Project Outline

2008-12-04T09:27:00.000-08:00

Hallway Panoramic

2008-11-09T22:06:00.000-08:00

Final Project Proposal

2008-11-03T19:52:00.000-08:00

Project

Shadow Play
http://cart451davidwei.blogspot.com/

People and Roles

David Barlow-Krelina
Technical Direction, Documentation, Video Recording/Editing, Set Construction

Wei Li
Logistics and Publicity Direction, Documentation, Video Editing, Set Construction

What is it?

We plan to modify the underground walkway between Concordia's Library and Hall Building. With the use of paper, spotlights, and video projection, we plan to change the lighting conditions of the space and to project shadows of passing people onto the surfaces in the space. These "live" shadows will merge seamlessly with the artificial shadows from video projection and/or human-shaped cutouts, forcing participants to question what they see.

Students and staff members are the primary users of the walkway, identifying it as a route of quick and convenient passage between buildings. It is most heavily used for periods of ten to fifteen minutes, during the time interval of class switchovers, mostly from Monday to Friday. During these periods of heavy usage, anywhere from twenty to fifty people may pass through the walkway. However, usage of the passageway is more limited and less consistent on weekends.

We expect to see somewhat of a change in flow during the exam period. Although it is difficult to determine the times at which the walkway will be most used, we can expect traffic to be less consistent as compared to during non exam-time.

What is the project exploring?

We are planning on exploring the idea of dérive in this project. We would like people to be drawn into our space by the attractions, and pass through varied ambiences. Like the situationists, we feel that the more a place is meant for play, the more attractive it becomes. However the space that we are planning to modify is originally not meant for play. If fact, the purpose of the space is quite the opposite; it facilitates movement through the space. The space is rarely, if ever, used as a place of gathering. Naturally, this has resulted in it being seen as an unattractive space. This is what we would like to change.

The situationists often thought that people were becoming bored in the city. They believed that modern architecture is too utilitarian, and that the process of designing buildings is too much oriented around functionality. This is very clear in the tunnel; its purpose is to allow for a path from point A to point B, and is not suitable for much else. What we plan on accomplishing with our intervention is to make the tunnel more human-friendly.

With the use of spotlights and large sheets of paper, we plan to project the silhouettes of passerby into the space itself. By placing the lights on an angle to the direction of flow, the shadows will move along the walls as the passing people move towards the centre of the hallway. As they approach the sheets of paper, suspended from the ceiling, like curtains, participants will confront their own shadow, as will as the shadows of others. Some of these other shadows will in fact be artificial projections.

By projecting silhouettes of the participants into the space itself, it will make them feel more connected with the installation. They will actively observe themselves, as well as the other participants. The contrast of the shadows from the environment will make human interactions more evident. We intent to modify the space from being somewhat dull, into something that forces people to observe their surroundings.

Whether or not the participant chooses to "play" with the environment, he or she will be forced to think differently. The installation will inevitably break the student or staff member's routine; upon entering the passageway, they will immediately note that something has changed. By placing an obstacle, or event, between point A and point B, they will be forced to think and to react to the situation.

We will encounter a number of technical challenges in carrying out this project. Firstly, although the tunnel receives no direct natural light, the space is still lit. Our challenge is to reduce this amount of light so that it allows for reasonable shadow projection when we introduce spotlights into the space. We plan on doing this by covering up some of the existing lights in the space. Another one of our challenges is to find a hidden, yet reasonable place for the video projector. Since we would like the shadows from the projector to appear as genuine as possible, it would not make sense to place the projector in a visible location. When one observes the shadows from the video projection at a distance, it will not be obvious that they in fact due to a projected video.

Timetable

Resources

Pre-Construction
• Video Camera

Construction
• Laptop
• Projector
• Support for projector (table/stand)
• Software (media player)
• Extension cord(s)
• Lights
• Large sheets/rolls of paper

Budget
Pacon Newsprint Roll, 36" x 100 ft, $14.79

Deliverables

Shadow Simulation

References

Maze and Labyrinth

Jewish museum Berlin

Construction of Environment for Chonkarey Maro performance

cart 451 : shadow play

Project Outline

Hallway Panoramic

Final Project Proposal