(W)HOLE \\ Clusterduck

(W)HOLE uncovers hidden digital infrastructures through sculpture and AR, using manhole covers as portals to reveal interconnected systems.

(W)HOLE is a cooperative world-building project designed to uncover the often-overlooked world of digital infrastructures. It utilises various media, languages, and realms to provide participants with the tools necessary to engage with and act upon these hidden systems.

(W)HOLE takes the manhole cover as both symbol and point of entry. These overlooked objects, embedded in the everyday landscape, conceal vast networks of pipes, cables and infrastructures beneath our feet. Much like the digital systems that quietly shape contemporary life, these hidden worlds remain largely unseen. (W)HOLE draws them to the surface, revealing the infrastructures that underpin and organise our daily existence.

The project combines many forms of making and imagining, such as sculpture, sound, Augmented Reality, and 3D models. For Barnsley, (W)HOLE combines six manhole covers located across the town centre with corresponding AR works that reveal the hidden layers of digital infrastructure: Earth – the ground and materials everything is built on; Cloud – big computers that store and move information; City – the streets and buildings around us; Address – the systems that help us find things and people; Interface – the screens and tools we use every day; and User – each of us.

(W)HOLE by Clusterduck presented as part of AND Festival 2026. With support from Barnsley Council. Initiated by Kunst im öffentlichen Raum (KiöR), City of Zurich.

What to expect

(W)HOLE is a public realm artwork that requires you to travel to different locations to find each manhole cover. You can scan the QR code on the manhole cover in each location to reveal a unique AR experience. Audiences will also need to have access to and be able to activate Snapchat to enjoy the artwork. Locations will be announced closer to the festival weekend.

In the event that you turn up and there is a crowd, there may be a short wait to access the artwork.

Age Guidance

Due to age restrictions in downloading Snapchat, the minimum age for this installation is 13+. The AR component of the work features animated objects with themes and content more suitable for older children.

(W)HOLE is a new iteration of a previous work and therefore currently in development. We aim to have access information available here from mid August.