Solaris? was an outdoor walking performance through the forest in Tromso (June 2025), in which the audience was invited to make an imaginary voyage out into space to meet an unknown form of consciousness. Inspired by Stanisław Lems’ novel Solaris (1961), the project examined the relationship between humans and nature, and how our anthropocentric interpretation of reality influences the way we react to the non-human and unfamiliar. 

An adaptation of a classic work of sci-fi leads to a weird and wonderful walk in the woods.

James S. Lee, Hakapik

A guide led the audience on a walk through the forest, using text, movement and installation art by Lawrence Malstaff to trigger the audience’s imaginations. The audience got to wear specially designed goggles by HC Gilje, which filtered sensory impressions and transformed the forest into an alien, almost extra-terrestrial landscape. The forest became the surface of the alien planet Solaris, and the walk –– an imaginary journey on which memories, meaning, truths and untruths were reconstructed and deconstructed.

The Filtered Vision Goggles were designed to run on rechargeable batteries, synchronise the color changes with the soundtrack (25 units) and to be comfortable and lightweight to wear. The frame was 3d printed, with manually cut strips of colour gels/filters, stuck together to form a roll, and then developing for ESP32 to control the servo (scroller), sound playback, and RF sync.

Project Page | HC Gilje | Dansens Hus