How do you define New York City? On September 18th passersby in Tompkins Square Park will be invited to share their answer to this question in words and images. Submitted responses will be projected live after sunset from a giant helium balloon, the Urballoon. The audience can also participate by visiting the urballoon.com website from their mobile device or from an on-site laptop connected to the Internet. The Urballoon is a helium balloon with a video projector and a wireless laptop that projects user-generated content onto public spaces. It floats above its tethers in parks or plazas and displays the video onto the ground, encouraging people to gather around a digital bonfire. It has been previously shown in New York at Eyebeam (2003, 2007) and in City Hall Park as part of the Spectropolis festival (2004). This year, the Urballoon will be part of the Conflux festival occurring in the city from September 17-20th. With the increasing popularity of smartphones and wireless devices, the Urballoon will feature a new website optimized for mobile devices in order to facilitate live participation from people on the street. Content submissions for the video projections are being accepted now and during the event. Visit urballoon.com to submit an image or a text and see it projected in Tompkins Square Park. Urballoon – What is New York? Event type: Participatory outdoor installation, performance, media art Time: Friday September 18th, 7:30pm-10pm Venue: Tompkins Square Park (South plaza), 7th Street between Avenues A & B. New York, NY 10009. Artist: Carlos J. Gómez de LlarenaParticipating artists: Open call for participation Supported by: Conflux Festival | EyebeamAdmission: free Website: www.urballoon.com
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