(packed.), 2003
Some days I call this an interactive sound installation. Other days I call it a book. It’s likely a bit of both. Intended as the prototype for a larger piece, (packed.) includes a series of plexiglass photographic objects meant to be hung on a “wall” to trigger sound, story, and various perspectives. Created using Max/MSP and a Pic microprocessor, it was a universe to explore; the user’s actions – in what order and amount the objects were hung – triggered up to 18 different pieces of sound, including up to 4 different layers of perspective. The audio, all spoken word, layered as if the user were sitting in a room – from the clarity of the closest conversation to the patterning of the voices far away; the more the user explored, the more the user was able to reveal. The photographs (scans of objects and photos) and story source material, a young woman’s journey to Paris with the American Legion, were given to me by my grandmother. This project was my master’s thesis for the Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP) at NYU.
