Overview
I will be presenting my Thesis projects:
My thesis consists of a series of interactive, environmental, media design installations / projects that explore human scale interactivity, display systems and interfaces. It started with a vision to research and develop unique interactive media installations while searching for a language that integrates the disciplines of Architecture and Media Design. Connecting physical space with immersive virtual content by forming a dialog between the two.
My research and experiments explore the idea of embedding media into environments and enhancing existing spaces and facades of buildings by making them respond to the movements of people in the space. I base my research methodology on a balance between a user-centered design approach that involves testing of a wide variety of different sensory interface experiences and thoughts of how I can implement them in project applications using affordable components.
With the vast improvements in Action Script and the Macromedia Flash platform constructs in the past years, it has become possible to use Flash for more than just web interaction and to move into other areas in the realm of interactivity. It has become one of the key tools I use to create my human-scale interfaces. A key aspect of human-scale interfaces is that they abandon the use of a mouse in favor of a dynamic range of sensors that explore using the human body as an interactive input device.
The four projects that make up my thesis are:
SuperSonic Art Exhibit Along with fellow Media Design Program graduate student Scott Nazarian, I completed an interactive human-scale display system that acted as an information beacon, helping visitors explore the exhibit and the newly-built building in which it was being held at Art Center’s south campus. The two main goals for the installation were to help visitors get a better spatial understanding of a new space and to provide them with direct access in finding a particular artist’s work.
Uno Video Show This project was a collaboration between myself and three fellow ArtCenter students who run the UNO gallery in Los Angeles. We created a unique projected installation on the exterior facade of their space that responded to the number of people entering and leaving the space. Through the use of additional sensors we also gave the visitors the capability to control the colors through personal interaction with the facade.
RES Film Screening This commissioned project focused on creating an interactive environmental installation for an after-party held within the outdoor courtyard space of the Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles. One of the building’s facades was transformed into an interactive projected narrative that allowed attendees to explore a hybrid cityscape while controlling the actions of several unique elements.
In Search of Identity An interactive exhibit exploring the photographic work of Tatiana Parcero. For this project I conceived of an innovative way for visitors to be incorporated into and interact with the artist’s work, by projecting through a large pane of half-silvered glass and integrating a diverse range of sensors. This allows the viewer to see themselves and the work simultaneously. I also developed a dynamic spatial interface that allows the user to explore a timeline of the artist’s personal and professional history.
