The Khronos projector

I wonder why I haven't posted about this before. I guess I usually post about things that are new for me since writing is a way of understanding, too. The fact is that my friend Alvaro Cassinelli has presented his Khronos projector at Siggraph a few weeks ago and it was a real success. This video-art installation allows you to "scratch" the video screen, back and forth, as it you were a DJ (ok, this is as close as I can describe it.) Depending on how deep you press on the screen, a part of it will go back or forward into the future, while leaving the rest of the image unaffected. In other words, you travel through time by touching the screen. This creates some amazing effects and encourages participants to explore the video with a degree of interest and will for experimentation that is so refreshing in this been-there-done-that world of video art. Here's a link to the project. I've know Alvaro for years, we went together to high school in Uruguay. Now he is a researcher at the University of Tokyo and I'll be seeing him in a few weeks which is, of course, wonderful. Make sure you check out his project site and take a look at the videos, you'll get an idea of what this project is about. At the top of the page there are videos introducing the whole concept and if you scroll down you will find plenty of short video demos.
Like all great art, it's a toy for grown-ups that makes you explore and question what surrounds you. Who could ask for more?