Seeing what your face looks like 14 feet tall and enlarged
hundreds of times in a public forum might sound like a
nightmare to some people, but to others, it’s a fun way to
interact with other visitors at the Greater Columbus Convention
Center in Columbus, Ohio. ‘As We Are’ is a permanent sculptural
installation made of 23 ribbons of LED screens wrapping around
a vaguely head-shaped base on a podium. Walk around to the
back, and you’ll find the entrance to a photo booth inside.
Have your photo taken simultaneously by twenty-nine cameras,
which are capable of stitching together a three-dimensional
likeness, and then step outside to see your face displayed on
the screens, which are powered by over 850,000 LEDs. For artist
Matthew
Mohr, the experience is about exploring the relationship
between self and representation of self, “asking the subject of
the portrait to reconsider presence through magnification.”
“It is intended to provide amusement and evoke larger
discussions around the phenomena of social media, diversity,
and the power dynamic of public art,” he says. “‘As We Are’
focuses on the now commonplace act of documenting one’s
existence in an effort to connect with others. It considers how
self-representation has evolved by confronting the idea of
self, and recognition of what we seek in and from other
people.”
“An underlying theme in my work is technology in service of
communication. It runs through my practice and my teaching.
Without substance, technology is either a tool or a parlor
trick.”
DCL, the fabricator that collaborated with Mohr to manufacture
the sculptural object, calls it “the ultimate selfie machine.”
Would you give it a try?
Photos by Ellen
Dalagher
