The Big Ball of Ouch forged, welded and machined steel, welded aluminum, touch and optical sensors, microprocessors, solenoids, other electronic components, wire rope, parachutes dimensions: variable 2003 The Big Ball of Ouch is an electronic sculpture installation consisting of two separate objects installed adjacently in the same gallery space. The first object is a large welded steel sphere, covered with numerous forged steel rods, treated in such a way as to resemble roots or tentacles. The sphere rests on four short, machined steel struts welded to its base, and has three very large steel eyebolts welded in place on its upper half. Laced into the three eyebolts are masses of thin wire rope that attach to the support lines of three military parachutes spread across the floor. The second object is large marquee arrow sign, complete with an array of incandescent lights, featuring the sculpture's title crisply cut out of each side, with the head of the arrow pointing at the center mass of the sphere. Inside each of these two pieces is a microcontroller configured with electronic hardware that produces a change in the sculpture based on audience interactions and changes in the gallery environment. Interactivity is enabled via a pair of microprocessors, one installed inside the arrow, with the other in a circuitry compartment in the sphere. An optical sensor on the arrow detects gallery viewers as they breach the space between the point of the arrow and the steel sphere. Upon viewer detection, the computer will adjust the arrow's light behaviors according to several coded scripts. The electronics inside the sphere receive input from a sensor that detects even a gentle touch to the sphere or its appendages. The sphere's processor then sends control voltage to a group of relay switches that drive several solenoid devices that hammer against the inside surface of the sphere. The subjects explored in this work range from investigations into the nature of a sculpture's status, to details articulating metaphoric expressions of perception and reaction. This piece is a continuation of a previous body of work, which subjects traditional sculptural practices to the rigors of profane cultural systems that, under normal circumstances, would be in conflict with fine arts ideals. This is achieved by creating an autonomous sculpture, which is then installed in a space with another object that modifies its meaning. This relationship denatures the sculpture and assigns it a new and enriched set of properties. |