2011 - 2013
Ant Ballet is a 2-year investigation by Ollie Palmer into the parallels between human and ant communication, culminating in the world’s first ballet to exclusively feature ants.
Through use of synthesised pheromones (Z9:16 Ald Hexadecenal), a robotic arm lays trails which cause ants to move in a different way to their natural foraging behaviour.
The Ant Ballet is installed in ZSL London Zoo’s B.U.G.S. (Biodiversity Underpinning Global Survival) Zone from November 2011 through May 2012, and will tour Brazil and the US.
The project is supported by, among others, Pestival and the The Interactive Architecture Workshop at the Bartlett School of Architecture.