Project by Hyunju Kim, Hobin Lee, Yoon Ah Kim
The project Mirrors in the Desert, inspired by Kathrin Stumreich’s Mid-Air Collisions, highlights the invisible ecologies repeatedly disrupted by green renewable technologies.
The work unfolds through two media: a narrated video trailer of an interactive game and maps. It invites players to navigate the real terrain, hazards, and atmospheric conditions of Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System in California not as humans, but as birds, insects, or tortoises-each with distinct behaviors and limitations. Beginning with the site’s current configuration, the narrative then shifts to an imagined 2040, imagining the site’s decommissioning and its restoration as a micro-sanctuary. The Maps serve as essential clues, guiding players through the site’s hidden environmental structures.
Rather than proposing solutions, Mirrors in the Desert encourages a shift in perspective. It explores how design choices ripple across species and scales, and what it might take to reimagine these landscapes not just for utility, but for life.
