MadLab: Holographic Video Feedback

Holographic Video Feedback

This is a project that I have been meaning to get around to doing for a long time, but for one reason or another, I haven't so this is just to tell a bit about the concept and hopeful result. We all likely know how video feedback works and looks, and one thing I discovered long ago, was how to interact with it in a more direct way. You know how when you touch a TV screen and feel the layer of static that covers it right. And likely how, as our nervous system is bio-electromagnetic, we emanate this field, or aura, that can interact with other biological and electromagnetic systems. I found that I could consciously modify video feedback on the screen with the aura of my hand, and this inspired the idea of a interactive 3D video feedback installation using the Holosseum, to allow gallery visitors to reach in and mold the chaos in holographic 3D.

The Holosseum doesn't really create holographic images, but it sure looks similar. If you've even seen those little sculpture things where you put a penny or other small object in the bottom of the spherical mirror dish bottom, put on the top, and it seems like it's floating in mid air, a virtual 3D object on top. The Holosseum works on a similar concept, it uses a large spherical mirror and a Sony monitor. It came out in the early 90's in two video game configurations: 1-Holosseum, a fighting game, and 2-Time Traveler, a laser disc based adventure game. The view the player experiences is very cool, visible from all angles without special glasses, and you want to reach out and touch the imagery. Of course, when you do, your hand goes right through the 3D images.

What I hope to do in the somewhere near future, is to integrate a video mixer, perhaps some sort of video synthesizer or random image generation device, and a video camera mounted on gimbals. Visitors could adjust knobs and sliders to create a base video source, or/and move the video camera to adjust the flowing video feedback. Then they could reach into the 3D space, and play with and mold the holographic feedback in real-time to their liking. Other visitors would be able to watch the interaction until they got their turn to try it themselves. Anyway, that's they basic idea, I'll post some more pictures when I eventually get around to this project. Until that time, the Holosseum, just sits in my studio, along with a couple of other esoteric videogames from times past.