The Changing Room – Lauren Lee McCarthy

As a society, we’ve established a general comfort level with the presence of artificial intelligence in our lives and homes. We ask Alexa to call mom, dim the lights and preheat the oven; we accept the targeted ads that influence our shopping habits, and regularly indulge in social media scrolling that undoubtedly influences our mood, energy levels and feelings. But at what point do we draw the line, and where does that comfort level end? In addition to managing external tasks, what if AI could directly access and alter our internal emotions? And what if we could also utilize that technology to manipulate the emotional state of others?

This winter, Los Angeles-based artist Lauren Lee McCarthy raises these questions and more through her immersive installation, “The Changing Room,” at OCA Center. Imagining an environment of smart architecture that controls emotion, McCarthy arranges the entire gallery into various live-work type environments that are conducive to human interaction yet guided by digital presence. On the second level is an accessible control panel where visitors are invited to browse and select one of two hundred emotions, which is then evoked throughout the entire space – and ultimately in everyone within it – through a layered response of lights, sounds, and visuals. “I’m hoping it brings up the question of what’s at stake when we bring AI into public and private spaces, and the ways our emotional experiences are mediated by technology,” says McCarthy of the exhibit.