“The DEFENDEX-ESPGX” by Hosale and Thompson
Conference:
Type(s):
Entry Number: 012
Title:
- The DEFENDEX-ESPGX
Presenter(s)/Author(s):
Abstract:
The DEFENDEX-ESPGX combines real-time audio and video synthesis processing with physical interaction. The challenge in developing this work is providing a meaningful interface that connects the virtual and physical.
The DEFENDEX-ESPGX is a fiction. The fiction is tied to how the medium is changed by being historically contextualized as 1950’s technology. This contextualization affects the user’s manner of interacting with the medium. The device has a familiarity of a past era where technologies were seemingly simpler and less abstract. The device may have compelling nostalgic value, but is interweaved with modern technology.
The message is redefined through this contradictory medium. Parallels between past and current technologies and the eras they represent resolve this contradiction. These parallels are reflected in the content fed back to the user by the virtual system. The content is not meant to be pedantic, but it draws on nostalgic reference to bring about implied comparisons between Cold War Era culture of fear and contemporary War on Terror culture of fear in the United States.
References:
1. Meadows , Mark. 2003. Pause and Effect. New Riders Press.
