Gainesville, Fla., July 2, 2014 — University Galleries is pleased to announce a new exhibit open July 14-25, 2014 in University Gallery at the University of Florida (UF) campus in Gainesville, Florida, as part of UF’s Creative B summer activities. CNTRL-SPACE by UF alumnus Patrick Pagano is an interactive digital projection environment exhibit that explores the illusion of control in a technocratic society. The exhibit is free and open to the public Mondays: 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Thursdays: 10 a.m.-7 p.m. An opening reception will be held Friday, July 11, 2014 from 7:30-9:30 p.m.
CNTRL-SPACE enables visitors to affect the images that are projected onto the walls in University Gallery. The exhibit allows for "magic phrases" to be input into the system via gallery visitors’ smartphones that search the internet and are used to produce an instant full screen collage of images. Using web APIs that are freely available online for a variety of image sourcing sites, the experience is immediately connective and is an illusion of control. In addition, the installation visitors may move projected 3D surfaces that the images are visually mapped onto via touch-sensitive devices placed in the gallery. This makes for an indulgent, participatory art making experience for the visitor.
CNTRL-SPACE also addresses the idea of surveillance based upon current technologies provided by Microsoft using their messianic gesture device, the Kinect. Visitors are watched as they watch, marked as they are marked and recorded as they record the experience. This data is secretly applied then input into the CNTRL-SPACE system to adjust the placement of a final snapshot, i.e. how the environment will appear upon the exit of the visitor from the CNTRL-SPACE. This is the image that will greet the next visitor upon entrance into the CNTRL-SPACE.
“CNTRL-SPACE is an aggregation of different elements of interactive projection design environments I have been working on since 2005,” said Pagano. “Inspired by one of my visual art gurus, Marian Zazeela, I began to construct abstract sound and light environments for visitors to interact with via touch sensitive midi controllers, smart phones and tablets. The installation culminates about 10 years of projection design work and I present it with great joy for Creative B.”
Pagano is a faculty member of UF’s Digital Worlds Institute. He uses a multidisciplinary approach integrating the technological fields of computer science, video, audio and photography within a digital praxis. Pagano has more than 17 years of experience in advanced media systems, projection design, live performance production and is adept at various digital software production tools. He received his MFA in digital arts and sciences and bachelor’s degree in telecommunications from UF. Along with his interest in digital arts, Pagano is a musician who has produced and performed in more than 50 audio recordings. He plays several instruments including the sitar, tamboura, guitar, violin, piano, synthesizer and clarinet; and does overtone singing, just intonation and electronic instrument design. In 2010, after 20 years of Hindustani raga study, Pagano had the opportunity to perform alongside Ravi Shankar at UF Performing Arts.
About University Galleries
University Galleries is comprised of three art galleries at the University of Florida (UF) in Gainesville, Florida, and is an integral part of the programs and curricula of the School of Art + Art History.
University Gallery, located at the intersection of SW 13th Street and SW 4th Avenue, provides high-quality, thought-provoking exhibitions changing every two to 12 weeks that engage the university and wider community in stimulating dialogue facilitated by contemporary visual language and culture. For the past 12 years the University Gallery has collaborated with myriad UF colleges, community and regional entities in creating a trans-disciplinary venue for the visual arts. Exhibitions feature internationally-recognized artists, an annual faculty exhibition, a juried student art show and two MFA graduating thesis project shows. The 3,000 square foot space is a lively, exciting venue that is utilized for many events throughout the academic year. During the school year, University Gallery is open Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays: 10 a.m.–5 p.m.; Thursdays: 10 a.m.–7 p.m.; and Saturdays: 12 p.m.–4 p.m. The gallery is closed Mondays, Sundays and holidays. University Gallery will re-open with the fall 2014 semester.
Focus Gallery is an 850-square-foot space that presents monthly exhibitions of student-curated exhibitions featuring student and alumni artworks. Focus Gallery is located adjacent to the lobby of the School of Art + Art History’s Fine Art Building C. Focus Gallery is open Monday through Friday 10 a.m.–5 p.m. and is closed weekends and holidays.
Grinter Gallery is located in the lobby area of Grinter Hall. Established by an endowment from Linton and Constance Grinter, its primary mission is to present international and multicultural artwork through student curated exhibitions. Grinter Gallery is open Monday through Friday: 8 a.m.–5 p.m. and is closed weekends and holidays.
Parking Information
Daytime parking is available in reserved spaces between Fine Arts Building C (FAC) and Inner Road. From SW 13th Street, enter campus on Museum Drive. Turn right on Newell Drive, then right on Inner Road. Turn left into the parking lot behind FAC. The first three spaces on the left are reserved for gallery use. Parking permits are issued to gallery visitors in the University Gallery.
For more information, please contact the University Gallery at (352) 273-3000 or visit our website at www.arts.ufl.edu/galleries.
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