Second Nature is an immersive light and sound installation that brings live environmental data into dialogue with the historic interior of St Mary Le Strand church. It empowers audiences to consider their relationship with the natural world and the impact of human activity on it. By making data accessible and visible, it asks us to reflect on our shared responsibility.

At its core, Second Nature uses real-time environmental data—such as temperature, air quality, humidity, signal pollution, and wind—to create a shifting tapestry of light and sound. These subtle, often unnoticed signals shape the visuals and soundscape, turning data into a dynamic, abstract experience inspired by natural systems. As this data flows and shifts, it sculpts patterns of light across the church’s architecture, changing colour, movement, and texture in real time.

This data comes from both publicly available online sources and local sensors, translating the invisible world around us into something we can see and feel. The result is a layered, immersive space that challenges audiences to consider how technology can reveal our environment in new ways—and how we can better care for it.

The project was developed with support from King’s College London, National Gallery X, the Virtual Immersive Production Studio at the University of Nottingham, and the Epic Games Innovation Lab in London.

Second Nature was presented as part of GLOW 3.0, a platform celebrating women, non-binary, and trans creators in Web 3.0 screen-based media. GLOW 3.0 also looked back at the vital contributions of underrepresented voices in creative technology over decades, highlighting how these perspectives have shaped immersive art and digital spaces.