Self-Censorship
For this project, I want to create an interactive monitor that receives input from the audience regarding their opinions on Chinese politics and censorship. For example, they may be asked true/false or yes/no questions, and then instructed to press a key (T/F or Y/N) corresponding with their answer. After one response that is negative towards Chinese interests, the screen will display a warning. After a second negative response, attention-drawing lights and sounds will be activated, although the user will still have full ability to continue answering questions. I want to observe how successful these deterrents are in conditioning the students to choose less inflammatory answers. Given the recent press on the topic of self-censorship at NYU Shanghai, I think this interaction pushes students to consider what they will or won’t say and why that is. The statement made by this project is particularly relevant and applicable to attendees of this university as we live and study in China and, in doing so, give up certain personal freedoms.
Robot Poet
Similar to “The Nautilus” exhibit that I found during my research stage, which utilized touch-activated poles to create collaborative, audience-generated music, I want to use light or motion-activated sensors to generate spoken-word poetry. Each sensor could correspond with a particular word or phrase, although this may be limiting. Alternatively, with enough sensors, there could be respective groups that correspond with nouns, adjectives, verbs, etc and allow the audience to pick and choose in order to build an abstract piece of writing. I like the idea of digital media projects that allow the audience to create original creative works through the set of interactions that occur. It is relevant to a student audience because it allows for and encourages cross-discipline engagement by blurring the line between Interactive Media Arts and Literature or Creative Writing.
Etch-a-Sketch 2.0
This device would utilize a simple Arduino circuit paired with the Processing application in order to make drawing easy and entertaining. By twisting a set of knobs, users can navigate lines to create sketches on screen, which are then saved or erased with the press of a button. There are previous iterations of this device online, so I would want to find some way to take it a step further, perhaps by incorporating more than the standard two control knobs. This way, users could experiment with color, stroke, opacity, and other design elements as well. It is relevant to a college-age audience because the Etch-a-Sketch is a toy that many of us played with growing up, making this experience intuitive, fun, and nostalgic. Like the Robot Poet, it allows the audience to create individual art through the interaction.