Thesis - 04 Experiment with Scale

An Experimentation With Scale

Invited Into My Home

I spent some time looking at a variety of facebook groups based in Wheeling, West Virginia which I felt might be where the mystery woman spends time online. In the course of doing so, there were a lot of women of a similar profile who post these faux self-assessment quizzes. Click on whichever flower feels like you and we'll tell you what Disney princess you are. That type of thing. It got me thinking a great deal more about who this woman was as a person. How does she see herself? I found myself curious about her easily defined information: age, weight, height. I realized that since I know the dimensions of the flag she's holding, I actually could get a sense of her height. Unfortunately, her feet aren't showing so I can't know exactly. But I am thinking she is around 5'5".  

Printing her image at scale was an informative experiment. I realized that as I started to tile the image together, I didn't feel like I was making her. I felt like I was inviting this woman into my home. I also realized that there were suddenly new details to observe. Notably, I realized that the flag is actually a bit see-thru and there are some observable letters on her shirt underneath. It might be worth it to do some photoshop manipulation to see if I could figure out what her shirt says. Another clue! I also realized that the necklace she is wearing seems like it might be a badge or ID of some sort. Interestingly, she is in front of the Convention Center. Maybe I can see if anyone else is wearing a similar badge? Maybe she was a volunteer? CLUES.

I also found that I had a great urge to bring this cutout of her to a protest. In this form, she is a sign (although I'm not sure what she is a sign of yet.) As she is now, if I brought her to a protest, it would probably be read as a Pro-Trump sign; an odd one for sure, but Pro-Trump. Holding the lifesize cutout from behind, I become really aware of how far outstretched her arms actually are. That feels like it means something. The pose that is.

Printed at scale, I appreciate the impact of the flag a lot more. I am aware of the space she is taking in our home. I don't want her to be in my zoom background. In truth, there are no rooms in our house where she belongs. I think she belongs outside. I wonder what my neighbors would think, if they saw her on my porch.

I want to imagine I am looking at her at a protest.

Seeds

1. Photoshop her arms inwards and the flag folding vs stretching it out further
2. Print out a version of her with a different flag and adhere it on to the back. You could hold this at a protest/counterprotest and the people behind you would think you were in support of their cause and the people facing off at you would think you support their cause.
3. Imagine the flag as a window. Attach a camera to the back and display video feed in the front; create an invisible flag illusion.
4. ^^or glass? Where you can slide a different flag image in-between the panes of glass.
5. AR app that recognizes a flag and changes its message to something of your choosing. A sort of real-time white washing.
6. Use PoseNet to snap a flag image in between your hands when you stretch your arms out wide. Randomly populate based on flag images scrapped from reverse google image search.