One design of a series of embroidery necklaces. The necklaces are made of laser cut wood, hand-dyed silk/linen thread, bobbins, and stainless steel buttons. I promise to post more photos soon.

I recently had a couple experimental pendants prototyped. This aluminum, laser etched pendant is comprised of simple horizontal and vertical strokes. When the pendant is spun, the message is revealed. Be bold.

Many thanks to Sarah “Aich” AlFalah for modeling.

© 2011 Cassie Hester

Recently, I’ve been exploring environmental typography. In this study, I gave new life to an overhead projector by removing the bottom of the contraption and placing it on top of an outdoor recessed light. My intention is to install several of these at a location that is spectacularly ground-lit like the VMFA.

Hester_Dig Deep

Hester_Dig Deep

Dig Deep has been installed! If you’re ever in Richmond, Virginia, head on over to 325 North Harrison Street. The typographic installation is on the brick wall between the two main entrances facing the courtyard. In case you’re memory needs refreshing: Dig Deep is an outdoor typographic installation made of birch plywood, galvanized nails, plastic straws, white and pink outdoor sequins, and high gloss white paint. Each nail on the grid contains a sequin and a plastic straw spacer. The nails that create the typography have two sequins, a white sequin facing the front/viewer and a pink sequin facing the board, thus the message is created through the reflected light of the pink sequins. The piece flutters and glints in the wind.

Download my 2011 candidacy review book (5.9 MB) for the culmination of my thoughts from the first year of graduate school.

Typographic study where the form is revealed through spinning/rapid revolutions. These are studies. The final piece would be an installation activated by wind. Want to see the message? Your experience relies on chance…

The affordances of pushing and pulling were explored in this interface targeted directly at the creation of language. Each long strip of the alphabet could be pulled to either the left or the right to highlight one letterform in the simple frame. The interaction is quick and easy, so the interface garnered a lot of attention. I expected the simple construction and presence of letterforms to quickly convey the intended interaction, but I did not expect the interface to be a sort of status update system. The first message created? “KILL ME NOW” — a pretty apt sentiment for the last days of the semester. The next message? “NEED MORE SLEEP” — just a few more days of sleepless nights to go. And two of the following messages  — “REVIEWS OVER” and “VICTORY” — illustrate the sense of relief and triumph shared by the students.

The affordances of pushing and pulling were explored in the creation of a one foot by five feet installation featuring beads strung on neon thread on a lateral grid.

I relied on the tactile nature of the piece to encourage interaction. It was a success. The inhabitants of Pollack quickly began forming simple messages and imagery. However, they also, quite unexpectedly, strummed the strands and manipulated the interface to create sounds/music. I had not anticipated this, though I am not displeased.

The construction of this piece was incredibly time consuming and tedious. Already the interface is showing the wear and tear of interaction as well as the ravages of gravity. Materials will have to be further explored for this piece.

Two sheets of 4 ft by 8 ft birch plywood.
3 coats of high gloss white paint.
500 clear, plastic straws cut.
8,064 pilot holes drilled.
8,064 sequins and nails assembled on the grid.
= One insanely time consuming and monotonous typographic sign/installation. Sign sequins are nailed one inch apart on a grid. Each sequin has a short straw spacer behind it that prevents it from resting directly against the board. The typographic message is created with reflected pink light. The sign is nearly complete. Only a few hundred more white sequins to go…
How am I going to install this thing? And where?

How are we encouraged to interact? A tab instructs us to fold or tear. A wall of lasercut tabs begs to be manipulated.

I installed this piece on the third floor of Pollack on March 8th, around 5 PM. I did not pre-fold/-tear any of the tabs, nor did I leave any instructions with the piece. I thought the initial start of the tab manipulation would be a slow one. I thought many would walk by it and possibly be intrigued, but ultimately feel uncomfortable/confused about the expectations until some brave soul took the plunge and folded and/or tore to begin the process. However, I arrived at Pollack at 9 AM the following day and students were already folding away. Progress was quick and the reception was positive.

On March 12, 2011, the messages of the tab installation include Tyler, Love, the start of Hate, Time, Wow, Fun, a few patterns, and a heart.

I explored the affordances of tearing and folding with the tab installations. Black paper with laser cut tabs laid over neon papers were installed through the simple means of stapling to the bulletin boards in the hallway.

For the rectangular tab installation, I did not leave any instructions or indication of intended interaction. I left its progress up to the intuition of the audience. Not knowing if intuition would be enough, I started the triangular tab installation off by creating the letterform “G” in the first panel.

The rectangular tab interface was being manipulated within six hours of its installation. A few of the tabs were torn but the majority were folded to create images and messages. The triangular tab installation was a bit slower to progress and I believe this was due to the fact that the small triangular tabs were much more difficult to pick up or snag with your fingernail in order to tear and fold. But, despite the difficulty, the triangular tabs were folded to create a great message.