In abstract AV art, audiences engage through resonance with personal experience and self-reference, not object recognition

In representational art, gratification comes from recognizing familiar objects, faces, and narratives. In abstract live AV work, object-level recognition is absent or diminished. Schacher describes two alternative engagement modes: resonance (an abstract entity triggers a personal experience unique to each viewer) and self-reference (a notion, emotion, or intuition generated by the abstract expression is itself recognized). Both operate below the level of conscious narrative. Abstract AV work deliberately creates space for these deeper engagement modes by reducing realism. However, there is a limit: past a certain threshold of disembodiment, alienation occurs — the audience is pulled back to bodily awareness of the physical space, breaking the immersion.

Examples

A drone music + generative GLSL visuals set: audience does not ‘understand’ the visuals narratively but may experience resonance (a visual pattern evoking a specific memory or sensation). This is the intended reception mode. If the piece becomes too extreme (fully random noise, no structure), alienation breaks immersion.

Assessment

Describe a specific moment in a piece of abstract AV work you’ve experienced (or can imagine) where resonance occurred. What was the abstract element, and what personal experience did it trigger? Then explain what Schacher means by ‘alienation’ and what a performer might do to avoid it.