties are the clues for them to guess how a particular item is traded forward and the route of the barter journey. The game connects the data collected with our finding that monetary value is meaningless in a place without currency. Everything can be traded and the result may be out of our expectation.

An installation allows visitors to the exhibition to take a specially-made souvenir coin but only by trading it for something in their pockets. Visitors can have a real barter experience by giving up something in order to take the coins. It also implies that people are traded for the coins because of its special and unique design instead of the monetary value.

The value of money is an abstraction—a piece of paper is worth what a government tells us. The disconnect between the paper in our hand and the objects we buy can lead to the problem of overconsumption as consumers buy what they want without any hesitation as long as they have money in hand. Wastage of resources becomes serious, especially in developed cities like Hong Kong. We see the direct exchange of goods and services as an effective, sustainable and environmentally responsible solution. Items no longer needed are not disposed, but exchanged and reused again. Also, barter is more than exchanging a product itself; it also means a way in exchanging our culture, values, knowledge and business information. Under barter system, the monetary value of goods is not important as long as the needs of both parties are satisfied…it is economics as a type of social network.

Ada Au was a green ambassador and Publicity Secretary of the Geography Society. Ada has participated in international study tours before including visits to the Shanghai Expo and the Seoul National University. As a research assistant, she has been involved in data searching.

Heidi Chan focuses on interactive and hand-made art such as pop-up book and photo installation. She designed promotional materials for her high school’s Conservancy Club. She has been involved in different volunteer work including Hong Kong International Film Festival and Young Friends of Hong Kong Arts Festival.

/ Light Intensity
/ Pollutant Density

Across multiple sites in both Antarctica and Hong Kong, the team used lasers to measure air quality—spacing them at different distances and collecting the readings from a light detector. Light intensity is a good scientific quantity for indirect reflection of air quality: the more pollutants in the air, the more the laser beam scatters and fades.

The installation recreates the light detector’s readings from both sites by using layers of translucent fabric to reveal pollution density. An array of lights on the ceiling simulates the passing of the sun over Hong Kong; a circle of lights on the floor mimics the sun’s path over Antarctica. As the lights pass through the vertically stacked layers of fabric, a visual comparison can be made between the air qualities found in these two contrasting sites.

Living in a city where it is difficult to enjoy a clear view of the sky, Antarctica’s fresh purity was quite literally a jolt out of the blue. One of Antarctica’s most unique qualities is the cleanliness of its environment, particularly the air. When contrasted with Hong Kong’s polluted air, Antarctica offers both hope and instruction. We wanted to create a tangible, physical representation of air pollution in Hong Kong as a way to raise public awareness. The scientific datasets of a nearly invisible problem are transformed into a moody, poetic installation that allows visitors to consider air quality from a new perspective.

Jess Lau is a final-year animation student whose poetry and drawings have appeared in several magazines. She studied art theory in Italy, speaks fluent Italian, and has volunteered for local art institutions like Cattle Depot Artist Village. Her artwork was exhibited at the Inclusive Arts Project organized by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Community Project Grant.

Sunny Wong, a final-year student, has been twice awarded to the list of top performers in his major of Chemistry. He was an exchange student in Germany as well as a student ambassador for his own department on CityU’s Information Day. He has been chosen to work under the On-Campus Service-Learning (OSS) Scheme and has campus internship experience as a laboratory assistant for his Summer Research Placement.

/ 13 sensor ‘black boxes’ worn by teams that automatically collected 24-hour GPS and altitude
Plus:
/ Ocean
Water Temperature, pH Value, Dissolved Oxygen Content, Salinity, Turbidity
/ Weather
Weather Temperature, Humidity, Pressure, Light Intensity, Sound level Wind Direction and Speed; Sunrise and Sunset Times, Dewpoint
/ Journey
Latitude, Longitude, Altitude, Depth, Ship Speed and Heading, Total Miles Sailed Course, Cardinal Heading, and Distance to Hong Kong, Voyage Charts
/ Vessel
Ship Schematics, Origin, Tank Capacities, Research Activities Onboard
/ Equipment
Photos and Dimensions of Equipment for Life-saving, Communications, Fire, Pollution Prevention, Navigation, Laboratories, Winces, Cranes
/ Lifestyle
Wildlife Sightings, Daily Activities, Food and Water Intake, Money Spent, Layers of Clothing Worn, Photo Color Information, Email Keyword Frequency, Team Details, Member Statistics

Using an array of sensors, field research, interviews, questionaires, experiments and data mining techniques, the team collected over 50 unique datasets during the course of the expedition. Comprehensive information was retrieved consisting of environmental data such as weather, ocean depth and water sample statistics, expedition data such as voyage charts, wildlife sightings and GPS information, and personal and cultural data such as diet, correspondence and physiology. Much of the data was collected by conducting experiments on-site while the rest was obtained through visits to remote science and military bases stationed in Antarctica and from the laboratory onboard the Akademik Ioffe.

The team created the extensive infographics sections within the exhibition catalogue and programme website as a way to educate and entertain the public. In addition, they used map data, GPS coordinates and altitude to create an abstract installation representing the Antarctic landscape.

For the expedition our team created a series of sensor "black boxes" to be carried by every project team. While analyzing the datasets logged onto the devices, we discovered that the GPS and altitude data could be extrapolated to reveal the terrain—the students accidentally 'surveyed' the sites visited. This data was used to develop our installation using techniques in computational geometry, programming and procedural modeling. Our installation allows the audience to explore an abstract representation of the Antarctic landscape. Through these interactions, one may draw connections to the complex relationships between human beings and this pristine and fragile environment.

Sung Pui Yin is a science student who has been performing chemical and biological experiments since secondary school. Her primary area of interest now is in Analytical Chemistry and she is currently conducting research under the guidance of a CityU professor.

Indian international student Debarun Dhar is a computer engineering student with experience in programming, electronics, research and simulation work, and a myriad of data analysis and visualization software. He has won the International Space Settlement Design Competition held at NASA and has received the Young Achiever Award by the Rotary Club of Madras, India, for his numerous achievements in secondary school.

Charmaine Wu is a multimedia artist with a focus on branding and interface design. She has won the HK4A’s Student Bronze Award and has also worked on prestigious commercial projects like the West Kowloon Renewal Project. As the student ambassador of the Hong Kong Design Centre, she has participated in the Hong Kong Design Year Milan Study Tour.

/ Student Photographs and Videos from the Expedition

The Hong Kong-based team used the database of expedition photographs and Aaron’s Hong Kong photographs mixed with projection mapping and computational animation to serve as an interactive context and stage for a magic show featuring illusions regarding Antarctica. Presented through the hybrid of magic and new media, the performance is designed to educate and inform the population in an innovative, entertaining way.

The artwork takes the form of performance and media installation, exploring the topic of Antarctica by means of a collision between the science of perception and the art of deception. Fusing projection-mapping and an interactive installation, The Perception tells a the story of a time-traveling extraterrestrial, ‘the supernatural unknown’ who steals, combines and shares elements between the “Pearl of the Orient” and “The End of the World”. Using two sliding screens as a metaphor for Antarctica and Hong Kong coming together, projection mapping mashes photographs taken from these two disparate sites. The result is a hybrid techno-magic show, using emerging media art together with miraculous transformations in the style of traditional and contemporary magic stagecraft.

As a team working in the Hong Kong side of the expedition, we remotely had our perceptions of Antarctica changed through the experience. The photos were both truth and deception to us, seen but never seen. This division is key to magic. Using the language of illusion and emerging new media art, we wanted to present the connection between Hong Kong and Antarctica as a contemporary magic stagecraft. The hybrid techno-illusion performance abstracts the story of a mysterious stranger who ‘steals’ resources from Antarctica and passes them to Hong Kong. We believe that an entertaining performance can also provoke consideration of important issues and by utilizing both new media technology and magic, we can merge details from the two places and pose deeper questions.

Ko Hiu Ki, Elijah is a dreamer and conceptual illusionist. Since his embroilment in magic at the age of 13, Elijah has continually mystified people’s logical thinking and distorted their senses. Combining the science of perception and the art of deception, he is interested to infuse the scientific reasoning of cognitive psychology into magic, amusing audiences to the next level wonderment.

Fung King Him, Aaron is an experienced photographer whose images have appeared on international stock photo catalogues. He has his internship as a Project Director for Radio Television Hong Kong. With his skills in photography, his vision is to merge it with different areas of art and different fields of technologies, creating new experiences through his work.

Gabor Pribek is a media designer, whose work acts like a creative bridge, connecting different art disciplines and experimenting with technologies to develop our environment. His interests are live projection performances, new media installations and mixing different media. He has held many exhibitions worldwide, including Budapest, Amsterdam, Bratislava and Esztergom.

/ Text Emails from the Expedition
/ GPS
/ Cardinal Direction

With two members staying in Hong Kong while the third explored the South Pole, the project merges two datasets collected in Hong Kong and Antarctica during the expedition period—GPS and text emails. The result is a unique perspective on both physical and psychological proximity. All three members wore sensors collecting GPS data to compare physical distance on opposite sides of the planet. Moreover, while crossing the Drake Passage and trekking through Antarctica, the expedition team had only minimal electronic communications—one group text-only email could be sent daily via satellite which condensed the entire expedition team’s emotions and expressions. When analyzed using various algorithms and methodologies, the two datasets constructed an exceptional perspective for studying physical distance and emotions.

The artwork spans nine stories in the Creative Media Centre with six separate LEDs hanging from the central core balconies. With the 1st and 9th floors mapped to GPS coordinates on a virtual globe slicing the building, analyzed results of the expedition’s collective email rise through the centre of the architecture. While the LEDs are displaying the analysis, the original email text is displayed on retro LCDs mounted into pedestals whose heights correspond to locations where the most messages were sent. The miniature LCDs represent the minimal communication during the expedition while the architectural LEDs represent the bigger themes.

We are a group of three close friends and when one of us was selected for the expedition we began to consider the unique effects of physical and psychological proximity. All three of us wore GPS sensors during the entire length of the expedition both at the South Pole and Hong Kong giving a dramatic understanding of just how far apart we were. While on the ship, the Antarctica team’s only communication was an antiquated group text-only email once a day. Here in Hong Kong, reading those distant messages from our friends we began to see key words and feelings surfacing below the words. The two datasets constructed an exceptional perspective for studying physical and emotional distance. We hope this installation is both micro and macro—a close look at the feelings sent from friends on the other side of the world and the larger impact of changing global communications.

Jessica Tsui is top programmer in the School of Creative Media, interested in video and electronics. She has also been a camp coordinator at YMCA for 3 years and led programs such as the teen leadership program and camps in Canada.

SCM student Jade Yuen is interested in sound, photography, post-production and performance. She has been a student mentor and her artworks have been exhibited in the mentor mentee exhibition in 2012. Her performance has also been staged in Jockey Club Creative Arts Centre last December.

Jess Lau is a final-year animation student whose poetry and drawings have appeared in several magazines. She studied art theory in Italy, speaks fluent Italian, and has volunteered for local art institutions like Cattle Depot Artist Village. Her artwork was exhibited at the Inclusive Arts Project organized by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Community Project Grant.

/ Photos

On-site photography using lasers and pure ice in Antarctica

Antarctica’s ‘black ice’ is 50,000-year-old pure water that has been so compressed over time that all air and impurities have been removed, leaving ice that looks like large shards of glass. Its clarity reminds us of an ancient, untouched nature and I wanted to explore the effects of light on this complex, mysterious memento from the past.

Jess Lau is a final-year animation student whose poetry and drawings have appeared in several magazines. She studied art theory in Italy, speaks fluent Italian, and has volunteered for local art institutions like Cattle Depot Artist Village. Her artwork was exhibited at the Inclusive Arts Project organized by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Community Project Grant.