Maya Ciarrocchi visited Union and held a lunch discussion and as a design workshop on the subject of projection mapping this past Monday, May 21. Ciarrocchi is, most recently, the artist in charge of projections for the Tony-nominated Broadway production of “The Band’s Visit.”
Projection mapping is an art form in which images and video are projected onto objects or screens. It is used in theater, primarily, to create dynamic set pieces, moving backgrounds and an overall more immersive environment. Ciarrocchi’s design workshop focused first on the history of projections, then on programs that make mapping easier today.
Arielle Singer ’18 organized the event. “Almost every show you see on Broadway now incorporates projection art and mapping,” she said. “This gives scenic designers so much more creativity because they are no longer limited by merely three of four walls. Instead, they have unlimited dimensions.” Singer engaged with projection mapping for her senior thesis, “Echoes,” which is currently being exhibited in the Crowell and West Galleries in the Feigenbaum Center for Visual Arts.
Ciarrocchi elaborated that mapping projections to set pieces helps deepen the perspective of the audience and immerse them in the story.
She will also be doing the projection mapping work for the tour of “The Band’s Visit.” Unfortunately, the mapping has to be redone at each new theater in the tour.
As explained in the workshop, the projector location is exact. If it is moved, the mapping has to be redone. This is the result of mapping a two-dimensional projected image into a set of 3D objects.
However, given quality software, good projectors and enough time, the projections will look clean no matter what theater they’re in.
Her recent project, “Gender/ Power,” ventures off the fixed narratve of gender, focusing on addressing social justice issues concerning sex and power and noticing how everyone is affected, regardless of their identity.
The New York City-based artist focuses on underrepresented minority communities, including trans and gender non-conforming individuals as well as formerly ultra-Orthodox Jews.
Minerva Central and the Union College Theater Department hope to attract more artists like Ciarrocchi to expose the campus community to the many different mediums of art that exist in the world.
You can find more information about Ciarrocchi’s art by visiting her website, www.mayaciarrocchi.com