Wadi
2022
web-browser orchestra
net-art accessible via Minnesota Street Project
Wadi is an interactive, orchestral experience examining temporality, natural resources, and capitalism. With a single click, the website transforms into a virtual river via multiple pop-up windows gushing with images and sound. The tenor of the symphony is determined by the ebb and flow of international stock prices of water.
“I am interested in the relationship between the conjuring of water and the transitory nature of capitalism as detached from material,” says Asgary.
The title Wadi is an Arabic term referring to an ephemeral riverbed that may or may not be dry. The term "ephemeral" is also widely used in stock markets. In both cases, scarcity or plenty creates the basis for capitalist exploitation.
The audio is from the artist’s collection of water recordings manipulated to evolve as stock prices change. For visuals, Asgary downloaded dozens of water images from commercial photo websites. She then uses machine learning to create new images from the combination of water photos and actual graphs of water stocks. The result is a pixelated, grainy river altered beyond recognition from the original source.
"Wadi" was created through the Adjacent residency at Minnesota Street Project.
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