Tea Party

Tea Party is a continuation of SWAMP-style satire of the fast-food industry. In this project, fast-food chain mascots (Wendy, Burger King and Ronald McDonald) are materialized as life-sized latex balloons. The fast-food icons sit around a table, outfitted with air pumps, computers and monitors installed inside them. The monitors display live video footage from each of the franchises represented sent via remote computer/camera stations.

Using wireless internet, these remote stations upload video streams to a server and is sent on to the computers located at the art installation. The videos from the restaurants are interpreted as data through custom software. Using MAX-softVNS, the program calculates when people enter the fast-food establishment signaling a microcontroller, which activates an electronic valve, pumping air into the latex fast-food mascot that just consumed another customer.

First one to explode wins!