Site Machines began with a process similar to many of my recent projects; one of spending time in a site that is new to me, looking at what is directly apparent and what is revealed through further observation, then trying to understand how that place works as a part of a larger system. Through this process, I am interested in discovering the different ways that images and physical spaces work on our memory, our immediate senses, and our expectations. My installations, in turn, create opportunities to watch something unfold over longer durations, and are organized around a sense that something happened, something is happening, or something is about to happen.
Site Machines specifically organizes a network of cameras, screens, and lighting elements throughout Suyama Space. The cameras, each animated by a unique mechanical motion device, open up different ways of moving through and seeing the spaces, surfaces, and frames created by the gallery’s architecture.
Further exploring the building, cameras look beyond the main floor to the less visible workspaces and storage areas below, drawing together videos of the gallery with scenes of the tools, materials, and models used by the architecture studio. The installation works as a mechanism for both creating and viewing images, and thus emulates the functions of the Suyama Building: a studio and a gallery, a site of production and of presentation.
This project was developed at The Center for Digital Arts and Experimental Media, and builds upon a body of work that contributed to my DXARTS PhD Dissertation. The exhibition was made possible through funding from 4culture, the Seattle Office of Arts and Culture, Suyama Space Friends, and DXARTS.