CYPTOSCOPE FOR THE MULTI-HYPHENATED IDENTITY
Praesana Danner
Katie Mueller
MDES Publics
MDES Narratives
MDES Publics
Multi-Hyphenated Identity, is a project that proposes a visual, spatial representation of the many identities and projections that are chosen and simultaneously forced upon one’s self. Whether it be applications or first-impressions, there is constantly a pressure to conform to a few, specific, characteristics and labels to define and explain ourselves with. This project combats this categorization, aiming to reveal the full multitudes within ourselves and present them externally and chaotically, without the imposed order of others. It serves as a visual testament to the complexities of self-perception, offering a dynamic canvas for individuals to explore the kaleidoscope of their being.
The mesh cloth is a physical representation of the inner canvas of self, a canvas which the user will use to paint their various identity constructs onto. The various projections show altered versions of one’s self, inspired by the various ways we are seen by others.
A purplish blue, delayed and flowy projection is one representation, with a visual effect seeming almost as if one’s movements were inside a lava lamp. This projection is meant to signify one’s aura and their inner emotional being. As the user moves, the shape of their heads and hands glow the brightest, with trails following their movements representing how our interactions transpose our internal energy onto
others, most commonly through our physical touch, verbalizations, or facial expressions.
A second faint time-mapping visual shows a life-feed of the viewer, however a bit delayed, causing a slightly jarring, disharmonious feeling. The visual delay represents how we often act before we think, moving throughout the world and after looking back on the consequences causing a ripple effect.
A third white outline frantically scrambles to outline figures and shapes, tracing every movement and feature of the user. This white outline exemplifies the labels constantly imposed by others, often based on only visual judgment. The lines are a visual representation of the constraints of others’ classifications, illustrating how others are always trying to force one to fit within predefined boxes.
These projections are then superimposed onto each other through a combination of direct projection and projection through mirrors. As the mirrors move, they fragment the projections, reflecting the fragmented nature of identity itself. As the viewer gets closer to the mirrors, they are triggered to move more and more, distorting the layered projections and identities as one comes closer to make sense of them while also making it nearly impossible to see one’s direct reflection. This effect mirrors the difficulty of truly under-
standing oneself amidst the chaos of external perceptions. The work illustrates how the more we aim to make sense of the labels imposed on us by others and conform ourselves to them the more chaos occurs as these discordant opinions fight to gain autonomy over one’s identity. The work aims to cause contemplation surrounding the multifaceted nature of one’s identity and the politics between internal truth and external expression.
Componenets include an arduino uno circuit board, a 9V battery, an ultrasonic distance sensor, and a servo motor. Distance from the ultrasonic sensor was used to calculate the angle of rotation for the mirror. Six of these circuits were constructed - one for each mirror.
#include <Servo.h>
// Constants for the pins used const int trigPin = 2; // the pin to trigger the ultrasonic pulse const int echoPin = 3; // the pin to receive the echo const int servoPin1 = 9; // the output pin where the first servo is connected
// Create servo objects
Servo servo1;
void setup() {
// Initialize the ultrasonic sensor pins
pinMode(trigPin, OUTPUT);
pinMode(echoPin, INPUT);
// Attach the servos to their respective pins servo1.attach(servoPin1);
//Set the servos to a default position
servo1.write(0); // Set servo1 to 0 degrees
Serial.begin(9600); // Start serial communication at 9600 baud
} void loop() {
// Trigger the ultrasonic sensor
digitalWrite(trigPin, LOW);
delayMicroseconds(2);
digitalWrite(trigPin, HIGH); delayMicroseconds(10);
digitalWrite(trigPin, LOW);
// Measure the duration of the echo pulseuuii long duration = pulseIn(echoPin, HIGH);
// Calculate the distance (in cm) int distance = duration * 0.034 / 2;
// Print the distance to the Serial Monitor Serial.print(“Distance: “); Serial.println(distance);
// Example decision logic based on distance if (distance < 120) {
// Proportional mapping of distance to servo angle int angle = distance/120.*60.; // Map distance from 0-60 cm to an angle from 0-180 degrees servo1.write(angle); // Update servo angle based on the mapped value } else {
// If the object is farther than 60 cm, set the servo to a default position servo1.write(60);
}
// Add a small delay for stability delay(100); // Delay for 100 milliseconds for a more responsive measurement cycle
This setup involved three projectors, six mirrors, three web cameras, and one screen. Each set of three mirrors were arranged on a wooden base. Nailed down to the base were the motors upon which the wooden dowels that held the mirrors sat.
Each mirror was 1’x1.5’. The wooden dowels were each around 4’ tall. In order for the servo motors to be able to both hold and turn the mirrors, the torque of the motors had to be taken into consideration.
It was imperative for the limitations of the motor to position the mirrors as close to perpendicular as possible to the base. To acheive this, circular holders were nailed in place to limit the motion of the dowels.
In addition, the angles of rotation of the mirrors had to be considered in order to ensure the projections were actually hitting the screen at different points in time (see diagrams)
Conclusion:
Overall, we as a group are very satisfied with how much of our original vision we were able to achieve. Unfortunately, lighting affected how well our touch-designer projections worked greatly, thus with all of the changing lighting during the final review, our touch-designer projections picked up much more of the background than during tests. In an ideal situation we would have our installation in a lighting controlled room.
We attempted to hang our installation from the balcony, however we decided the last-minute construction looked too diy. Ideally with more time we would be able to find a way to eliminate the large screen stand holding the transparent screen.
Should we have had endless materials and money, it would have been nice to elongate the length of the mirrors for a cleaner look, as in some of our original renders. However, the motors were incredibly fragile and greatly struggled to support the weight of our existing mirrors already. The most feedback we re-
ceived was surrounding the visibility of the mirror apparatus behind the transparent screen. Should we have more time to experiment with an ideal space and perhaps less projector stands in the way, it would be interesting to explore ways to make the mirror apparatus more visible such as, making the experience so the person stands behind the transparent screen instead.
