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Quantum est in Libris: Navigating Archives with GenAI, Uncovering Tension Between Preservation and Innovation

Mar Canet Sola, Varvara Guljajeva

TL;DR

Quantum est in Libris investigates how generative AI can reanimate Estonian archive diaries into interactive visuals, bridging centuries of material with modern media. The approach uses Runway Gen-3 and Gen-4 to generate AI videos from spoken diary excerpts, with a human-in-the-loop to curate outputs due to cultural specificity and data bias. The work foregrounds both the creative potential and the risks of AI-mediated memory, illustrating issues of representation, authorship, and authenticity in digital heritage. The installation offers a tangible model of 'future heritage' where visitors become co-creators, and the archive becomes an evolving, participatory memory space.

Abstract

"Quantum est in libris" explores the intersection of the archaic and the modern. On one side, there are manuscript materials from the Estonian National Museum's (ERM) more than century-old archive describing the life experiences of Estonian people; on the other side, there is technology that transforms these materials into a dynamic and interactive experience. Connecting technology and cultural heritage is the visitor, who turns texts into inputs for a screen sculpture. Historical narratives are visually brought to life through the contemporary technological language. Because the video AI models we employed, Runway Gen-3 and Gen-4, have not previously interacted with Estonian heritage, we can observe how machines today "read the world" and create future heritage. "Quantum est in libris" introduces an exciting yet unsettling new dimension to the concept of cultural heritage: in a world where data are fluid and interpretations unstable, heritage status becomes fragile. In the digital environment, heritage issues are no longer just about preservation and transmission, but also about representation of the media, machine creativity, and interpretive error. Who or what shapes memory processes and memory spaces, and how?

Quantum est in Libris: Navigating Archives with GenAI, Uncovering Tension Between Preservation and Innovation

TL;DR

Quantum est in Libris investigates how generative AI can reanimate Estonian archive diaries into interactive visuals, bridging centuries of material with modern media. The approach uses Runway Gen-3 and Gen-4 to generate AI videos from spoken diary excerpts, with a human-in-the-loop to curate outputs due to cultural specificity and data bias. The work foregrounds both the creative potential and the risks of AI-mediated memory, illustrating issues of representation, authorship, and authenticity in digital heritage. The installation offers a tangible model of 'future heritage' where visitors become co-creators, and the archive becomes an evolving, participatory memory space.

Abstract

"Quantum est in libris" explores the intersection of the archaic and the modern. On one side, there are manuscript materials from the Estonian National Museum's (ERM) more than century-old archive describing the life experiences of Estonian people; on the other side, there is technology that transforms these materials into a dynamic and interactive experience. Connecting technology and cultural heritage is the visitor, who turns texts into inputs for a screen sculpture. Historical narratives are visually brought to life through the contemporary technological language. Because the video AI models we employed, Runway Gen-3 and Gen-4, have not previously interacted with Estonian heritage, we can observe how machines today "read the world" and create future heritage. "Quantum est in libris" introduces an exciting yet unsettling new dimension to the concept of cultural heritage: in a world where data are fluid and interpretations unstable, heritage status becomes fragile. In the digital environment, heritage issues are no longer just about preservation and transmission, but also about representation of the media, machine creativity, and interpretive error. Who or what shapes memory processes and memory spaces, and how?

Paper Structure

This paper contains 13 sections, 3 figures.

Table of Contents

  1. INTRODUCTION
  2. Introduction
  3. ARTWORK DESCRIPTION
  4. ABOUT THE ARTWORK
  5. PROJECT CONCEPT
  6. WORKFLOW
  7. TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION
  8. Display Computer
  9. Interaction Station
  10. Web Interface and Archive Link
  11. From Archives to Moving Images
  12. DISCUSSION
  13. CONCLUSION

Figures (3)

  • Figure 1: Top: the interface. Bottom: a participant interacting with the art piece by reading a page from the diary
  • Figure 2: Diagram of the steps of the interaction flow
  • Figure 3: Four states of the installation (left to right): (a) Start reading (b) falling words triggered by interaction; (c) enlarged words followed by an AI-generated video of the diary page at the base of the screen tower; (d) installation view showing the last six audience contributions, i.e., videos generated from archival texts read by the public.