Vestige – Jason Bruges Studio from Chris O'Shea on Vimeo.
Responsive and interactive installations often tend to the game-like, but with the growing affordability and ease of technology, the ability to add immersive experiences anywhere calls for more subtlety. Not everything needs to be a game – many responsive architectural surfaces are likely to become part of the texture of a space. And, indeed, if technology becomes ubiquitous, you can expect a broader spectrum of experience.
Chris O’Shea’s 2008 installations Vestige – only recently documented – used OpenFrameworks-powered software to create a fluid lighting experience as visitors enter and leave a doorway of the Leicester Performing Arts Centre. The shadows of visitors “echo” in the doorway as they come and go, an ethereal, ghostly effect. The lighting also provides feedback, with colors that indicate when it’s time to head into the theater.
Unlike most computer vision applications, the project also uses thermal imaging, not optical/infrared, via the Thermitrack camera. (I hadn’t seen that before, though it appears it isn’t immediately stocked.) The project also makes use of DMX for lighting control.
Read up on the full description:
http://www.chrisoshea.org/projects/vestige/
It’s also long past time for a proper interactive architecture round-up here on CDM, so tips (and your projects) welcome.