The Minneapolis Interactive Macro Mood Installation “MIMMI”

Photo courtesy of MIMMI

Coming soon to the Minneapolis Convention Center…

Hovering at an altitude of 70 feet above wooden dunes that serve as benches, MIMMI is a large inflatable creature that is an emotional gateway to the city. MIMMI is able to sense the mood of the city and offers a fun and active mechanism to respond to this mood, allowing residents and visitors to experience the city as a whole in a new way.

MIMMI senses the mood of the city by parsing keywords from social media feeds from Minneapolis. When the algorithm senses increases in particular trending emotional words, MIMMI displays the collective emotion through graphics and colored displays projected on it. Emotions can include calmness, agitation, melancholy, happiness, and many others, which reflect the changing pulse of the city itself.

Visitors to the plaza can also interact with MIMMI directly, causing the colors and shape of the inflatable and its projections to change in real time. If the city is particularly sad or emotional for any particular reason, citizens can come together to lift MIMMI’s (and the city’s collective) spirit, as MIMMI is able to sense social activity under it. Whether the benches are being used or crowds are gathering under it and having a party, MIMMI gradually displays calming behavior.

What a fantastic addition to the Twin Cities art scene!