I found The  Tunnel under the Atlantic to be an interesting new-media piece, because its connected two places and cultures. The piece is by Maurice Benayoun and was completed in 1995. It creates a virtual experience connecting viewers in museums  in Montreal and Paris. The tunnel is a two-meter-diameter tube with an interactive video projection the inside. The imagery consists of layered symbolic and iconic images from the history of the two cultures. While “digging”, viewers can talk to the person on the other side of the tunnel. Pictures and audio are recorded during the audience’s interaction with the piece and then automatically edited in with the stock of historical imagery to create a unique experience every time. It take 6 days of digging for the two sides of the tunnel to meet. Viewers must communicate with the viewers on the other side of the tunnel to coordinate the alignment of the dig in order to meet.  The “televirtual event” is “filmed with four virtual cameras”.  The footage is automatically “mixed and edited” and “take into account each participants speech”. I think that this project has many applications in today’s society and should be installed in a variety of other countries, particularly those in turmoil.

The Tunnel under the Atlantic