Flux

Returning from light materials of paper, ink, and watercolor to heavily textured surfaces for an exhibit in Fall 2009 brought a visual remix of earlier concepts to the forefront. Interactivity became precedent and MIDI controllers were developed and programmed for audience interaction with the visual and aural atmosphere. Pre-recorded audio was manipulated live by the participants in the exhibit. The work was displayed in an installation space for Artprize 2009in Grand Rapids, MI, and would continue with the Framework exhibit in Spring 2010.

Flux was shot with a Panasonic HD camera, as opposed to the limiting HI-8 technology used with Duality. Utilizing professional video equipment, and re-recording the audio in a more technical way ended in a product that matched the quality of the painting materials.

During Artprize 2009, when Flux was exhibited for 3 weeks for an audience of more than 10,000 over the course of the event, the video was looped on a rear projection screen, wall size. In the front of the installation a MIDI control center was constructed on-site allowing users to manipulate audio as they viewed the finished work and complimentary paintings. The idea would later be carried over into the Framework series, where the MIDI controls would be redeveloped to mix both audio and video simultaneously. Flux, in its finished presentation, acted as a catalyst for future efforts where the idea of completeness would be dissected and broken down into fragments. As Flux inspired reflectivity and meditation, it provided a study to determine an opposite in spontaneity and audience involvement. It was only after developing Flux that a move to the opposite end of the spectrum in Framework was possible.

Flux may be the final installment of non-interactive installation for Headspaces. The project was created to satisfy components of Duality that cold have been taken further, and it was never intended as a interactive composition. Pushing further into interactive installation, Flux holds its place as a traditional display of a body of work and composes a foundation, both visually and conceptually, for the future material in process.