“Cassiopeias's Secret – The Future of Intimacy in Space” is an evolving provocative performance that challenges the boundaries of acceptance and artistic freedom. It raises questions about the blurred lines between human-machine collaboration, interaction, and intimacy.
Despite her male biology, the performer expresses her lifelong desire to become a Science Space Girl. As Cassiopeia, a multi-gender subject, she explores the relationship between space sexology, music, astrophysics, and gender identity.
The performer uses her own body and musical expression to reveal the strong sexual components of her hidden fantasies. Although artificial self-pleasuring and climax are only perceptible through physical expression, music, and images generated by scientific data, the explicit nature is undeniable.
The action is set at a fictional Space Girl Science Academy. Four agents guide the dynamic plot: Cassiopeia, a pleasure spacesuit marked "Cosmic Caresse," Cassiopeia's AI friend Aurélie, and Iphis, a forbidden Exomoon. The pleasure spacesuit is an interface of intimacy between Cassiopeia, Aurélie, and Iphis.
An existing prototype of the suit was designed for sexual relaxation during long space flights in cramped conditions. It has built-in tactile stimulators for different erogenous zones. Medical sensors record sexual arousal. A computer translates the data into sounds and images.
The vibrators are controlled by Cassiopeia's musical expression of her female identity. This allows for sexual biofeedback and a sound construct that can be described as a symphony of pleasure. Stimulation can also be controlled by cosmic signals that Iphis generates due to Cassiopeia's actions. The Future of Intimacy in Space comes true.
The story was performed during a highly acclaimed live performance at the NIME 2024 conference.
“Was this just a dream? A dream within a dream machine? Cassiopeia doesn’t know. In a deep valley of love and tenderness, she feels united with Iphis in an endless embrace of two cosmic entities.”
Rudolf Arnold, a mathematics and physics graduate from the University of Ulm, has been a media educator since 1980, co-founding Radio Free FM in 1995. A cosplayer since 2006, he has embodied Hatsune Miku in "Still Be Here" and joined the smart fashion community in 2013. Since 2014, he has been an experimental musician and won Berlin's Fashion Hack Day awards. In 2018, he collaborated with Dr. Nicole Prause to develop a novel sensor for the sonification of sexual arousal, showcased globally. His "Pleasure Space Suit" concept debuted at the "7th International Congress on Love and Sex with Robots." Presenting as "Cassiopeia, the Science Space Girl," Rudolf's art merges technology, gender identity, and space exploration, with works like "Cosmic Caresse" featured internationally. Recent performances include "Cassiopeia's Secret" at NIME 2024, exploring themes of space sexology, music, astrophysics, and gender identity.
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