the wi-fi web has been sown throughout the city, and rare are public space where cellphones don’t get service. There is no possibility to opt-out from this system. Even with notifications turned off, we double check our phones to make sure we haven’t missed out on the latest content. We’ve lost the right to be offline, be invisible, be untrackable.

By looking down to our mobile devices, we shut-off our surroundings, the people around us, and ourselves. We miss out on the details of life; the light bouncing between the trees, the ladybug landing on a flower, the cotton candy skies...When we interact with our devices, we put up an invisible ‘do not disturb’ sign to the people around us. It becomes a shield that comforts us during times of boredom or loneliness - feelings that progressively get worse the more we use mobile phones.Social media has promoted a self-value economy, where we self-compare with other people’s lives to the extent where we lose track of our own identity. FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) kicks in, and soon we find ourselves following trends rather than creating our own.

Our proposal is breath of fresh air - a pause - from the constant interconnectivity that surrounds us. It’s an opportunity to digitally disappear and provoke a conversation about re-establishing the boundaries between the real and virtual world. The space will become a platform for expression, empowering people to use their diversity to create unique relationships with their environment and other human beings. We believe people should have the right ‘opt-out’ from our digital society, and ‘opt in’ to a space that: 

encourages interaction with the physical environment,
unites people through a mutual experience,
and welcomes reconnection with oneself

Together, we hope to shape a world that we are enthusiastic to live in. We hope you find the site useful in your journey. 

Kindly,
The LOOK UP Team
Sabrina Sigismondi,
Alexander Collinson, Lile Liu
Aishah Siddiqua, Aashvika Loyalka, Iba Dagny Tony
Osian Atlas, Victor Simpson