Synth - an experimental app for long-term self-observation

In 1966, Foucault wrote of the classical universe as folded in upon itself: the earth echoing the sky, faces seeing themselves reflected in the stars. Some sixty years on, our universe is unfolding, occurrences of unprecedented scale accelerate entropic decay as we edge towards ecological and democratic collapse.

In place of the stars, a distorted mirror casts back at us, expanding pixel by pixel, bit by bit. The streams of power terraforming this constructed landscape are obscure. Their magnitude, unknowable by any one person, has reached geological scale.

In the torrent of these forces, we now find ourselves rapidly losing signal to the noise. This new landscape demands a new spatial awareness.

Building on the tradition of metageography, the tool – titled SYNTH puts forward a question of authorship and algorithmic transparency – who writes the map of your body? Audiences can experience SYNTH by installing an encrypted on-device application on their phone where they will be able to interact with and update every part of the algorithm, symbols and language while retaining full control of their data. By removing these overlooked aspects, SYNTH acts as a reflection on how opaque and pernicious many of these experiences are today.

Link to try: https://testflight.apple.com/join/NWJuMGCv