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A research of media arts into the combination between projection mapping and interaction technique.
With the development of technology over the years, we are able to experiment with new media technique more diverse. Combining different forms of media may create a new art expression ofttimes, it is this attempt that is the significance of the research which combine projection mapping and interaction technique.
To realize this combination I have created an art installation. »DELUSION« is an interactive light installation which turns static floating tubes into virtual dynamic objects by using emitted light from projectors and sensors. The irritation of the virtual stream and its noise goes throughout the entire chapters as the core statement "breakout". The audiences can experience animated tubes and they can communicate with the light installation through the sensors, which are placed in tubes. The original inspiration of the installation is the fuel rods from nuclear power plant.
»DELUSION« is designed as an interactive light installation in a dark room, it is composed of light emitted by the projectors and the physical tubes in the air. The static tubes are suspended by transparent line, They have different lengths, heights and locations, these characteristics make them look like a freezing rhythm and have a visual impact already. On the other hand, the Idea that I use the tubes as the main part of the installation is because of my first inspiration by the fuel rods from nuclear power plant, so I would like to use this form to express the core statements "unpredictability" and "breakout".
In a relatively dark environment, we almost can't see the original shape of tubes, through projection mapping technique, the shapes and states of tubes and the environment are re-shaped by the light entirely. Because the human eye can only see where light shines, an illusion of a changing shape is created. This installation makes use of this optical illusion to continue the whole performance. Through the projector's control I created three visual methods of animation for the installation:
As a first method, I let the light only be projected on the tubes, so that the installation gives audience an illusion that the state of the tubes through my preset changes. As a second method, I let the light only be projected on the wall without the tubes, so that the installation gives audience an illusion that the light seems to bypass the tubes. As a third method, I let the light be projected on all places.These three methods constitute all the virtual parts of the installation.
In the interactive control parts I have used a distance sensor, a microphone and a camera to let the audience communicate with the installation. The whole Interaction does not require that the audience touches the installation at all. When audience enters the room where the installation is installed, it will experience a virtual journey which interacts by a variety of chapters, between each interactive experience it will be composed with different animations with a abstract storyline. The process will be triggered by the sensors in order to continue the journey and participate the interaction like moving the hand to play noise or saying something to get a snapshot, these interactions follow the contents of each chapter.
Often there is a problem that the light of the projector is very difficult to align the objects, when the projector is not exactly in front of the target side. This is called the keystone effect,is caused by attempting to project an image onto a surface at an angle, as with a projector not quite centered onto the screen it is projecting on. It is a distortion of the image dimensions, making it look like a trapezoid, the shape of an architectural keystone; hence the name of the feature. In the typical case of a projector sitting on a table, and looking upwards to the screen, the image is larger at the top than on the bottom. Some areas of the screen may not be focused correctly as the projector lens is focused at the average distance only. The images were distorted. So I had to project image that looks like correct.
In the installation I used two steps to calibrate Projectors. First I marked the edge of the whole projection area and made the projection area to fit it. Then I used vvvv to eliminate distortion of projected images. From the overall point of view, the whole projection area was divided into three parts: separate on the left wall, middle wall and right wall.
The installation is divided into physical and virtual parts. The physical part consists of a projection area, control area and an interaction area. The projection area consists of rows of tubes of different lengths and the background, they are printed by matt paint to avoid projector light to glisten on the carrier. On the other side, the white non-uniform paint gives the tubes a special texture in order to enhance the expressiveness of light and shadow. The tubes are hanging in the air through transparent lines, their own special shape and layout creates a strong sense of space. The control area is a black multi-cabinet, the projectors and control devices are placed here. The Cabinet is on the front door in order to block the light from the outside, so that the outside light is not directly shines on the projection area. The interaction area is where the audience can be active, there are are also a few hanging tubes, The difference is that there is a variety of sensors placed in tubes to identify the audience's voices and movements. The tubes are a part of the major elements, they also serve as a decorative element throughout the exhibition.
The virtual part of the implementation is that the projector maps light on the physical part of the projection area. The irritation of the virtual stream and its noise go throughout the whole process. Its dense texture and ethereal background produce a striking contrast, the movement of its form gives the audience a feeling of tension and creates an atmosphere of mystery. The abstract animations are abstract and of simple structure, melody and rhythm fit together completely. Their movement is consistent with the movement of the rhythm of the melody completely. Assistant graphics animations only appear in the left wall, when the installation asks for interaction with the audience. The animations provide a very intuitive graphical language to the audience, they tell the audience how to trigger the mechanism.