LIVING OBJECTS

a proposed installation for
PS1 Contemporary Art Center

Jason Krugman, Stella Kim and Benjamin Chao

Living Objects is a series of humanoid sculptures that incorporates sensors, movement and embedded screens to create a dynamic and immersive experience for the audience. People are encouraged to enter into the space occupied by the sculptures, touch them and observe them. The sculptures are designed to elicit a wide range of emotions from the audience, ranging from empathy to timidity. They vary in size from a few inches tall, to several feet in diameter.

The pieces in Living Objects are not obviously works of fine art, but rather semi-living sculptural forms that encourage audience participation. They are perfectly suited to a non-traditional gallery space like PS1's boiler room. Built in 1893, PS1 and its boiler room served thousands of children until its closure in 1963. The space is rich with spent power and productivity. The enormous boiler saturates the space with a feeling of past utility. Our human-like scuptures, built from common packaging materials like wood, wire, newspaper and plastic wrap, answer to that same principle of utility. As titled, they are part being, part object. We have consciously selected common materials to make them accessible and worldy.

Living Objects was created by Jason Krugman 2 years ago. It has grown from a single sculpture into an extensive project involving multiple creatures with varying levels of interactivity. This semester, Stella Kim and Benjamin Chao joined Jason in his effort to scale up the project and make it a publicly known work. With the goal of making pieces that will incite a strong emotional reaction in the audience, the 3 collaborators have been very conscious about the way in which their sculptures are introduced. This proposed installation is an attempt to fully integrate the pieces into a suitable environment in which to experience them, creating a more visceral experience for the audience and heightening the impact of the pieces.