Bodies and Interactions Proposal

(above: very simple example of projection)

Process - What do you plan to do? (i.e. including but not limited to: ephemeral installation in nature or urban environment, drawing within nature or urban environment, performance, etc)

Driving through Burlington last weekend, I realized (yet again) how much impact humans have on natural spaces and how much that natural landscape has changed. Creation (as opposed to destruction) generally has a positive connotation. But looking around strip malls and abandoned parking lots, I realize that the human creation of these things has left a destructive mark on the space. The building up of apartments, drug stores, mattress outlets, and fast food restaurants has torn down the natural environment and transformed it into a bleak, unforgiving, ugly expanse of concrete and shopping carts.

What I'm looking to do with this project is temporarily transform these spots from an eyesore to the natural scene they once were. I'm interested in light projections and using this basic technology to reflect images onto the walls of these empty buildings, abandoned cars, strip malls, etc. (somewhat like the silhouette projections of Kara Walker). Ideally, I will take several pictures of the surrounding area and either using cut paper or natural found objects (leaves, twigs, etc.), create a silhouette that can be projected on a larger scale.

The site - Where do you plan to do it? (include all relevant information about the site itself, describe it, include images if necessary):

I'm hoping to be able to project my cutouts onto surfaces in several different locations- at least 3- along the road that leads from Elon to the train station and around that general area. Getting permission may be an issue but keeping with the guidelines, I will leave nothing behind after removing the projection.

Time - When do you plan to carry out this project? How long might you take to create it? (Is it dependent upon a certain day of the week, a particular time of day?)

The actual image will be pretty simple so the creation of that shouldn't be the time consuming portion of this project. What will take the longest is scouting out places and planning a time to get to all of them. I will have to do it at nighttime in order for the light to show up on the surface. Since my supplies will probably be limited light-wise, I will probably only be able to do one at once and move from spot to spot.