#6: It's a thing!
Telescope Project
The prototype telescope is complete! Through the past week’s construction process, I’ve had chance to explore some options for handle placement, yoke attachment, and paddle designs. The handle’s location is really determined by the placement of the yoke’s hinge point, but seems to work great in “testing” with the rest of the MFA cohort. I’m delighted that the bolts inside the telescope housing hold the paddle section in perfectly, but I’m not sure that will work for the real device.
While my original plan involved using either opaque or transparent bricks of material as paddles, with a cable attached leading back to the telescope, at the moment my test paddles use a different concept. These are a solid frame with a window cut out – something that I see being made out of wood and metal, and holding a slice of some transparent material in the center. This design idea emerged as a product of necessity, discovering how expensive ½” acrylic sheets can be, but I find I really like the idea, and it lends a certain handcrafted quality to these parts of the telescope. I can imagine creating a more intricate pattern for the window, or perhaps suspending more unusual materials. I’ve encountered sliced gemstone stalactites that could be mounted or suspended in the middle in a fun way. My grandparents used to make jewelry a little like this – pendant necklaces with a sort of wrap-around wire mounting.
I’ve also now had the chance to get feedback from the rest of the MFA cohort (and a few other people) on how this device is to encounter and use, and I’ve learned a lot. First of all, no one broke the machine, and given how flimsy it is I’m sort of surprised. The little antenna greebly mounted to the side immediately stood out as something no-one really understood – which makes sense, since I don’t really have any purpose or meaning for it either. But I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly everyone made up some reason for it to be there. The handle made a lot of sense in use, the paddles were pretty straightforward. I had a series of great chats with several people about the screen on top, the idea of the “brain” external interface box, and even into the story of how this will work as an ancient artifact. In short, the screen on the top really works, and is intuitive, but removing the brain box would be a real compromise, particularly to the idea that this is supposed to be a mysterious artifact. Someone (Ben, I think) suggested adding an external box with a larger screen to view the telescope and using the screen on the telescope purely as a sort of targeting system – which really lines up with my original ideas for this screen.
Moving forward, the remaining milestones will need some adjustment. I need to spend some time processing the feedback from Wednesday and getting as much feedback as I can on the physical model. Afterwards, I want to focus more on the physical object than the electronics and software and electronics. Having a real final prop at the end of this is definitely doable, but I’ll have to focus pretty exclusively on construction. The risk is that, if I skip steps of integrating electronics, I may need to do some modifications or rebuild pieces to get the electronics in later on.
RJ’s Studio Project
The project is still going well, and I feel more and more grateful every week to be working with such excellent artists and engineers – “gamemakers,” to co-opt a theatre word. It sounds like I’ll have the chance to start helping train someone in producing as part of RJ’s project, so I think I must be doing a decent job so far. I’ve also started doing some visual research on vehicle and character design concepts, hopefully to give the artists a little extra meat to work with.
All My Sons
All My Sons opens at Worcester County Light Opera this Friday! I’ll be there for opening night, and gladly partaking in the post-show reception. The show is in great shape and running smoothly. We had our production photographer in on Tuesday and the photos look good. This is such a stellar production all-around, and it’s been an honor and a joy to be a part of it. All the leads’ performances are powerful and emotional, and they do wonderful justice to a heavy story. I’ve seen it all through at least half a dozen times now, and it’s a moving experience every time.
Photos by our wonderful production photographer Kara Emily Krantz