Java.Jan.2017

Photo: Chris Loomis
Photo: Kate Russell Photography
Photo: Chris Loomis
Epic FX took off around 2012 and enjoyed quite a
bit of success leading up to the 2014 Super Bowl,
which was played in Phoenix. Fleenor wanted to do
something in response to the game but struggled
to come up with an idea that wouldn’t directly
benefit the NFL. He eventually decided to create a
guerrilla-style art project, where social media feeds
were projected in real time above the place where
pregame festivities were being held.
“I remember reaching out to Michael Levine about
doing a counter-display project, and he wrote me
back that same day,” Fleenor said. “He was totally
down and gave me access to his building adjacent to
the Super Bowl festivities.” Fleenor worked nonstop
for a week conceptualizing and creating the project,
which broadcasted a large-scale anti-corporate
message on the Bud Light tent. Bud Light corporate
tried to stop it by getting the police involved, but it
was technically legal, so they couldn’t shut it down.
Fleenor displayed live tweets of people commenting
on the growing corporate presence surrounding
the Super Bowl. “A lot of people enjoyed it,”
Fleenor said. “I loved the idea of censorship-free
broadcasting. It was so inspiring, the things people
were saying. They really resonated with it.”
S.E.E.D.
Around the middle of 2015, Fleenor came up with
the idea of producing S.E.E.D. (Stellar Emissions
Encapsulation Device), a cube where lasers interact
with human emotions to create real-time feedback
for the user in the form of symbols, geometry and
frequencies. “For a while I didn’t have any artistic
outlets,” Fleenor said, “then I started thinking about
the S.E.E.D. project around the end of 2015. From
September to December, we built the first one.”
Phoenix Magazine covered it for their “Future of
Phoenix” series. To this day, the project is still in
development, but Fleenor has been able to achieve a
lot of the things he originally imagined.
Fleenor submitted S.E.E.D. to various festivals and
art shows around the nation, and it was selected by
the Currents New Media festival in New Mexico. For
the festival, Fleenor changed all the dimensions of
the original and added a new algorithm. Although the
piece didn’t come together quite like he expected, he
is still optimistic. “In my mind I think of S.E.E.D. as a
museum piece,” Fleenor said. “It’s challenging and
motivating, and people love it. So you can’t dwell on
the long-term successes or goals you set. You have to
be about the process.”
Late last year, Fleenor attended Art Basel in Miami
to show an interactive piece he had developed just
prior to the show. He was inspired to do the piece
after seeing an interactive display at a Brooklyn
gallery. However, once he got to Miami, his piece
malfunctioned and he couldn’t show it. This left
him a bit upset. On the last morning of Art Basel,
he found out about the Oakland fire and about the
Army leaving the Dakota pipeline, so he decided to
project a massive laser display in downtown Miami.
He found an Airbnb downtown with a view of the
city that allowed him to project his message on an
adjacent high-rise. It said “Water = Life, Oil = Death,”
to stand in solidarity with the protestors.
Fleenor hopes to continue helping people heal
through technology. “I’m a big fan of anything
that heals your brain, giving greater balance and
happiness and helping one become more of a
collective player,” Fleenor said. “I’m someone that’s
pushing evolution forward.”
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