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Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Illuminate

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

What would it be like if we could see our movement? This thesis presents, Illuminate, an interactive art installation in which the movements of a person through open space are visually augmented and brought to life in front of them in real-time through custom interactive visualization software. Seamlessly merging physical and digital space, Illuminate submerges a participant into an artificial reality in which their usually unseen paths of movement become visible. Aiming to give the participant a visceral yet magical moment in which they can see, interact with, and play with their once invisible wakes of motion— pushing the boundaries of our senses and making the invisible visible. The project also explores the themes of spatial computing, bodily expression, abstraction, and choreographic interfaces. Illuminate provides a deeper understanding of bodily motion to a general audience through a playful interactive performance space made for human creativity, expression, and public play. Investigating the poetic implications of making the invisible trails of our human movement visible. It explores the relationship between our bodies' movement, time, space, and the digital world, provoking questions regarding the possible implications of a world in which we can more casually and effortlessly control and interact with digital elements spatially through the free unrestricted movement of our bodies.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
Master
Department dc:contributor.department
Program in Media Arts and Sciences (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
Grantor dc:publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Year dc:date.issued
2023

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Cocking, Chelsi Alise
Advisor dc:contributor.advisor
  • Lieberman, Zachary

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
  • Copyright retained by author(s)

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Handle dc:identifier.uri
https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/152832
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/152832

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
MIT
Base URL
dspace.mit.edu/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-22
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
related terms
citation

Cocking, Chelsi Alise. Illuminate. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2023. https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/152832