Living in Between is an interactive projection about an immigrant’s vague and vulnerable future. They should expect a lot of different happenings in their future because various social, political, and financial parameters could quickly change the lives of immigrants. In this piece, I have designed 20 scenarios that an immigrant can experience in the future and depicted them in a large projected animation. The audience should select a QR code from a collection of QR codes installed on the wall next to the projection and scan it. They should find these numbers on the projection wall. Each number corresponds with a short gif or illustration. The audience would follow each number one by one, see the related gifs or illustrations in a sequence, connect the concept Gifs or illustrations, and find out about their future.
The United States is a diverse community, willing to accept different people from different cultures, but since the 2017 executive order, which suspended for 90 days entry into the United States for individuals from Iran, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen, our life as immigrants has dramatically changed. This governmental ruling made me reconsider my status as an immigrant. By depicting the life of immigrants via creative work, I help other people learn about and understand immigrants better, especially in the United States, where people need to live harmoniously with immigrants. In Living in Between, I used interactive art as the main medium because it profoundly engages the viewers with the piece and lets them imagine themselves as immigrants.
I started this animation as my master's thesis project in 2019, but after some changes, I exhibited it in diverse venues when I began my work at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
Featured by
• The Washington Post, “In the galleries: Sculptures take us beyond the conventional,” 2022
Presented by
• We Create, Art and Design Faculty Exhibition, University of Minnesota Duluth, MN, the USA, 2021
• Current New Media 2021, International interactive and video art festival, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA, 2021
• Living in Between, CICA Contemporary User Experience Art Solo Show Series, CICA Museum, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, 2021
• Living in Between-Future, The Pearl Conard Art Gallery, Ohio State University, Mansfield, Ohio, USA, 2020
• Current New Media 2021, International interactive and video art festival, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA, 2021
• Living in Between, CICA Contemporary User Experience Art Solo Show Series, CICA Museum, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, 2021
• Living in Between-Future, The Pearl Conard Art Gallery, Ohio State University, Mansfield, Ohio, USA, 2020
We Create, Art and Design Faculty Exhibition, University of Minnesota Duluth, MN, the USA, 2021
Living in Between is a frame-by-frame animation carefully crafted with over 120 in-detailed illustrated frames. To kickstart the project, I brainstormed varied fortunes that a single immigrant could encounter during their immigration journey. I selected 20 critical incidents to ensure that the animation would touch on the most significant aspects of the immigrant’s life. Then, I collected visual references. A personal touch was added as I predominantly relied on my body, posing, moving, and gesturing, which I recorded. This approach allowed me to integrate the animation with emotion and authenticity, making the journey even more relatable to the audience.
Using the collected and recorded visual references, I illustrated all the frames in outlines with dedication and attention to detail. Utilizing a black-and-white color scheme serves a dual purpose. It enhances the visual clarity and projection of the animation. Still, it also metaphorically represents the contrasting aspects of the immigration experience – the darkness of challenges, struggles, and uncertainty and the light of hope, resilience, and opportunity. Finally, I put all the illustrated frames in a row and created a single animation projected on the wall. To add interactivity to this piece, I used QR code technology because it was easy and accessible for the viewers to work with.
Using the collected and recorded visual references, I illustrated all the frames in outlines with dedication and attention to detail. Utilizing a black-and-white color scheme serves a dual purpose. It enhances the visual clarity and projection of the animation. Still, it also metaphorically represents the contrasting aspects of the immigration experience – the darkness of challenges, struggles, and uncertainty and the light of hope, resilience, and opportunity. Finally, I put all the illustrated frames in a row and created a single animation projected on the wall. To add interactivity to this piece, I used QR code technology because it was easy and accessible for the viewers to work with.
Currents New Media Festival, Santa Fe, NM, the USA, 2021
The Audiences scan the QR codes to get their numbers.
