AIR: revival

Sensing the presence of distant others through light

AIR: revival is a 2026 re-release of a networked device–based artwork from the SmallConnection series, originally created by h.o in the early 2000s. At the time of its initial production, always-on internet access was only beginning to take hold, and the technological conditions that now enable instantaneous connection through video and social platforms had yet to become commonplace.
Functioning as a subtle medium—much like the air that surrounds us—AIR makes presence perceptible without demanding attention. By using light as its sole means of communication, the work conveys the presence of a distant partner beyond physical separation, evoking not explicit information but rather rhythms of daily life, traces of activity, and an affective sense of being together.
Each participant uses an air device composed of two networked lamps, one blue and one red. When one person touches a lamp, the corresponding lamp in the other person’s space illuminates. With a light touch, the lamps turn on and off, creating an experience in which presence is shared through the simplest of gestures.
In a contemporary environment saturated with an overwhelming flow of information, AIR embodies an aesthetic that transforms digital signals into physical experience through the most minimal expression—the on/off state of light. It is precisely this restraint that invites renewed reflection today, offering a quiet yet resonant counterpoint to prevailing modes of communication.
This work was reprinted in collaboration with the design and innovation firm Takram.