Matching known acquaintances through a collection of photos on a wall is a familiar scene in a television crime drama as the detectives try to narrow their list of suspects. Bellevue University’s Jeffrey Hug is taking that approach and raising it to an art form. The Assistant Professor of Graphic Design and Photography has something special planned as a participant in a local art project known as the Empty Room.
The Empty Room is a six month long experiment where individuals are given access to an “empty room” where they are free to share their creative ideas with the Omaha community. The room is located at 13th and Webster streets and offers participants roughly 700 square feet to express their creativity. Each participant has the run of the room for an entire month. Hug’s idea was chosen for the October exhibit.
Inspired by crime dramas and a belief that people need to stay connected, Hug will fashion his empty room into a live adaptation of a Facebook page. Visitors to the exhibit will place their photo on a wall and connect their photo to other photos of people they know. They will use a piece of string/yarn to physically connect their photo to others. As the possible combinations increase with the number of visitors, the resulting connections will create an ever-changing visual. By the end of the month, the room could represent a tangled mess that would frighten even the most seasoned air traffic controller. The bigger the mess, the greater the success according to Hug who believes the more people stay connected the better. The project has been dubbed, “String Thing” by its creator.
Hug’s master plan includes a step beyond the exhibit’s October lifespan. He has made arrangements to convert the yarn used in the exhibit into hats and gloves for the homeless. Bellevue University staff and students are encouraged to donate yarn to the project. Donation boxes will be located throughout the campus. Donations will also be accepted at the exhibit during its October run.
For more information, visit http://emptyroomstringthing.com/.
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