Cardio Chairs / The Living Room
2022 Common Senses Festival
Sunday, April 3, 2022 - Sunday, May 1, 2022
Kaneko / 1111 Jones Street, Omaha, NE
https://commonsensesfestival.com
PhD student James Coleman has co-created two installations for the 2022 Common Senses Festival. Common Senses is a production of Autism Action Partnership, which serves the Nebraska autism community through targeted programs that promote support, inclusion, and prosperity. The month-long multi-faceted, sensory-friendly event is inclusive to everyone in the community to discover what makes humans unique and what we all have in common.
Coleman explained to local Omaha news network 3 News Now that it’s about more than just being a neurodiverse community–it’s about how everyday environments can accommodate the needs of the people who use them. “What I hope comes of this is that people ask for buildings that are personalized to them." [Article]
Installation: Cardio Chairs
Cardio Chairs intends to enable and facilitate visualization and exploration of interpersonal dynamics by making the invisible visible. Cardio Chairs comprises two translucent chairs embedded with wireless sensors and lights that change colors and lumens due to seated occupants' physiological activation. The exhibit intends to enable and facilitate visualization and exploration of interpersonal dynamics by making the invisible visible.
Installation: The Living Room
This proof-of-concept project seeks to determine if affective and physiological regulation in individuals with autism can be promoted through dynamic adjustments in the ambient environment. In short, light, sound, smell, and other sensorial stimuli within a space are designed to adjust to accommodate end-user comfort and enjoyment.
Dr. Matthew Goodwin, James Coleman, and JB&B ultimately hope to employ their technology on a widespread scale; the Living Room installation at Common Senses Festival will enable visitors to explore the technology in its early prototype stages and provide feedback. Users will be able to interact with and shape these ambient environments, manipulating light, sound, and feeling of the installation space. Visitors will get a glimpse into the potential of this technology to shape our spaces in the future.
