Tanner Teale (is Hello.)

RULES
1. Move a stool across the line.
2. Move the other stool across the line.
3. Repeat.

Hair Dryer & Balloon 4 shows me trying to use the hair dryer to keep the balloon from floating up to the ceiling. I am unsuccessful on the first few tries, but I adjust my approach with each take and eventually keep the balloon from floating up.

This iteration marks the most change between versions and shows the most on-the-go development. It is technically much simpler than version one, two and three, as there are no computers, sensors or micro-controls involved. I replaced those materials with myself, keeping only the hair dryer and balloon. This allows me to explore the relationship between the two from a first person point of view.

The first take shows me almost pulling the cord out of the wall as I try to keep the hair dryer above the balloon. So, the first adjustment I made was to add an extension cord. Next, I removed the funnel device from the end of the hair dryer to more evenly distributed the air. And finally, I move from the center of the room to the wall where I am able to limit the directions the balloon can move.

Iteration four has given me two routes for further exploration, a low-tech and a high-tech. The low-tech approach explores the relationship between a balloon and a hair dryer without the clutter of other materials as well as adding myself into the equation. However, using a computer, code and sensors enables me to explore a wider range of materials and their interwoven relationships, which could take each of the next iterations into completely new territory. As Hair Dryer & Balloon 4 is merely a starting place for iterations five, six, seven and so on, I expect to use both high and low-tech approaches moving forward. On a final note, I am excited by the fact that this version brought out a sense of performance, something the prior iterations did not.

For this iteration, I wanted to play with a repetitive process with a small variable in play that makes each instance of the piece unique, rather than being exactly replicable, as well as what the implications of the variable might be. The subtle ebb and flow of the air in the room causing the ballon to sway act as this variable.

Hair Dryer & Balloon 3 is identical to the last iteration except the addition of the X-Acto knife taped to the top of the hair dryer; the proximity sensor still triggers the hair dryer, the balloon is placed in the same location and its movement is the same. In Hair Dryer & Balloon 2, once the cycle was set in motion, there was no stopping it. This fits well with my interest in feedback loops and iterative design, but it felt like a one-liner. By adding the X-Acto knife, I am suggesting that the process will eventually end, and as the video documentation shows, it does. In addition to adding the element of time to the piece, the X-Acto adds a surprising amount of tension, both in the documentation and in person.

In the first take, the X-Acto was not extended far enough. So, in the second take, I extended it slightly, but the ballon still did not pop. This could have been because the knife was still not extended far enough, or because the tip of blade was broken off and it was not sharp enough to puncture the balloon. So, for the third and final take, I added a fresh blade and extended it bit further, and the balloon popped.