Interactive Sculpture

I made my first interactive work in college. It was a urinal complete with running water (aka urine) that cycled through a dismembered prosthetic penis at waist height. Two footprints beckoned onlookers to step up and well - pee. I was overjoyed as a crowd formed around it during open studios. People who had never had the opportunity to stand up and pee were having the time of their lives, occasionally spraying their unsuspecting friends.

Years later I started making video games, bringing that sculptural thought process to the design of custom physical controllers. My favorite was the Little Bug Arcade Cabinet, which had the unique problem of one player using two joysticks while simultaneously pressing a button. On a gamepad, this was easily solved with thumbsticks and a trigger, but a traditional arcade cabinet uses joysticks that demand a whole hand’s attention. The elegant solution was a Time Crisis inspired foot pedal, creating a completely new gameplay style as a by product.