Underflow

Underflow is the title of a contemporary poster exhibition held in Antwerp. It is targeting people working in creative fields. I was assigned with making a poster and promotional tool for it, with the graphic expression being the result of an experimental process. Hence, I created the graphics through Javascript experiments. They are generated partially randomly, which was a very fun and liberating part of the process. I wanted to bring this to the audience, more than just displaying the result as a static piece. This led me to create a sub-exhibition as part of the campaign.

It is called Under It All, and is an interactive experience. Participants step into a room that is completely dark, with the exception of guiding lights and glowing artwork projected onto the walls. Following the lights, they may sit down to watch, or step up to a screen displaying an interface. Through it, they can tweak the projected graphics, or create completely new ones. There are 6 views to browse through and make changes to. They represent the four walls, the ceiling and the floor. If the user covers the whole screen with artwork, it will touch the other surfaces and sometimes even overlap other artworks. The interface is designed to allow random effects to happen, and encourages letting go of control. Another important aspect is limitations; for example, colour cannot be changed. The output will always be a play between black darkness and white light. In the room, an ambient soundtrack is being played, and the speed and intensity of it depends on the average speed of animations in the projections. This is to reflect the mood of the room, to match the latest artists’ vision.

Under It All has the potential to be a moving exhibition, to be put up anywhere. It is meant to start conversations between creators; about process, the level of control, code-generated work, or anything else that this experience might bring to mind. A discussion about what is under it all.