A reflection on meaning

How much can be expressed in just 125 letters? Appropriate Response addresses this question. Inspired by the power of words, this interactive piece explores meaning, expectation, and relationship with artificial intelligence. The installation features a wooden kneeler and a split flap display that shows a random selection of continuously changing letters. When a person interacts with the work by kneeling down, the installation's built-in artificial intelligence responds by presenting on the screen a short sentence that is reminiscent of an inspirational quote or aphorism. Each phrase is written by the machine's neural networks and is entirely unique; no two visitors will ever receive the same line of distilled wisdom from Appropriate Response.

The power of words

From religious principles to marketing slogans or self-help, pithy phrases abound as a source of inspiration and guidance. Yet with today's technology, it can be difficult to discern whether certain texts have been produced by humans or machines. Within this context, Klingemann's artwork raises pertinent questions about authorship and the significance attached to written language.

Physicality, ritual and interpretation

For Appropriate Response, Klingemann enhanced the GPT2 neural network with a further 60,000 quotes to create a model capable of producing short texts. These appear on a split flap display, chosen by the artist for its aesthetic appeal, distinctive sound, and connotation of waiting. The kneeler turns interaction with Appropriate Response into a ritual-like experience. "We fear AI but also hope it might help us," says Klingemann. "That balance between hope and fear is related to religious experience, so I felt kneeling was very fitting."

Context and expectation are also key. Viewers participate by kneeling but also by processing the text displayed on screen. Appropriate Response generates coherent aphorisms, but it is human viewers that furnish them with meaning.

Links: https://onkaos.com/mario-klingemann/

With support from: Coleccion SOLO

Mario Klingemann (DE) is an artist who uses algorithms and artificial intelligence to create and investigate systems. He is interested in human perception of art and creativity and is a recognized pioneer in AI art, neural networks, and machine learning. He was Artist in Residence at Google Arts and Culture, and his artworks have been shown at the MoMA and the MET New York, and Centre Pompidou Paris, among others. Klingemann received the British Library Labs Artistic Award 2016 and in 2018 won the Lumen Prize Gold Award. His installation Memories of Passersby I made history in March 2019 as the first autonomous AI machine to be successfully auctioned at Sotheby's.