In my experience, I enjoyed projector night. Preparing for the art show surprisingly wasn’t too stressful for me, though to be fair I did plan ahead for what refreshments I would bring as well as what I would use to decorate my installation. Projector night was not only a welcome break from conference work, but was also presented as an informal, casual event so I felt comfortable being a playful goober with my peers and classmates.
As for how I planned for the night, rehearsals as well as the content of my work played a major part. Rehearsals gave me sufficient time to experiment with where to project my content in the building, as well as a chance to explore what my classmates were experimenting with in terms of location as well. With enough time to plan for the spot and to adapt my piece for that chosen spot, I felt prepared for the art show.
In terms of the decoration aspect of my installation, I brainstormed what would match with my piece. Given that my piece was kinetic text with a strong narrative following royalty, I thought of a simplistic and inexpensive way to convey that. I changed the table that held the projector from a tool into a prop. So I covered the plastic table with red fabric I luckily had (beginner seamstress and fabrics galore) to cover the surface as well as cover the front of the table to hide the cords connected to the projector as well as my backpack. Also, I used scrap paper and hot glue to craft paper roses with text written on them and scattered the roses atop the table and pinned a handful around my projection to visually tie the installation together.
When the audience saw the text aspect of my piece, some of them read it aloud. I was flattered but at the same time embarrassed to hear my work be voiced by someone. I wasn’t sure how the audience would connect with my piece, though I’m glad humor was one of the results. The audience members were curious about the paper roses, especially when I mentioned that I hand-made them.
Overall, I think my work came across pretty well, though next time I would project on a surface that is easier for legibility of the text, as well as lessen the amount of shape motion on the screen to allow for more room to see the kinetic text itself.
