Pulse Index

"Pulse Index" is an interactive installation that records participants’ fingerprints at the same time as it detects their heart rates. The piece displays data for the last 765 and over participants in a stepped display that creates a horizon line of skin. To participate, people introduce their finger into a custom-made sensor equipped with a 220x digital microscope and a heart rate sensor; their fingerprint immediately appears on the largest cell of the display, pulsating to their heart beat. As more people try the piece one’s own recording travels upwards until it disappears altogether —a kind of memento mori using fingerprints, the most commonly used biometric image for identification.

The project exists in a small plasma version which features a 58 inch HD screen hung in portrait mode and in a large projection version which can be as large as desired.

General info

Spanish name:
Indice de Corazonadas
Year of creation:
2010

Standalone

Technique:
Screen, computer, digital microscope, industrial camera, metal enclosure, custom software
Dimensions:
58 inch monitor
Keywords:
biometric, database, indoor, interactive, recorder, projection
Edition:
6 Editions, 1 AP
Collectors:
Borusan Contemporary, Daros LatinAmerica, Manchester Art Gallery, The Carl & Marilynn Thoma Foundation and private collectors

Treatment version

Technique:
Projector, computer, digital microscope, industrial camera, metal enclosure, custom software
Room conditions:
Lighting: requires a dark room, no exterior or interior lights. Blocked windows or blackout curtains
Dimensions:
Variable
Keywords:
biometric, database, indoor, interactive, recorder, projection
Edition:
1 Edition, 1 AP

Exhibitions


Credits

  • Concept, Direction and Visuals: Rafael Lozano-Hemmer
  • Programming: Conroy Badger
  • Production Assistance: Stephan Schulz, David Lemieux, Karine Charbonneau and Pierre Fournier

Links


Bibliography