One of the "contraptions" (I'm still trying to decide what to call these structures) that will appear in my MFA thesis exhibition in January requires a hula hoop. Like the other contraptions, this one will help generate a cinematic image on a nearby television monitor. Each contraption presents me with a set of problems that I tackle as though I were solving a puzzle or a math problem.
I begin with image that I want to generate on a television screen and then work backwards to create a structure that will produce the image. This reverse-engineering approach always forces me to learn how to use new materials, tools, and methods. Often I also have to crack open my old college physics textbooks and ask, "It's V = IR, right?"
Making things, whether the things are drawings or motorized structures, is my way of understanding the world. This approach of stumbling along and learning things as I go ultimately makes me happy even when the process is exasperating!
Of course, it also makes me happy when these goofy contraptions work as I intend.
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