Mobile App, ARTour Basel
With Sheep 1.5, Marc Lee makes several references to scientific and technological developments: sheep are among the first domesticated creatures, and in 1996 “Dolly” the sheep was the first cloned mammal. Furthermore, Lee takes a look at the increasing homogenization of our globalized world, which includes the extinction of species as well as the ever-increasing optimization of farmed animals for human needs.
If you open the ARTour Basel, a virtual flock of sheep populates the Münsterplatz in Basel. If you move towards them, the sheep begin to bleat. After a short time they jump into the air in unison and face the onlookers, who are suddenly in the center of the scene and are being stared at. All the sheep are based on the same animated 3D model and their bleating also comes from just one sheep, but they sound different in each case due to various digital filters. The seemingly individual traits of the sheep in this flock are easy to see through and the abrupt change from “natural” and orchestrated movements creates an eerie setting that questions the ability of nature to be generated.
Text: Sabine Himmelsbach
Sheep 1.5 is part of the ARTour Basel
For the 125th anniversary, Roche conceived and implemented the ARTour Basel in close cooperation with Basel Tourism, the House of Electronic Arts and the City of Basel. Ten national and international artists: Andy Picci, Erika Marthins, Tabita Rezaire, Studio Above & Below, Studer / van den Berg, Marc Lee, MengXuan Sun, Tamiko Thiel, Mélodie Mousset & Eduardo Fouilloux and Manuel Rossner have created digital artworks on the theme of “Celebrate Life” especially for the tour. The artworks open up new, interactive ways for viewers to explore art and the city of Basel.
