when you are close to me i shiver

when you are close to me I shiver is an algorithm-controlled simulation, a real-time-generated virtual reality that takes place in a version of the future in which humans, out of desperation, congregate en masse on the last remaining piece of land . Inspired by the walrus scene in the documentary Our Planet narrated by David Attenborough and produced by Silverback Films, the project offers an intense storyline encompassing our environmental and personal crises.

It reflects on how we identify ourselves and connect with different realities while addressing the human condition in a world in ecological and therefore social crisis. On the screen, a virtual camera randomly focuses on different points of view while a familiar voiceover recounts the tragic fates of humans. The grotesque, low-fi clones of the artist’s 3D scanned body (per)form the population of the island. Through these avatars, the artist creates a new identity resulting from plurality, renegotiating the fragility of the physical and virtual self and its realities.