Was du willst

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Interactive installation with VR, 2019

What you want (Was du willst) shows you what you want! A computer-generated voice speaks to you: "Therefore I would like to invite you to calm down for a moment and ask yourself: What do you really want?"

The multi-part installation guides the visitors through a highly orchestrated system of experiences. The system embraces the entire exhibition space: after registering, the 'user' is always in some relation and under control of the system. You wait, you are called, you lie down, you get up, you move on, you take your receipt. Everything is tracked, every step is based on the identification of the barcode obtained when registering. How long do you wait after registration until being called, until checking in for the first time? How long do you lie on the bean bag, your eyes covered with what looks like a VR-headset but is just darkness, your ears covered with an infinite low-intensity sound scape generator? How long do you stand in the generated virtual environment, what do you look at, for how long and what categories of items are being shown to you in response? How do you react to a statistical evaluation of your experiences, but also of your personality?

What you want (Was du willst) explores the promise of infinite and immediate availability anything desirable in digital consumerism. First the expectation of a high-fidelity VR experience is undercut with optical and auditive isolation through fake headsets and an ambient soundscape. Then one is confronted with a plethora of gaming assets that try to optimize for your attention. Finally you get a receipt detailing all your behavior and speculations about your personality.

Languages (audio): English, German (individual choice)
Credits →

<emphasis><lang xml:lang="de-DE">Was du willst</lang></emphasis> asks the number <emphasis><say-as interpret-as="digits">%s</say-as></emphasis> to approach part 1, station <say-as interpret-as="character">%s</say-as>.<break /> 
Number <emphasis><say-as interpret-as="digits">%s</say-as></emphasis> please.

This is the last call by <emphasis><lang xml:lang="de-DE">Was du willst</lang></emphasis> for number <emphasis><say-as interpret-as="digits">%s</say-as></emphasis> <break />Please immediately proceed to part 1, station <say-as interpret-as="character">%s</say-as>.<break />Last call for <emphasis><say-as interpret-as="digits">%s</say-as></emphasis>

Please take the virtual reality headset and the headphones from the position marked with the letter <break time="0.1s" /> <say-as interpret-as="character">%s</say-as>.<break/>It's easier if you put on the headset first and then the headphones. Please make yourself comfortable on one of the bean-bags.

Welcome to part 1 of <emphasis><lang xml:lang="de-DE">Was du willst</lang></emphasis><break time="1s" />I am happy to have you here.<break />Please lay down on one of the bean-bags and make yourself comfortable. In the next 5 to 10 minutes I want to expose you to a stimuli reduction.
I would kindly ask you not to take off the headset or the headphones until I ask you to do so.<break time="2s" />I am sure many things have already happened to you on this day. Therefore I would like to invite you to calm down for a moment and ask yourself:
<emphasis>What do you really want?</emphasis>

Hello %s,<break />Part 2 is waiting for you. There will be everything you want.<break />Please take off the headphones and the headset now and put them back to the position marked with the letter <break time="0.1s" /> <say-as interpret-as="character">%s</say-as>.<break/>Don't forget to scan your barcode at the next computer before putting on the other headset.

We're about to start. Take your time to adjust the headset so that it sits comfortably and make sure the earpieces sit tight.
Hello {username}
Welcome to your 3 <phoneme alphabet="ipa" ph="diːː">D</phoneme> world.
Here everything just evolves around you, {username}.

I see you like {0}? No problem. I'm glad actually. I have a lot of that for you.
Glad you like it here. You can stay as long as you wish.
I'm also a big fan of {0}. We're a good match, {username}!
You don't like {0}? I'm sorry for that. But I'll find something else for you, don't worry. Out there I have hundreds of objects just waiting to amaze you.
Look, here comes {0}. It's also {1} - you do like that {username}, don't you?
This is something that would suit you: {0}
You can't get enough {username}. But don't worry, it will go on forever.
A world full of {0} just for {username}. That would be quite something, no?
Do you also ask yourself, why there are so many weapons here? Weird, isn't it? Somehow humans seem to like that.

{username}!<amazon:breath duration="long" volume="x-loud"/>Please return to the center!
You don't need to move, everything you want will come to you.

The central question of "What do you really want?", as posed by the system itself, is examined at three levels:
First, if immersion is a desirable state, is it to be achieved by overwhelming every sense? VR supposedly does so and tries to leave no room for distraction. Or should one pursue immersion through the mental capacity of entering a 'flow' state or even meditation, thus reducing external stimuli?
Second, adaptive digital environments cater our psychological structures and needs ever better. These systems have reached a point - such as a game automatically adjusting its difficulty to the player - where they represent a more wantable life than our society can offer for many.
Third, digital recommendation systems claim to 'know' what you want through technological means of data-observation. VR is inherently based on tracking. This data in combination with statistical tools is used to create a questionable 'understanding' of us.
These approaches are contrasted in the three parts of the experience. In the end the question maybe isn’t what you want, but what 'wanting' means in the age of surveillance capitalism and adaptive virtual environments.