Check-in / Check-out
The aim of this group project was to create a cybertext that would allow some form of interaction with the reader in order to make their role one of inclusion and intervening. Having this in mind, the installation “Check-in / Check-out” was created using videos of people’s silhouettes and audio recordings to explore the opposing perspectives on the growth of tourism in a city.
The intention was to create a space where the pros and cons were exposed neutrally, letting each visitor immerse in the discussion and pick a side, highlighted through the use of two projectors projecting two different contrasting colours: red and blue.
For the arguments presented various citations were recorded and collected, which were then distributed in six subtopics: Security, Social Impact, Capacity/Affluence, Economic Impact, Gentrification/Housing, Heritage preservation/Development. By doing so, the discussion became more focused, which would ease the formulation of an organised and substantiated opinion to the viewer.
The software “Processing” was used to generate the content in a random order. To achieve this result, three videos were created for each subtopic, containing different silhouettes and citations so they would never repeat each time. Then, a random order of videos was created every time the code was run so that the same subtopic never played consequently. To be able to display the two different perspectives on the different projectors, each video is separated by its colour on its respective computer.
In conclusion, the installation works as a visual representation of the theme, making it exciting for its generative particularity. The interaction discovered through the blocking of the projectors – blocking one of the perspectives –, and the way users can become part of the discussion by joining their own silhouette to the crowd, also makes it a unique project.
The project was selected to be featured in the Processing Community Day 2024 online exhibition.
typeface used: Windows Regular
collaborative project with Edgar Vieira, Maria Craveiro and Olga Marinho
consultant: Miguel Carvalhais
FBAUP, November 2023—December 2023