21 Obstacles was an interactive game projected on the Promenade des Artistes in Montreal.
Created by Daily tous les jours (the same studio that created McLarena,) 21 invited passersby to play the game using their mobile phones to control a ball through obstacles. The obstacles were controlled by a second installation – 21 Swings – which was composed of a series of swings that anyone could ride on. Each swing had the additional component of being tied to a single piano key, so multiple swingers could create an interactive musical number.
The entire installation embodies Colangelo’s vision of massive media not only due to scale, but because of the layered interactions in a public space. The projection made the building performative outside of its mundane existence as an office building. The dueling installations also created a fun, competitive relationship between strangers on phones vs. swings that made public participation in the urban environment inviting.