The concept discussion happens mostly through email and during project reviews in SL. The following is pasted for FYI only, mostly from email, mostly refering to earlier ideas incorporating live animations with sound instead of live video feeds.

Meeting in SL during which the animations were dropped in favor of live video feed from disco ball, per discussion with Anne and Avi/Nina, shadows were decided to not be possible to implement or simulate in SL.

Jessica,

I think this all makes sense, and your description of the RL implementation is compelling.  Do you think you could set up the SL space to more concretely reflect the projection overlap concept?  I'd like to see that laid out to really understand what it would feel like to move from space to space.  Annie Obscure is now working as part time staff for the museum assisting with building and scripting; she may be able to help you if you need.  But it seems like it should be pretty simple to arrange the sheets and cones of light so they overlap as you describe.  I'd like our staff and judges here to be able to really "see" the exhibit concept for RL if possible.

And I think the rainbows are great :)

Nina




On Mar 3, 2008, at 5:10 PM, jessica gomula wrote:

Nina,

That sounds great, I truly welcome your experience and advice in designing this exhibit, and Sarah's input is welcome as well.

The core experience should be the audience gaining some understanding of how colors mix optically, and that additive and subtractive colors are different color spaces. I think that's about as stripped down as it can get.

For the audience to personally identify with the piece, I think that the shadows are a very powerful feature of the additive space (as you said), and I think that having their own photo printed in color separations is a straightforward way to visually show color overlays; text based explanations of it are always cumbersome, but whenever I show it to students (in printmaking classes) they always get it immediately.

My idea with the animations for the additive space in RL is that they would be RGB colors, and when the projections overlap in the middle panels, they would form the secondary colors. In this way it is similar to the idea of the Teens 'Rolling Grounds of Color' in that the two colors make a third when they come together / when optically mixed. The animations have, in my experience with adults, provided something for those who tend to "stand at the edge" - i.e. for those who don't move into "play" mode with their shadows, the animations provide a rewarding aesthetic lure. They would also be the motion triggered "response." Perhaps, since there is such a large audience of children, we can count on them to always be present and be the focal point - in that case the animations may be too much. The motion triggers would also be how the sound is incorporated (which is not in anyway part of the core experience, but it does make a more robust environment).

It is possible for the animations in RL to be far more subtle than what I have happening in SL. For example, they could be subtly modulating color fields, instead of lots of polka dots...

The idea with the rainbows was simply that I thought they would begin to provide a bit more context than the standard exhibit frame in SL, and they reference the idea that these theories are based on natural phenomena, and that they give an example of a full color spectrum without needing it to be in a sign. I thought the rainbows were a bit over the top myself, but I thought they would be a starting point for creating a context.

Perhaps that helps explain my approach thus far? If you have ideas for different approaches, please suggest them :)

-Jessica





On Mar 3, 2008, at 10:06 AM, Nina Simon wrote:

Jessica,

Sounds good--let's pull Sarah Cole, my colleague/intern/exhibits manager at the Indianapolis Children's Museum--into this conversation as well.  Sadly I will not be at SXSW (so many conferences, so little time) and I hope you have a great time.

Why don't we start over email and then we'll find a good time when you know your schedule better?  

My initial thoughts:
I really like the core elements that are about subtractive and additive color mixing.  I think it goes a bit overboard for me with the animations (would like to understand better what you are going for there).  I think the most powerful experiences can happen when the exhibit is really about the visitor--their image, their shadow, etc.  I think that could be accomplished potentially with shadows quite well with the projector layout you suggest.  I guess that there are several elements to your exhibit and I'm curious: which do you feel are the core experience?  Let's try to strip it back conceptually to a single "big idea" that we can then build back into...

Makes sense?

Nina


On Mar 3, 2008, at 9:55 AM, jessica gomula wrote:

Hi Nina,

I would like to set up a time to meet and talk about ways to improve my exhibit, both in SL and any possible RL version (I added some rainbows). I will be traveling to SXSW this week, so I can't reliably commit to a specific time to meet in SL until the very end of the week - but I would be fine with email discussions.

Is there a good time / date after Thursday to meet in SL, or can we chat through email?

Thanks for all your help!
Jessica

PS you aren't, by chance, also going to SXSW?? (www.sxsw.com)





On Feb 28, 2008, at 2:38 PM, Nina Simon wrote:

Yes, definitely.

Ask them to "join" your project on the webpage by clicking the join button.  And in your project wiki, edit the Project Team page to reflect names...

On Feb 28, 2008, at 2:30 PM, jessica gomula wrote:

I have, for the record, received amazing amounts of help - is there a way to add some of these helpers to my project??

-Jessica





On Feb 28, 2008, at 10:59 AM, Nina Simon wrote:

Jessica,

All the judging rounds go towards RL development, so you're ok on that angle.  Good luck working on it today... looks promising and you have received some good help!

nina



On Feb 27, 2008, at 11:31 PM, jessica gomula wrote:

Hi Nina,

I would like to have my exhibit considered for the $5000 prize and the development in RL; is there any way to have scripting help with it before the judging on the 29th? Does it have to be completed in SL before then? Do the other rounds of judging also go towards the RL development, or just the first one?

Your help has been indispensable,

Thanks,
Jessica

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