Twenty-First Century Campfire

Twenty-First Century Campfire is an aleatoric light sculpture intended for collective viewing in quiet, low-light, intimate spaces.

The Campfire consists of a rescued television set topped by a protruding matrix of PVC pipe that diffuses live television broadcasts into a shifting array of rich colors and abstract shapes. These heavily-researched and targeted messages of consumption—all provided free of charge by unwitting corporate collaborators—are filtered into abstraction simply by scattering them inside the PVC piping, rendering the process entirely transparent to the curious observer.

The work is intended to be experienced, like an actual campfire, at the center of a small gathering of seated viewers in a dark space. Situated accordingly, the installation becomes a space to be quiet, to meditate, to think, and to sit with others without the constant pressure to sustain conversation. When there is nothing to be said, the Campfire is a returning point, encouraging collective silence and shared meaningful moments of introspection.

Ultimately, Twenty-First Century Campfire is an attempt to rescue one of our most deeply ingrained instincts—the need to sit with others around a glowing source of light—from the homogenizing three-act structure and the corporate consumption agenda.

Prior Art