The Sixth Sense 2026 Bengaluru – Immersive Art and Music Universe

Ever wanted to step inside sound, walk through light, and experience technology as emotion instead of just an interface?

From February 5 to February 22, 2026, the Sixth Sense 2026 will take over a 60-year-old glass factory at Alembic City in Whitefield, Bengaluru. This event will see a 200,000 square feet of industrial architecture turn into a living and breathing immersive environment.

Conceptualised and produced by Swordfish, the team behind the sustainability-forward Echoes of Earth, this festival is designed as a multidisciplinary exploration of “nature’s intelligence” including the unseen systems and rhythms that operate beyond our five senses.

Across 18 days, the Sixth Sense brings together immersive art, spatial sound, electronic music, creative technology, and sustainability-driven workshops all under one roof.

What is the phygital experience?

Set inside a historic glass factory in Whitefield’s industrial corridor, The Sixth Sense converts the venue to an active collaborator of the experience. The raw textures of stone, steel and aging infrastructure are integrated into the artistic narrative, creating what the organisers describe as a “phygital” experience.

The phygital experience is meant to be a fusion of physical space and digital technology. In practice, this means that the projection mapping interacts with the factory walls, light installations respond to the structural beams, and sound design is shaped by the natural reverberation of the building itself.

The festival invites you to explore more than 15 immersive installations and a 360-degree audiovisual dome alongside interactive experimental environments.

Separate from the experiential exhibits, the programme also includes live spatial music performances, professional masterclasses, and sustainability workshops designed for families and creative practitioners.

The core theme of “The Sixth Sense” draws inspiration from the intricate intelligence found in nature like underground fungal networks that allow trees to exchange nutrients, migratory instincts of birds, oceanic rhythms, and ultrasonic bat communication. Through projection mapping, generative art, laser light systems and spatial sound design, the festival translates these invisible phenomena into sensory experiences you can see and hear.

The result of these two worlds coming together is this 18-day event where art, science and technology meets you in its best form.

The Three Pillars of The Sixth Sense

1. Artech with immersive installations and the 360° dome

The Artech showcase forms the visual heart of the festival. Over 15 large-scale installations transform the industrial interiors into an interactive ecosystem of light, projection, sound and responsive design.

A key highlight is the 360-degree immersive dome, dedicated to full-dome audiovisual experiences with Sounds of the Ocean, making its India here. The project is an audiovisual work focused on marine conservation, combining high-definition underwater visuals with spatial sound composition to simulate the acoustic depth of the ocean.

Another featured dome experience is the Rising Dusk, where you can witness a reactive audiovisual performance that mirrors the atmospheric shift from daylight to darkness, blending generative visuals with live sound composition.

All of these installations respond to acoustics, light fall and the architectural form of the venue making this experience as immersive as it can get.

2. Sonic architecture with live immersive music

Music performances at The Sixth Sense are designed as spatial experiences that integrate architecture, projection and multi-channel sound systems. It is curated to feel like architecture in motion!

Expect live music in the evening, scheduled on February 14, 15, 21 and 22, 2026, typically from 8:00 PM onwards. These are ticketed separately from the daytime Artech exhibition.

The venue itself is selected for its natural acoustics. The expansive industrial layout enhances bass frequencies and atmospheric textures, allowing the music to resonate through the structure rather than feeling confined to a stage.

The curation leans into electronic experimentation, global fusion and algorithmic sound design reinforcing the festival’s theme of hidden natural intelligence. Additionally, the program list focuses on long form sets, some even extending beyond four hours to encourage a deep listening session.

Want to know more about the artist lineup and performance highlights? Keep reading below.

3. Workshops facilitating collaborative learning

In collaboration with The NODE Institute, The Sixth Sense introduces India’s first TouchDesigner Sessions. These are intensive workshops dedicated to creative coding, immersive gallery production and full-dome audiovisual design.

The seven-day masterclasses (February 5–11) brings for you over 35 hours of guided training, resulting in select participants' works being showcased within the festival’s LED and dome environments. Following this, another two-day conference (February 12–13) expands the learning experience through talks and panel discussions on data visualisation, AI in art and lighting innovation.

For a broader audience, the Greener Side workshops focus on sustainability. These sessions explore circular reuse, ecological awareness and practical environmental creativity through hands-on learning.

Artist Lineup and Event Highlights

The live music programming features a carefully curated global lineup and here’s everything you need to know:

Date: February 14
Artists: Batavia Collective (Jakarta) and Sam Barker
What to expect: Improvisational electronic sets shaped in real time by your very own energy.

Date: February 15
Artists: Vieux Farka Touré and Niladri Kumaar
What to expect: A cross-cultural performance blending West African desert blues with Indian classical reinterpretations.

Date: February 21
Artists: Max Cooper
What to expect: A data-driven audiovisual performance where sound and visuals evolve simultaneously through computational systems.

Date: February 22
Artists: Luke Slater
What to expect: A high-intensity techno set designed to resonate with the scale and acoustics of the industrial venue.

But that’s not all!

Internationally recognised media artists including XI Luchen, Memo Akten, and Julius Horsthuis present installations that interpret natural systems through fractals, generative code and algorithmic storytelling.

Additionally, one of the standout installations, SIGNALS, translates ultrasonic bat calls into pulses of laser light and audible sound. The work reimagines how humans perceive frequencies normally beyond our hearing range making you feel the world through the sensory perspective of another species.

Reservation details

Dates: February 5–22, 2026
Venue: Alembic City, Whitefield, Bengaluru
General Entry (Artech Exhibition): Starting ₹999
Live Music Tickets: Starting ₹1,999 (separate ticket required)
TouchDesigner Workshops & Conference Passes: Individual registration required

Timings:

Artech Exhibition: 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM
Live Immersive Music (Feb 14, 15, 21, 22): From 8:00 PM onwards

So gather your crew, book your tickets and get ready to experience Bengaluru like you never have before!