DDW 2025
Premiering at Dutch Design Week 2025, Human Zoo is an interactive installation exploring how emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, digital twinning and motion tracking are reshaping our human identity. As the distinction between our physical and digital selves becomes increasingly blurred, the installation invites visitors to consider the implications of this new reality. The collection of virtual entities presented at Human Zoo challenges our perceptions of embodiment, authenticity, and connection.
Research Group of Interaction Design
The Human Zoo project was developed by the Fontys Research Group of Interaction Design. Taking a speculative, practice-based design approach, it combines interaction design and critical theory with public engagement. Through a combination of conceptual research and technical exploration, the Human Zoo team has created an installation that allows visitors to interact with new digital species in real time. This process involves conversation, co-creation, and physical interaction between visitors and virtual humans. The installation functions as both an experience and an open-ended research tool, provoking reflection and discussion. The project closely aligns with the principles of the Fontys Research Group of Interaction Design, particularly with regard to its focus on embodied interaction, ethical design practices and exploring the digital future.
Emerging Realities
We are entering a world in which our digital selves, shaped by algorithms, behavioural data and artificial intelligence, coexist with, or even replace, our physical presence. This shift challenges the way we present ourselves, relate to others and make sense of our experiences, as well as how we define what it means to be human in 2025. Human Zoo addresses these important issues by providing a space where visitors can confront and reflect on these emerging realities. By doing this, it contributes to a broader mission of sparking open and meaningful dialogue about the ever-changing relationship between humans and technology.
