NODEM 2014 Proceedings

The Whisperers: An Interactive Exhibition. Using Voice as Navigation for an Experiential Interface in a Museum Environment
“The Whisperers” is based upon this historical text, The Whisperers by Figes. The author’s descriptive and emotive
writing was powerful enough for an impetus of depicting of lives inside small spaces during this time in
history. But how could this be communicated physically, attempting to capture the emotions of the individuals
who lived in these compartments? And can there be a direct participation of the viewer, or rather user, with this
experience? How can the suffocation of statewide surveillance be communicated on the personal level?
The exhibition design of Frederick Kiesler and his architecture within exhibits was examined for this project
with doors and unattainable reveals (vents, windows, openings).
Janet Cardiff’s work with the “Cabinet of Curiousness” (Cardiff/Miller) inspired ideas of closed spaces in an installation
that trigged a mechanical and digital reaction.
Figure 2. Janet Cardiff’s “Cabinet of Curiousness” (1991)
Gaston Bachelard’s The Poetics of Space (Bachelard, 1994) was researched to assist the idea of how spaces
contain memory and past histories. Psychological cases of individuals who conform when in groups and how
“mob rule” takes over once a critical situation presents itself was examined. The infamous psychological testing
data of the Milgram Experiment data was further explored.
The current American governmental surveillance of the NSA, TSA, FBI and other authorities was another area
of research for “The Whisperers.” How safe is our metadata, private information, expressions of our private lives?
How is it that the Internet – the largest tool in history for a freedom of expression, is now the largest authoritarian
device for monitoring? The current censorship of the Putin government also pushed this concept further.
The idea of taking an innocent, loving family relationship using expressions such as “I love you,” and turning
these phrases into dangerous sentiments was an interest to this author. What is the idea of “over”-surveillance
between neighbors and loved ones? In other words – “over”-surveillance of the Internet through authorities
NODEM 2014 Conference & Expo
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