Originally published in Leonardo, Vol. 33, N. 3, 2000, pp. 243.

UIRAPURU OVER THE AMAZON: EDUARDO KAC'S AWARD WINNING ARTWORK MERGESTELEPRESENCE WITH VIRTUAL REALITY

"Uirapuru" is an artwork by Eduardo Kac that merges telepresencewith virtual reality on the Internet. The work is being exhibited bothonline and in a gallery at the InterCommunication Center (ICC), Tokyo,as part of the ICC Biennale '99. The multi-user VRML world and the livestreaming video and audio of "Uirapuru" is accessible at theICC website <http://uirapuru.ntticc.or.jp>, with documentation ofthe project archived at Kac's site <http://www.ekac.org/uirapuru.html>.Remoteparticipants are encouraged to navigate and interact with "Uirapuru",a colorful, flying telerobotic fish which hovers above a forest at theexhibition site. "Uirapuru" is the name of an actual bird andalso of a legendary creature. This bird is known for the remarkable melodyit sings in the rain forest once a year. According to the legend, Uirapuru'ssong is so beautiful that all other birds stop singing to listen to it.

"I've always been fascinated by the Uirapuru story and by its dualstatus as real and legendary", notes Kac. "I believe that telepresence,which creates an experience that is both physical and virtual, can capturethis duality in a unique way. With this interactive piece I create my ownversion of the legend and I unite telepresence and multi-user virtual realityin an interconnected realm of experience. In my personal mythology Uirapuruis a flying fish that hosts the spirits of those who are far away. Thisfish hovers above a forest populated by pingbirds, i.e., telerobotic birdsthat sing the songs of real Amazonian birds according to the rhythm ofglobal network traffic."

"Uirapuru" is Kac's quintessential telepresence work, markingover a decade of the artist's innovative contribution to this field. Telepresenceprovides access and a point of entry to a remote physical environment,in this case the "Amazon forest." This forest consists of overtwenty artificial trees, on top of which vividly painted pingbirds areperched. There are three distinct areas in the forest. One area displaysthe live video from the point of view of the flying fish (the Web interfaceis also available online) enabling participants to change the flight patternof Uirapuru in real time above the forest canopy. Another area has a VRMLinterface (also available online). The VRML world is the virtual counterpartto the physical environment. An avatar of the flying fish also flies invirtual space according to the actual flight pattern of the real fish.

Along a pathway, hidden within the forest, a bench awaits local visitorswho may rest and enjoy the song of the Amazonian pingbirds and Uirapuru.The ping commands (which indicate network traffic) are issued to IP addressesgeographically located directly in the Brazilian state of Amazonas, wherethe rainforest is located.

Andrea Blum is Leonardo/ISAST News Coordinator.

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