POPULISM

POPULISM

Work created in 2025/8/9

'POPULISM' is an experimental web-based artwork that fuses organic evolution with a sonic generation system. As the title suggests, the work expresses collective consciousness and the dynamics of crowds through changes in sound and numerical parameters.
At its core lies a dual-layered structure consisting of an organic system and an acoustic system. In the organic system, a life cycle unfolds from embryo to growth, during which sonic parameters autonomously evolve in tandem. Notably, the work is built upon a paradoxical design in which the silence of the audience catalyzes its evolution.
In the documented evolutionary process, the piece begins in A minor, proceeds through a chord progression (Fmaj7, C, G), then grows in complexity until it eventually reaches a high-velocity groove pattern at BPM 169. This progression can be interpreted as a musical translation of political dynamics — from the silence of a populist movement to a gradual surge toward collective fervor.
The most innovative aspect of this work lies in its inversion of the concept of interactivity. Whereas conventional digital art often demands active participation, in POPULISM it is the passivity of the observer that drives its evolution. This suggests a phenomenon in contemporary democracy wherein voter apathy paradoxically accelerates changes within the political system.
In terms of sound design, the interplay between three sonic layers — harmony, arpeggio, and glitch — finely articulates the threshold between order and chaos. The staged activation of the Glitch Mode in particular sonically embodies the destabilization of social systems.
The implementation, built on the Web Audio API, is polished to a high degree, achieving an impressive integration of real-time sound synthesis with visual feedback. The dynamic addition of harmonic layers (701.8Hz, 383.7Hz, 557.7Hz, 261.2Hz) via an organic growth algorithm, alongside the “mutation” capability of arpeggio patterns, enables a truly emergent form of expression.
The title POPULISM goes beyond a mere reference to a political phenomenon, instead interrogating the mechanisms of collective intelligence in the digital era. It sonically re-enacts the echo chamber effect, born of internet-based opinion amplification and algorithmic information filtering, through an acoustic feedback loop — a gesture charged with incisive contemporary critique.
Transcending the technology-showcase tendency that often traps internet art, this work stands as an exemplary case of elevating socio-political themes into artistic expression. By making the very presence of the observer a structural element of the work, POPULISM points toward new possibilities for artistic practice in the post-internet age.