The Sorry, I’m Shy is an abstract sculpture created with a 3D printer, 100 lb. fishing line, an LED, an LDR, and an Arduino system. It was created by Scout Jacobs and myself for the Fall 2019 Interactive Art Course final project. The Arduino device sits hidden in a black base below a white abstract sculpture with clear fishing line sticking out of the top of it in all directions as if it were hair. When the device is on, the LED below the fishing line will light up the line and only the line with a soft glow. It is designed to only light up when it is in the dark as if it were to only show its true self when it is alone in the space.
How do you change the space you are in? Prior to the lights turning on a viewer may notice a faint light coming from the corner of the room. Once the lights are on, it blends into the environment and the light turns out. The interactor is forced to think about those that are in close proximity to others. Those that are shy tend to sit in the corner of a room and attempt to conceal themselves. This device exhibits those same characteristics forcing the viewer to realize that some things are better when they are left alone. This also allows the viewer to recognize places that this location may feel like a safe zone for others.
The interactor is being ignored by the system at first and they need to reconsider where they go. When a person enters a room they instinctively turn on the lights and the Sorry, I’m Shy grows dark as if it were hiding from the interactor. The simplest of actions, being in the sculpture’s space, forces it to turn off and hide from others. The human body does not directly interact with this model, but other models would sense the presence of a human and shut off as opposed to reacting to the light in the room. It is important to understand the impact of a human presence has on other living and nonliving things.
This project is intended to force the viewer to question what they are observing. The work is complex and takes time to take in, but it also does nothing while the viewer sits there in the light observing it. It could be interpreted as being a nightlight by some viewers considering it only lights up when there is darkness. On that note, it can have a deeper meaning of when there is no hope and darkness remains, there is always something overlooked and ignored sitting in the corner that finally gets its moment and recognition when it was thought that only darkness remained. This could also be a social experiment to see not only how many people notice it, but once noticed, how many people return in an attempt to see it light up and how many people just ignore it because it does nothing for them in that moment.
Art & Sustainability 