Creating an Immersive Virtual Installation Experience for Animal Rights
How might an interactive installation raise awareness about different forms of dog abuse?
This project is an interactive installation that allows viewers to virtually experience and learn about different forms of dog abuse. The goal is to promote empathy and raise awareness by encouraging viewers to understand the impact of abuse on dogs and animals more broadly.
The experience focuses on three common forms of abuse: puppy mill confinement, violent physical abuse, and starvation. The installation begins with a calm and happy environment displayed on the screen. As each dog figure placed in front of the screen undergoes a corresponding form of abuse, the environment transforms into a darker scene accompanied by brief informational text that explains the specific type of abuse.
Presenting Information About Different Forms of Dog Abuse
What information is communicated through the visual scenes?
The installation communicates information through a sequence of illustrated environments that visually represent different conditions experienced by dogs. Each scene pairs a narrative illustration with short explanatory text to help viewers understand the reality of each form of abuse.
Default Environment
Puppy Mill Caging
Violent Abuse
Starvation
Designing the Interactive Installation Experience
How does the installation respond to user interaction?
The installation is designed to respond to the physical dog figures placed in front of the screen. Each figure represents a different scenario, and when activated, the screen transitions to the corresponding visual scene and information.
Puppy Mill Caging
When the dog is put inside the cage, the photocell sensor attatched to the bottom of the cage will detect less light, which represents caging.
Violent Abuse
When the dog is hit on the head, the button inside is pressed to represent hitting, and when it is patted on the back, the photocell sensor detects less light.
Starvation
When the apple is taken out of the bowl, the photocell sensor attached to the bottom of the bowl will detect more light, which represents the bowl being empty.