Cups and String

Cups and Strings is a public installation which mimics the emotional interaction that can be experienced when children play with a cup and string telephone. Materiality, physicality, and atmosphere play a great role in how comfortable a person feels during an interaction.

The installation enables people in a space to have an intimate chat but this interaction would in return to inform the space. It seeks to activate a space whilst the users are not directly engaged with the mass. The partitions are placed in a way to envelop and provide a sense of enclosure, creating a comfortable space to have a dialogue with a random person on the other partition.

The verbal interaction between two users behind the partitions drives the projection on the partitions. Fluid movements of the projection are dependent on the length of the conversation the users can sustain.

The installation takes the form of two partitions that become the elements that affect the space between them. Users sit on a stool behind the partition and interact with the other person through a cup that also houses a Bluetooth enabled mic and a speaker. The fabric on the partition is illuminated with visualizations projected on it and is also visible from the inside. The audio input thus prompts a conversation between two strangers, physically invisible to each other, hopefully creating a sense of intimacy and trust.