Chris Basmajian / Work / |
Capture This piece features an excerpt from a novel in progress by Adam Johnson. The story concerns agents of the North Korean government who sneak into Japan, kidnap and bind Japanese citizens, and smuggle them across the Korean Sea. It is a tale of borders, language barriers, cultural isolation, and the "snatching of souls". Two video cameras stand in front of a rear projection screen, one pointing towards the screen and one pointing away from it. When the viewer moves in front of the camera pointing away from the screen, the projected text scrolls. Using the image from the camera pointing towards the screen, the software creates a fading effect based on motion or change. The result is that change to the onscreen image triggers a feedback chain reaction that blows up, degrades, and then obscures the text. If the viewer holds still, the motion effect fades out and the text eventually becomes legible again. Change to the onscreen image can be affected in several ways: by moving in front of either camera, or by moving between the projector and the screen, casting a silhouette. This piece was created for the event "Words+Music 2: Tales of Betrayal and Revenge" at ArtHouse Gallery, which featured live readings by writers Scott Hutchins and Adam Johnson. This piece was programmed with Processing. |
© 2009 Chris Basmajian