Another Deep

Another Deep is an immersive audiovisual installation and live performance by Sébastien Robert and Mark IJzerman, transporting you to the ocean depths near Svalbard (Norway) to confront the layered realities of imminent deep-sea mining. Through multichannel soundscapes and intimate visual experiences, the project places you directly before the raw materials—vital for modern technologies like smartphones and electric vehicles—whose extraction transforms ecosystems and fuels geopolitical tensions.

Another Deep envelops you in sound: the haunting calls of belugas and sperm whales, the crackling of melting glaciers both above and below the surface, and the deep vibrations of the ocean floor. These sounds, captured using hydrophones and ultrasensitive microphones during the Arctic Circle Residency program, blend with visuals of the ocean floor, archival footage as well as microscopic footage. Together, they juxtapose the unseen: marine life, retreating ice, and microscopic plankton from Svalbard’s waters, with the tangible—actual deep-sea polymetallic nodules in an installation representing the mechanics of deep-sea drilling. This interplay reveals the forces of life, industry, and transformation at work in the region. Through this experience, Another Deep prompts reflection on the deep entanglement of hu- man activity and natural systems, where the Arctic emerges as a site of both fragile beauty and profound changes. It invites you to consider what is gained—and what is lost—when extraction reshapes ecosystems, and to understand the broader environmental, social, and political ripples of these actions.

We invite you to walk around or sit, whatever you like. Pictures are allowed but without flash please.

Epilepsy Warning: This installation includes intense visual and auditory stimuli, such as flashing lights and rapidly shifting imagery, which may not be suitable for individuals with photosensitive epilepsy.

Credits

Co-produced by BEK – Bergen Centre for Electronic Arts), V2_, Lab for the Unstable Media, Chroniques, Biennale des Imaginaires Numériques, the GMEM – Centre national de création musicale and Rotondes – Luxembourg — Part of the CHRONIQUES CREATIONS Platform, supported by the DRAC Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, the Région Sud Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur and the city of Marseille — With the financial support of Creative Industries Fund NL, Mondriaan Fund, Stroom Den Haag, Amarte Fonds, The French Institute Norway and Culture Moves Europe — With the technical help of Michelle Barker (underwater drone), Diane Willow (microscopy), the EYE Museum, the National Library of Norway and the University of Edinburgh (archives) — Initiated during the Arctic Circle Residency (Svalba- rd, NO).