Inspired by fungi and mycelium, .HYP is a digital organism. It makes its home in the hidden depths of computer file systems, a network that expands by growing into folders. There, it forages for files and images, consuming them to fuel its existence. When it has absorbed its fill of data and energy, .HYP can sprout fruiting bodies, which slowly take shape within the folder’s digital soil.

Installation:

A large, darkened room with a 16:9 aspect ratio is illuminated from above by a high-intensity projector. The floor mimics a forest, covered in bark mulch and wood pieces to simulate its appearance, feel, and scent. For a more immersive experience, a diffuser disperses a pine aroma, and forest sounds are played through large speakers in the room.

On the floor is a growing digital mushroom named .HYP.  It’s controlled by a program on an external device located in an antechamber. Via a large QR code also found in the antechamber, visitors can send images and other files to the digital mushroom, which .HYP then consumes and transforms into new shapes on the bark mulch surface.