This installation is a 13ft long projection-mapped sculpture meant to engage the public through motion tracked real-time interactive visuals.
In the spring of 2022 this sculpture spent two months on display in the Western Gallery open to the public.
This sculpture lets the patterns found in nature become amplified through people's interaction with it. Using real-time programming, multiple people can play with the sculpture as liquid and growth like textures move across the form of the sculpture.
Expanding from the center and constrained to inside the sculpture, the active visuals travel away from the point of emission before slowly dissipating.
The visuals projected onto the sculpture had to respect the physical form, inviting interaction and aesthetic beauty.
From the beginning the final product was always in consideration.
For projection mapping it is highly beneficial to have a 3D model identical to the physical sculpture. Knowing I was going to use CNC milling to manufacture the form, the final design had to be decided 8 months before the completion of the sculpture. We were given only 9 months to complete our BFA Thesis, so the majority of the experimentation and form research was done before the school year started.
Working closely with the shop machinist, the rough forms were created in installation foam. Over a few months I slowly spackled, sanded, primed and painted the sculpture. The last step in the process was adding a backing and wall mounts.
Sculpture Ideation
Installation
The artwork is not a recorded video playing in loop: it is created by a computer program continuously producing unique images in real time. The interaction between people and the installation causes continuous change in the artwork: previous visual states can never be replicated. The picture you create this moment can never be seen again.
Disciplines: projection mapping, real-time animation, CNC manufacturing, sculpting, motion capture
Software: TouchDesigner & GLSL