Push Me! Interfacing With Strangers

Nowadays people are linked through several devices like telephones and computers. And as a result, we are confined emotionally and psychologically by these current technologies. Physically bounded spaces and real objects have become less significant as data is able to flow through buildings, cities and greater distances easily. It is no wonder that this has a direct affect on who we contact and what one experiences in the world around them. Push Me is a project I have developed as a response to our social media age and it’s current technologies, specifically the interface layer we call the Internet.

In contrast to these technologies, Push Me is a modular and tactile display, offering a new way of communication. Push Me enables users to connect through art in different locations, and therefore re-value somehow the significance of time and space in an esthetic way.

So how does it work? The concept is simple: two identical formations of illuminating push button tiles are set up on two different locations. Users are able to create colorful patterns by simply pushing the buttons. Every time a button is pushed, the color changes and a feedback sound is generated. Linked through the internet, the colors change immediately in other locations, creating simultaneously flashing images. Every time two users press the same button simultaneously, a white ripple effect is spread briefly over the display. My hope is that this enriches the experience of being in direct contact with someone on the other side.

“Push me!” is a project initiated by Paul Klotz, founder of LED-Art. LED-Art is a light studio in the Netherlands focussing on interactive light art applications and designs for both interior and exterior architecture. See also www.push-me.nl and www.led-art.nl