tigop-lookingoutwards02

I was very amused by Maryyann Landlord and Ralph Kim’s VR piece at the FREE GERMS 2016 Senior Exhibition last semester. In their work, the user got to play the role of an insidious looking character on a bus/subway. As this character, you were able to pop the balloons of small children-like creatures, and by doing so, you made them cry and then they died. You essentially killed them by ruining their happiness. I think there is something compelling about interactive pieces, and I really enjoyed the style of this piece in particular. I like the idea of bringing people into very imaginative worlds and taking on different roles in these worlds. They somehow managed to pull together a piece with an incredibly dark concept, but it felt like it was coated in a layer of sugar. It was very satisfying.