The Face Box

installation, 2020

The Face Box was created in March 2020 and exhibited as part of a larger installation by the Collected Collective. It consisted of two parts:

1. a black box containing an iPhone camera, a light, and reflective paper
   
2. a large-scale live projection of the camera’s video feed, delayed by ~25 seconds

Upon entering the exhibition, in a small coat room, guests would find the box waiting along with a written invitation to look inside. Those who chose to stick their heads into the box’s interior would find that they could see warped reflections of their own face in the wrinkled silver paper that lined the inside.

Then, once the guest entered the main room of the exhibition, they would be confronted immediately by the projection of the camera’s video feed. Because the video was delayed, the timing almost always worked out that guests would see their own face upon entering the installation space. By far the most fascinating part of the project was watching guests watch themselves.

The Face Box utilized relatively common and accessible digital technologies including the Apple iPhone camera and Facebook Live. This was out of practical necessity, but also reflective of the Box’s thematic affiliations, including digital surveillance and social media

While the Face Box was primarily my project, it would not have been possible without my collaborators, especially Eli Kaplan, Anna Kerber, and Léane Pajot.

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