The Stilt Festival near Reuth opens up a whole new dimension for its audience. At the 33rd edition of this cult festival in the border region where Bavaria, Saxony, and Thuringia meet, guests can chat with a cow. She’s standing in a barn in neighboring Rothenacker and is connected to the festival via a real-time installation. Käthe wears a cap with sensors on her head that measure her brain waves. Prior to the event, an artificial intelligence system was fed all there is to know about cows in general and Käthe in particular.
Käthe, resolutely: “I’ve had enough of this in my mouth.”
Käthe isn’t at a loss for words when asked about aliens, either. “I’m more familiar with things close at hand: fur, flies, metal, the smell of the barn (...) I don’t know if there are other beings out there, but you humans are already strange enough to me.” A woman asks if she would eat cheese: “I eat plants, human! Grass, hay, water, salt. To me, milk is first and foremost a body and a calf—pressure and release—not a human morsel for the mouth. So, I’ve had enough of this.” After four minutes, Käthe wraps up the poetic small talk. As many guests as possible should have the opportunity to chat.
“Stall-Geflüster” is an artistic AI project
The “Stall-Geflüster” project was conceived by a team led by Michel Schneider and Martin Jehnichen. Michel Schneider, son of festival director Henry Schneider, comes from the independent art scene and specializes in digital art. He’s been working with AI for several years now. He told his father a lot about it, and his father became curious. At some point, the idea involving the cow came about; after all, the Stelzenfestspiele had already had a connection to the barn in Rothenacker.
Martin Jehnichen says he has since developed a connection with Käthe even without the language translation. “She’s really grown on me. I feel like I understand her.” He tries to get into her way of thinking and shift his perspective, Jehnichen explained. “I enjoy that. Sometimes I just chat with her from time to time.”
