‘fuehlometer’ (‘feel-o-meter’) or ‘public face’, an installation in germany by richard wilhelmer, julius von bismarck, and benjamin maus

the work of german artists richard wilhelmer, julius von bismarck, and benjamin maus, ‘fuehlometer’ (‘feel-o-meter’) or ‘public face’ is an interactive art installation that reflects the mood of the city via a large smiley face sculpture.

measuring 8 meters (26.25 feet) tall, the face is composed of steel and neon tubes, installed atop a lighthouse in lindau, germany. a digital camera along the lake captures the faces of passersby, which are then analyzed by a computer program and classified as either happy, sad, or indifferent. the cumulative results determine the expression of the sculpture, whose mouth and eyes shift accordingly via a system of automated motors.

an earlier version of the project was installed in berlin during 2008.

video footage of the project video © vernissageTV

feel o meter smiley face reflects city mood - 2 landscape (left) and detail (right) views of the sculpture

feel o meter smiley face reflects city mood - 3 ‘fuehlometer’ is installed atop a lighthouse along the lake

feel o meter smiley face reflects city mood - 4 left: the artists sit within the smiley’s frame during the construction process right: detail on the jointed steel and neon tubes composing the sculpture

feel o meter smiley face reflects city mood - 5 mounting the installation

feel o meter smiley face reflects city mood - 6 left: a computer program utilizes facial recognition software and an algorithm to determine in realtime the happiness index right: the face-detecting camera, ultimately installed lakeside, from which the sculpture obtains data

via laughingsquid