Project evaluation - Be, See

My project aims to create a conscious awareness of how motion and tempo influence perception of surroundings by allowing participants to fly through a virtual space inhabited by trees which are generated by the participants physical movement.

I have named the piece “Be, See”, referring to the state of being present, allowing for true perception, not disturbed by a wandering mind. When pronounced the title is easily mistaken for the word “busy” underlining the importance of the participants awareness and state of mind.

The setup consists of a video projection of the virtual world and a web camera monitoring the space in front of the projection. When a participant flaps her arms up and down, like a bird moves it wings, the application registers and starts the fly-through. Continuous movement builds up speed which is then decreased over time. When the speed reaches zero an instructional message is displayed to hint new participants on how to interact. The pieces was displayed at The Stretch, Students Union, Goldsmiths College, University of London on May 7, 2009.