Sheep Sleep

Sheep Sleep is a mixed reality experience. It uses a VR headset and a brain-sensing headband to create an immersive before bedtime experience. While lying on a bed with the devices on, participants see a fence appear in front of them.In the augmented view, sheep jump over the fence, moving from one side of the bedroom to the other.

Users can count the sheep through eye blinks, which are detected through EEG signals (a method for recording the brain’s spontaneous electrical activity). The sheep’s movements are controlled by the participant’s brainwave patterns captured via EEG. The idea for this project began as a playful satire of Zhang’s own struggle to fall asleep during school nights, when fleeting thoughts and images would race through her mind.

This project was made possible with support from the Frank-Ratchye Further Fund microgrant #2024-039.