AIR: reprint

Sensing the presence of distant others through light

This work is a 2026 reprint of AIR, one of the networked device–based artworks from the Small Connection series created by h.o in the early 2000s. At the time of its original production, always-on internet access was only beginning to become widespread. Unlike today’s technological environment—where people can communicate anytime and anywhere through online video, and where individuals function as media through social platforms—communication then relied primarily on email.

In an era saturated with an overwhelming flow of information, AIR, which allows participants to sense one another’s presence solely through the simple on/off state of light, embodies a restrained aesthetic closely attuned to everyday life. It is precisely this simplicity that invites reconsideration today, offering a quietly resonant counterpoint to contemporary modes of communication.

This work was reprinted through a collaboration with the design and innovation firm Takram.