I'm wondering how humans confront the unknown. In which language do we reveal a mystery, and to what extent do we keep the secrets (or facts) untold?
我在想，人類是如何面對未知，用什麼樣的語言來揭露神秘，
又在什麼程度上保持秘密（或事實）不說出口。
Sensing Dark Matter
Ninety-five per cent of the universe's existence is invisible to us—dark matter and dark energy constitute this vast unknown. Dark matter forms a massive invisible network, its gravity silently shaping the cosmic landscape, perhaps even passing through our bodies at this very moment, yet remaining untouchable. Artist Su Wenchi contemplates: if even the most precise scientific instruments struggle to capture dark matter, can we use our bodies and senses to approach this hidden cosmic force?
Since her 2016 residency at CERN in Switzerland, the dialogue between art and science has become central to Su Wenchi's artistic practice. To create Sensing Dark Matter, she and her YILAB team collaborated with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Dark Matter Particle Physics at the University of Melbourne, venturing deep into the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory, one kilometre beneath the earth. In this silent realm dedicated to detecting dark matter, the dancer's body becomes a sensitive "detector," responding to the atmospheric pressure, humidity, and silent energy flows within the space.
The team employed 3D scanning and motion capture to transform the underground caverns, laboratory, detectors, and the dancer's nuanced physical vocabulary into digital particles, manifesting as floating, interweaving stardust in a VR virtual universe. Through Ambisonics and spatial sound design that guide physical and mental relaxation, Sensing Dark Matter creates an immersive environment where audiences can truly "feel" dark matter. Every turn of the head, every breath triggers subtle sonic changes, as the universe's hidden whispers flow gently like tides around the ears.
In this age of information explosion and transparent analysis, the artist believes humans still yearn for existences that cannot be fully explained. Sensing Dark Matter invites you to dive into this darkness and use your senses to feel the universe's deepest, most mysterious unknown.
暗宇之感
宇宙中95%的存在對我們而言是不可見的，暗物質與暗能量構成了這片浩瀚未知。暗物質如同一張巨大的隱形網絡，其引力默默塑造著宇宙樣貌，甚至此刻可能正穿過我們的身體，卻無法被觸及。藝術家蘇文琪思考：既然最精密的科學儀器都難以捕捉暗物質，我們是否能用身體與感知去貼近這股隱藏的宇宙力量？
自2016年在瑞士CERN駐村以來，藝術與科學的對話成為蘇文琪藝術實踐的核心。為了創作《暗宇之感》，她與YILAB團隊攜手澳洲墨爾本大學ARC暗物質粒子物理卓越研究中心，深入地下一公里的史塔威爾地下物理實驗室。在這個專門探測暗物質的寂靜場域中，舞者的身體化為敏銳的「探測器」，回應著空間中的氣壓、濕度與無聲的能量流動。
團隊運用3D掃描與動態捕捉，將地底洞穴、實驗室、探測器與舞者細膩的身體語彙轉化為數位粒子，在VR虛擬宇宙中幻化成漂浮、交織的星塵。透過Ambisonics環繞音場與精心設計的空間佈局啟發感知，《暗宇之感》創造出讓觀眾能真正「感受」暗物質的沉浸式環境。每一次轉頭、每一次呼吸都觸發著聲音的微妙變化，宇宙隱匿的低語如潮水般在耳邊輕柔流淌。
在這個資訊爆炸、追求透明解析的時代，藝術家相信人類仍然渴望那些無法被完全解釋的存在。《暗宇之感》邀請您潛入這片黑暗，運用感官去感受宇宙最深層、最神秘的未知。
When I hear the word "dark,"
I think of darkness, shadows, and weight.
But dark matter neither absorbs light nor interacts much with other matter.
According to scientists, dark matter is a crucial part of our universe - without it,
Einstein's Theory of General Relativity would not hold.
In an underground laboratory, in a self-isolating atmosphere,
we attempt to connect to this invisible - yet real - matter,
inviting the body to experience sensations beyond our senses.
- Su Wenchi
Production Team
Concept, Choreographer: SU Wen-Chi
Dancer: TIEN Hsiao-Tzu, TU Li-Wei
VR Design, VR Programme Integration: HSIEH Wen-Yee
Sound Design, Spatial Sound: WU Ping-Sheng
Scenography: CHANG Huei-Ming
Cinematography, Text: SU Wen-Chi
Video Editing and Post-production: HUANG Yung-En
Voice: Nicole Bell, Raymond Volkas
Motion Capture: Dept. of Digital Multimedia Design, China University of Technology / HSU Yung-Sheng, CHOU Chiao-Yun, XIE Qin-Hua
Scientific Partner: Elisabetta Barberio, Diego Blas
Technical Co-ordination: TENG Hsiang-Ting
Stage Manager: WANG Shu-Wei
Scenography Assistant: CHEN Wen-Chieh, CHEN Chieh-Hsi
Sound Technician: YEN Hsing-Yang, WEN Cheng-Han
Projection Technician: DING Chang-En
VR Technician: Chen Chi-Hsien
VR Wearable Service: KUO Nin
Rehearsal Assistant: WANG Ning
Programme Materials Layout Design: TSAI Jian-Nan
Pre-Production Execution: LO Yin-Ru
Executive Producer: YANG Shu-Han
Production: YILAB
Co-production: Asia TOPA, Arts Centre Melbourne, SPRING Performing Arts Festival, Taipei Performing Arts Center, WestK Hong Kong
In collaboration with: ARC Centre of Excellence for Dark Matter Particle Physics, Science Gallery Melbourne, Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory(SUPL) , The University of Melbourne, National Taiwan Science Education Center
演出製作團隊
概念、編舞：蘇文琪
舞者：田孝慈、凃立葦
VR影像設計、VR技術系統整合：謝文毅
聲音設計、空間音訊處理：吳秉聖
空間設計：張暉明
影片攝影、文字：蘇文琪
影片剪輯與後製：黃湧恩
口白：妮可．貝爾、雷蒙．沃爾卡斯
動作捕捉：中國科技大學數位多媒體設計系／許允聖、 鄒巧筠、謝沁樺
科學創作夥伴：伊麗莎白．芭貝里奧、迪亞歌．布拉斯
技術統籌：鄧湘庭
燈光技術指導暨執行舞監：萬書瑋
空間設計助理：陳玟捷、 陳婕希
音場：顏行揚、溫承翰
影像技術人員：丁常恩
VR技術人員：陳智賢
VR穿戴服務：郭寗
排練助理：王甯
文宣排版設計：蔡建男
前期執行製作：羅尹如
執行製作: 楊舒涵
製作單位：YILAB一當代舞團
共製單位：臺北表演藝術中心、墨爾本藝術中心、亞太表演藝術三年展、荷蘭烏特勒支春天表演藝術節、香港西九文化區
合作單位：ARC 暗物質粒子物理卓越中心、SUPL暗物質實驗室、墨爾本科學畫廊、墨爾本大學、國立臺灣科學教育館
Review 評論：
“Sensing Dark Matter is gorgeously rendered, but it’s also a suggestive allegory for human perception.We see only a few glimmers of light, but from these minimal cues, we construct vast worlds, imagining far beyond what is immediately visible.”
"《暗宇之感》不僅視聽覺呈現華麗動人，更是人類感知能力的深刻寓言。在這個體驗中，如同我們在浩瀚宇宙中只能捕捉到零星光點，卻能從這些微小線索中構築出宏大世界，我們的想像力總能超越眼前所見，延伸至無盡遠方。"
**** The Age 20250226
Audience Comments 觀眾回饋:
“I love the moving embodiment of placing and choreographing the universe-like world and how as a viewer can freely explore the details of the world.”
「我深深著迷於這種將宇宙般世界化為動態實體的編排方式，作為觀眾，能夠自由探索其中每個細微之處，這種體驗令人沉醉。」
“We went to see Sensing Dark Matter yesterday and I can’t tell you enough how much we loved it. It was an extraordinary experience. We loved being able to position ourselves in the mine and were just in awe of what it felt like to enter the detector and fly up through the crystals…”
「昨天觀賞了《暗宇之感》，那份感動難以言表。這絕對是一場非凡體驗。當我們置身於礦洞之中，進入暗物質探測器並穿越晶體結構的那一刻，內心充滿無限敬畏與驚嘆...」
“What a profound experience your work had on me. I cannot express how powerful it was; I am someone who is very interested in “the nature of reality”, and I thought your piece really encapsulated some incredible exploration of something that is so mysterious to us.”
「您的作品給我帶來了極為深刻的心靈震撼。這種力量無法用言語形容；作為一個對『現實本質』抱有濃厚興趣的人，我認為您的創作完美捕捉了那些對人類而言最神秘領域的精彩探索。」
“It’s so beautiful!”
「太美了！」