University Campus Suffolk

Because I only had video footage of the beach/sea environment, I decided to also project images of other areas, to get a rough idea of how they will look.

I have recently tried to make a time-lapse of a selection of herbs growing from seed.

Although it doesn’t relate to my submersive idea, I thought it would be a good video to test on my recycled fabric screen.

Footage:

Unfortunately I missed the odd day and then they went a weekend without water… Perhaps I need to invest in some equipment and irrigation to remove the chance of human error? :s

The video is a little shaky at the beginning and end, but the fabric works extremely well, and not too much detail is lost.

I am pleased with the screen, as I think it will work well with a projection of a natural environment, as the image will be broken by the sewing lines, giving off thoughts of how artificial doesn’t compare to the real thing.

Another back-lit projection through my draft carrier-bag screen.

Footage:

Although I set out to break-up the image in some way, I’m not pleased with how opaque the screen is in some areas. If I decide that I am going to stick with this idea for my degree show, I think it may be best to limit myself to the use of translucent plastics.

I filmed this footage on the same walk as my other footage, I don’t know what possessed me to stop and record it, I just found it interesting how two excavators were being used to move sand back over the sea defense after a stormy night.

I guess it shocked me how we had to resort to heavy machinery to resolve such a simple task, when there is a community of people more than capable of pulling together and tackling it themselves.

I’d have gladly helped, if only they had asked for my help.

Well I am sure that you are more than fed up with the amount of text so far, (I know I am) so I have decided to upload some short clips of what I have been working on, and some of the tests I am currently doing.

This first video, is a test to see how well the plastic screen works being back-lit, and how clear the image is.

I decided that one way for me to link the material to the environment was to comment on our polluted oceans, and project a walk along a beach the morning after a storm.

Unfortunatly, there are a couple of factors which I am not pleased about, both with the footage and screen, such as; too much of the image is broken up, and its hard to make out what is going on in the video, and walking through churned-up sand whilst trying to keep a camera steady proved to be more difficult than I imagined.

What to do?

To solve some of these issues, I plan on limiting myself to only using clear plastic carrier-bags, and with my next footage I will be try using a tripod to take stills which I will then convert into a time-lapse.

I’v already given a description on Youtube.

After giving a little of my background, and informing about an area of theory which relates to my work, I feel as though it is about time that I started to post more of what I am currently doing, how I managed to get here, and then I shall return to the theory at a later date.

This past semester.

Start

At first, I started to play with the idea of using packaging to create artificial environments. With this idea however came the worry of ethics forms, and health and saftey interviening, so I decided that I would use plants for the initial experiments.

I know that it has been done over and over, but I decided to make planters out of the recycling which I had. Although I altered it slightly by choosing to read the ingridients of the product, and letting that influence what I was to plant in each pot.

It started with simple Ideas, such as; growing a potatoe in a family package of crisps, strawberry’s in a strawberry flavoured yogurt pot, and wheat out of a bread bag, but I found that it was a long and unrewarding process.

With this initial idea, I wanted my audience to contemplate how little we provide for ourselves, and how much we rely on purchasing our goods.

There was some more to this idea, and it was all well and good, but I realised that it wasn’t what I wanted to say, and instead, my work has almost gone in two directions.

Now

My main focus at the moment, is split between developing:

1.) An artificial environment which requires my audience to participate in exerting physical energy to create suitable conditions for life.

2.) Creating a submersive experience for my audience, using projections of natural environments onto screens made out of recycled materials.

The reason why my work has gone both ways is because I believe that both of these installations will eventually work well together, as at first glance, my audience will be hit with a wall of recycled materials.

1.) Artificial environment.

Some of the ideas which I have been playing with are; creating a gravity fed aquaponics systems – which requires a manual pump/wheel to raise the water. Having a built in tank with aquatic plants and marine life (too add nutrients to the water), which will have a manual air pump to oxygenate the water. Possible the idea of using physical energy to power a powerful enough lightbulb for plants to grow.

Obviously building this installation is one thing, but convincing my audience to participate is another. I know I could always resort to providing instructions with the installation, but i feel as though this underminds my audience, so I am looking for ways to get them involved without this.

One of my peers has mentioned disguising the pumps/turbines as some form of game, which sounds like a good way to get people involved, but I am worried that it will weaken the message which I am trying to get across – that we have to work at trying to resolve environmental issues. Don’t get me wrong, I am greatful for the input, and his idea then triggered a thought of maybe providing a reward system. (Treats? – Will the audience feel like Guinea pigs?)

2.) Submersive experience.

This idea started by me wanting to bring the outdoors in. Well more specifically wildlife. But then after being involved in a debate with peers, we came to the conclusion that once wildlife is brought indoors it looses its integrity, and is no longer wild, so we all decided that the best way to do so was with projections.

I wanted my audience to feel as though they were there, outdoors, and after experiencing installations which have given me that exact feeling, I realised it was the feeling of being surrounded that made me feel that way. Because of this, I decided that I could recreate this by first building a room out of translucent screens(3-4 walls), and then project from behind them.

So far I have created two possible screens, out of disgaurded materials, and I have a third in mind.