Urban Screen Introduction.

screens are a omnipresent entity in the city, their prevalence is so commonplace that the inhabitants filter it out from their visual field much like many other small details of their enviroment. for our last project this year we need to develop a conceptual idea and then obtain the usage of a screen to realise this concept.

The integral part of creating a successful project will revolve around achieving audience participation, a short glimpse is fleeting an experience is memorable. a project that isn't shunned within the usual sensory overload, Isn't something completely amazing but its just people I know who see it. there needs to be that pull between the user and the space.

thus the main focus at the conception stage: focusing around how to achieve a personality, to create the project as a majestic entity rather than just a object or screen that merges with the ebb and flow of the city. without participation from the public, this would be easier to obtain through guerilla tactics or installations, but part of the project seem to be heavily focused on developing the necessary skills to approach outside entities. last year there was a lecture in C.A.D.I where one of the tutors said that when the tried to approach an American museum as a member of his iwi he was met with a disinterest, but when he later approached them as a part of AUT they pulled out all the stops to accommodate him.

After the intro I had short discussion with Zak about how to gain human interactivity. he was saying it was sad that we weren't doing this project a few years from now when mobile internet was more prevalent, you need something that is accessible, Isn't prohibitive cost-wise or daunting to the "interactee".

A simple method is text messaging, a mode of communication prevalent in NZ society, phones are used by a large proportion of society. through simple modification a phone with a sim card can be used as an interface, sending a simple signal pulse when it reives a message when configured right. no need to go to a specific point.

This project seems somewhat ominous, it's the crescendo of the year. This hesitation arises not in its concept creation or idea and implementation logistics. (wait for me to retract this statement 2-3 weeks from now)
its the leaving the BCT sphere, by yourself with a letter of consent from AUT. This aspect is the untested for me, and will either be surprisingly simple or a tedious tragedy.

Trash to fashion preformance. the sound building projects creshedo (might get pictures when i get hold of videos)

We turned up in our little BCT cocoon unsure of how the day was going to unfold.
only upon arriving at the venue the grandiose nature of what we had been herded into. often when you envisage a situation it will be biased by your preconceptions optimism or pessimism, much to was it related to this on the website it Corbmans estate showed a small wood panel building that looked slender and sort of fitted the description.
a space that had been described as long with a tin roof so a mental image of like a long church sort of space came to mind with a thin strip down the middle sounded by seating.
The reality a massive open shed space reminding me of an industrial warehouse but with a rustic feel.
our first task was sound check which took from 11:30 - 1:30ish trying to sort out issues with hard wiring getting my instrument and Josh's wired to the sound desk at the other end. which was a fun game of problem solving with the friendly guy in-charge of sound. mostly getting the sound levels semi even for all the instruments, mine ("what ever that thing is") got the greatest compliment "Is it meant to sound like that?" resounding success.
josh had a contact mic which had to be fed through a mixer my |<eytar had to be put through the mixer as well and then a single output into a box and a long daisy chain of xlr cables under one of the bleacher stacks to the sound booth, judit had the main show wireless mic. Jase's bowls were able to be used acoustically with only a quick sound fall off at the last stage of a marble spin.

After several mini dramas and 2 separate gear runs we were all set, technically.
We were ushered to reserved seating right beside the judges, and waited for the space to fill up.
it was awesome we got to sit watching the show front row at the end of the runway. till the end part just before the awards were about to be handed out. this was the fun part not knowing the timing fully. it felt like we put out our instruments too early. but in retrospect it was good having them out so no setup after being announced was necessary. although we did stand there for a while b4 working out whether to stay on stage or to hop off and wait..........
in the end we left.
there was some anxiety we were a inbetween peice during the presentation of awards following a highly choreographed runway show supported by narative. and then there was a more spontaneus structure of our preformance that we had only done 4 times previous.

preform.

The performance is somewhat of a blur.
I remember tones of blue green, and looking out to the audience and only seeing a walls of black a void which hundreds if not low thousands were enshrouded by the orange light pouring towards us.
which was much more packed than the initial mental image. my leg had a slight shake. and I turned round asked "ready" and counted down 1 - 2 -3 buuuurrrrbrbbrbrbrbrbrrr.
The rest is mental snapshots, starting and turning round and turning up the volume at the mixer which much like remnants memory of a party I'm not 100% certain if it actually happened, the marble falling off and not caring mentally going don't go and pick it up.
Standing like a deer in the headlights during the round of applause thinking "umm we didn't prepare for this part...."
preforming is weird experience, it becomes less about the aural experience and divulges into a more physical experience.