The Night of the Museum initiative presented us with a unique challenge: to devise an installation that would link all the participating museums, transforming them into a cohesive network. We responded with our interactive piece, ‘Don’t Leave Me Hanging.’ This installation revives the charm of old-fashioned communication by using a series of interconnected telephones. When a visitor lifts a handset, it triggers another phone in a different museum to ring. As soon as someone on the other end answers, a spontaneous conversation begins between two strangers, bridging distances and creating unexpected connections. This setup not only fosters a sense of community across the museums but also adds a layer of personal interaction to the museum-going experience.
For the ‘Don’t Leave Me Hanging’ installation, I built a robust communication system connecting stationary phones across multiple locations to the main terminal. We designed the phone terminal to be a visually striking, interactive sculpture. The modular design of the terminal elements required me to create a flexible system adaptable to various configurations, ensuring seamless connectivity regardless of the physical setup. My focus was on developing a reliable backend that promoted effortless communication and social interaction between visitors across the installation.
