Details:

✦ 3 weeks
✦ Photoshop, Illustrator, SketchUp, P5.js
✦ sole designer

Background:

I was tasked with creating a museum exhibit for a project about an artist on display at a local Pittsburgh museum. I chose Yayoi Kusama, a 95-year-old artist originating from Japan. Her art uses polka dot motifs to convey the idea of "obliteration of self" and her journey with schizophrenia. I created a physical and digital 3D model in Sketchup, developed the visual identity/branding in illustrator by creating wall graphics, and also programmed animations using Javascript. These factors were all used to convey the idea of self-obliteration and encourage visitors to abandon their sense of individuality and consider the greater context they exist within.

In Kusama's words: “Our earth is only one polka dot among a million stars in the cosmos. Polka dots are a way to infinity. When we obliterate nature and our bodies with polka dots, we become part of the unity of our environment.”

Exhibit Overview:

A parti diagram and elevations depicting the exhibit flow and details, scaled to the CMU Miller ICA. Users are first guided through an infographic wall retelling Yayoi Kusama's life story with interactive lights that illuminate the guest's path. Then, they pass through the featured piece, "Repetitive Vision"— part of Kusama's infinity room series. Finally, visitors are lead to the interactive wall expressing Kusama's motif of "obliteration of self" where their silhouettes are distilled into polka dots depending on proximity, before exiting the exhibit.

Visualizations:

Images made to demonstrate visitors' journey through the museum. Created using Photoshop and stills from a walkthrough of the 3D digital SketchUp model.

Animations:

Animations created using P5.js (javascript) to demonstrate how visitors would experience the interactive tech to augment their understanding of the content. These interactions reflect Kusama's ideal of "obliteration of self."

Model: