Waiting for the train, in the coffee corner at the office, or perhaps on the toilet. Several times a day you grab your iPhone to quickly check Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or just browse the internet a bit. Not realising that the information isn't on your phone but somewhere in 'the Cloud'. The Cloud, a fancy word for the internet, is all around us. But few realise that the internet also has a physical location; it's somewhere. In undefined business parks stand Data Centres, square buildings without windows with high fences and cameras. Connected to the rest of the world with thick fibre optic cables.
The Dutch, who grew up with their mastery of water and trade with the rest of the world. But few know that the third largest internet hub in the world is located in the Netherlands. Spread between anonymous data centres, they deliver your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and email. But also your Citrix session, your business VPN connection, your medical information exchange between hospitals, your payment information when you pay in the shop and much more. Information is sent at the speed of light through thick fibre optic cables and unlocks a new reality.
Dark Data is a study of these locations. Without light and windows, a new reality exists, a new world that is around us. A world so familiar because we all use it daily that we don't actually realise that a real building is needed for it to exist.
