Sensing Dark Matter

Su Wenchi

Ninety-five per cent of the universe is invisible to us — dark matter and dark energy constitute this vast unknown. Dark matter forms a massive invisible network, its gravity quietly shaping the cosmic landscape, perhaps even passing through our bodies at this very moment, yet remaining untouchable. Artist Su Wenchi contemplates: if even the most precise scientific instruments struggle to capture dark matter, can we use our bodies and senses to approach this hidden cosmic force? To create Sensing Dark Matter, she and her YILAB team collaborated with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Dark Matter Particle Physics at the University of Melbourne, venturing deep into the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory, one kilometre beneath the earth. In this silent realm dedicated to detecting dark matter, the dancer's body becomes a sensitive "detector," responding to atmospheric pressure, humidity, and subtle energy flows within the space. Using 3D scanning and motion capture, the team transformed the underground caverns, laboratory, detectors, and the dancer's nuanced physical vocabulary into digital particles — rendered as floating, interweaving stardust in a VR universe. In this age of information overload and relentless pursuit of transparent answers, the artist believes humans still yearn for what cannot be fully explained. Sensing Dark Matter invites you to descend into this darkness — and touch the universe's deepest, most mysterious unknown through your senses.