| art description | Rabbit Field is an infestation of inflatable rabbit-like forms,
filling their display space and inviting tactile interaction.
They cover much of the floor, and any other available surfaces,
growing in number each night. Each rabbit is self inflating using
a simple computer fan, and can sense its internal pressure state by
monitoring its fan speed. If a rabbit is squeezed, and partially deflated,
the rabbits around it respond, as if out of empathy, deflating
themselves. In this way, a wave of deflation ripples out from
the squeezed centre. By connecting an entire field of forms into a
network of sensors and output media, interactions between viewer and inflatable
are further displayed and amplified as deflation data is passed
from one rabbit to the next. The organic feel of the forms and the
rhythm of their inflation and deflation in reaction to human touch are
easily anthropomorphised by the audience as simple expressions of emotion.
This initiates and encourages play and exploration. This piece
seeks to encourage and reward a 'tangible dialogue' between viewer
and inflatables, as well as hoping to establish social connection
between viewers who co-interact with the system. Rabbit forms
were chosen to engage and invite inquiry. These animals also have
strong cultural connotations of fertility and innocence, and are prevalent
images in modern eastern and western aesthetic. Use of the unique
properties of inflatable structures in architecture, art and design
has a long and creative history, flirting between chic design and
tacky novelty. Funded
in part by a Director's Grant from the Council for the Arts at MIT.
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