2004 Rockefeller New Media Foundation Proposal

Abstract

This project seeks to examine and develop the technical and artistic means to 'embody' public statues, though the technique of statue projection and animation. This will be possible through especially designed lightweight attachments to the statues, which will support the necessary video- and sound-projection equipment. Images of a statue-animator's face, features or hands will be projected onto the statue's own face, features or hands. The animator's voice, also transmitted to the statue, will thus create a speaking statue, a new communication medium. Unlike the public media we are accustomed to, the animator, animating herself, will publicly engage the other users present, speaking out on any subject they might be concerned about. The animated statue will thus become a vocal - evocative and provocative - agonist, encouraging both onlookers and other participants to respond and develop their own dialogue in real time. Response and dialogue will be possible thanks to the microphones available on the ground that allow the passers-by and any other potential interlocutors to address, interrupt, and question the animated statue while standing before it. A video mini-camera at the statue's head or shoulder will permit the animator to see and hear those speaking to the statue. A particular interlocutor from the crowd may be encouraged to replace the animator, the process continuing in turn as the discussion evolves.