Listen to artist Alexa Wright and Professor Alf Linney discuss their long-running collaboration as part of Mind + Matter: Towards Co-Creation – a group exhibition exploring the collaborative potential between artists and scientists.
Alexa Wright and Professor Alf Linney worked together from 1999–2010, creating three interactive installations: Face Value (2001), Alter Ego (2005) and Conversation Piece (2009). This discussion charts their collaborative relationship over the years, and the making of Alter Ego, which features in the exhibition, Mind + Matter: Towards Co-Creation.
Created over a four-year period, from 2001–5, Alter Ego uses what were then cutting-edge technologies in facial feature recognition and tracking to invite individuals to question the various facets of their own identity. Celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2025, the installation remains a relevant and timely work in an era of seeing oneself reflected on Zoom, the dominance of social media and the advent of AI. The Alter Ego project was supported by Arts Council England Touring, and Impact Award from the Wellcome Trust.
Alf Linney is Emeritus Professor of Medical Physics at UCL. He is recognised as a pioneer in the development and application of computer methods and imaging technology to surgery. He has worked across many different areas of medical science, specialising in facial recognition, gynaecology, and hearing problems.
Alexa Wright is an artist working across photography, video, sound, interactive installation, and book works. Her practice has involved building reciprocal relationships with people with mental or physical differences, medical conditions and, most recently, people in prison. Wright’s work has been shown widely across UK and internationally.