Single Body, Many
2025–2026
Work in Development
Collective Sensing, Attunement Systems, Ritual Interfaces
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Description
Single Body, Many investigates how a group of people—entering as separate bodies—can briefly function as a shared organism. The work explores collective attunement: the emergence of a relational field shaped by breath, stillness, micro-movement, and quiet attention.
The project extends the research trajectory initiated in Pulse Now, which examined inner attunement at the scale of the individual. Here, the focus shifts outward: from the internal state of one body to the dynamic coherence emerging between many.
At the center of the installation sits a wide, low circular well. Across cultures, the well appears as a site of gathering, depth, and transition. In this work, it becomes an interface for sensing the subtle organization of the group. Sensitive motion sensors around the well register micro-patterns—stability, proximity, density, and shared stillness. Inside the well, a generative visual environment responds not to individuals but to the collective pattern forming in real time.
The system does not measure; it attunes.
It reflects a collective "breath": a slow, responsive rhythm shaped by the presence of those gathered around it.
Concept
The project draws from:
- anthropology and mythological well structures
- ritual circles and collective embodied practices
- research on group synchrony and behavioral entrainment
- swarm intelligence and distributed decision-making
- embodied cognition and non-verbal collective regulation
The work proposes that collective presence can generate a temporary shared body—an emergent form that is felt before it is seen.
System
Sensing Layer
- high-sensitivity motion detection for micro-movement and density
- non-biometric data: stability, proximity, group attunement
- focus on qualities of presence rather than quantitative metrics
Computational Layer
- TouchDesigner real-time engine
- behavior models inspired by flocking, swarming, and collective regulation
- detection of "thresholds"—moments when collective patterns shift
Output Layer
- generative visual field emerging from within the well
- spatial sound that mirrors collective rhythms
- feedback loops responding to the group rather than the individual
Images
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Development Notes
Form
- low circular well as communal focal point
- surrounding seating encouraging stillness and co-presence
Sensing
- micro-pattern detection
- relational, non-biometric inputs
Processing
- real-time interpretation of group qualities
- transition mapping between emergent states
Generative Atmosphere
- visual "breathing" patterns
- spatial audio responding to collective variance
Research Trajectory
- mythological wells, ritual gatherings
- behavioral/physiological synchrony
- swarm intelligence and collective regulation
- embodied cognition, relational presence
Current Stage
- physical prototyping of the well
- sensing system development
- collective synchronization testing
- generative behavior design
- transition from individual → collective attunement
Next Steps
- integrate multi-sensor array
- refine attunement thresholds
- full-scale installation tests
- exhibition preparation for Herzliya Museum
Exhibition
To be presented at the Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art, March 2026.
Curators: Noga Littman & Inbal Reuveni.
Credits
Concept & research: Olga Stadnuk
Technical development: (to be added)
Curators: Noga Littman & Inbal Reuveni
Produced with support from Herzliya Museum of Contemporary Art