Urban Decay

Urban Decay

Motion / Projection

Architectural projection art transforms urban decay into a dynamic canvas exploring past, present, and future.

https://vimeo.com/45873192

This projection mapping installation was developed specifically for the architectural context of my thesis exhibition venue—a repurposed warehouse converted into artist studios and gallery spaces. The site selection process involved comprehensive spatial analysis throughout the building, evaluating multiple surfaces based on their visual characteristics and projection potential. After methodical assessment, I selected a wall displaying significant temporal qualities: deteriorating paint, construction barriers, and accumulated environmental elements.

The initial impression of this architectural fragment evoked compelling questions about urban decay and spatial memory. The visual content created for this installation emerged from a conceptual exploration of urban temporality—imagining the wall’s pristine original state, contemplating its current condition, and projecting possible futures: continued deterioration, restoration, or complete transformation.

This site-specific work subsequently expanded into broader questions about architectural impermanence on a global scale, examining the potential fates of similar spaces worldwide. Would these locations eventually disappear from collective memory? The projection functioned as a temporary revitalization of a decaying space, conceptualizing these urban elements as contemporary ruins deserving recognition. The installation aimed to celebrate the historical significance of deteriorating architecture while simultaneously visualizing potential futures, creating a temporal conversation between past, present, and speculative tomorrow.

The musical composition supporting this visual exploration was produced and performed by acclaimed sound artist John Keston (audiocookbook.org), enhancing the multisensory experience of architectural reinterpretation.