24 Hour Thermal Time Lapse captures the thermal flow of spaces people actively inhabit and present the 24 hour long findings in 2 minute compressions that would otherwise be invisible across both time and temperature.
Joseph Amodei
MFA Video/Media Design in the School of Drama
My project was a process of using the technology of thermal capture and employing it over an entire day to create time lapse observations of spaces full of human activity. I often begin my work with a specific pointed conceptual and political outcome, and here I wanted to disrupt my normal way of working by forefronting a capture process that observed spaces of interaction and showed them in a manner that would not be otherwise visible – through the movement of temperature and through the cycle of an entire day compressed into two minutes. The spaces I captured were a costume production shop, a design studio, KLVN coffee shop, and the space outside of my studio window which is a street on a bus line on the edge of Pittsburgh and Wilkinsburg.
Thermal Capture System at KLVN Coffee:
My Thermal Time Lapse Capture System:
My process developed through the technical hurdles and limitations of discovering how to capture space over 24 hours. I used the FLIR E30bx Thermal Camera in conjunction with the media design software Millumin to stream the footage into a Mac Mini, from there I recorded the output. This meant i needed my setup to be connected to constant power and to be in a fixed position. This limited my work to spaces where I could safely leave such a capture system running undisturbed and in a safe and dry location.
In the end I think these images are somewhat interesting , and are not visible without this machine situation I arranged. When I consider remaining opportunities for this project, I think there could be a more narrow frequency of places that I could record. I also would have loved to figure out how to record outdoor, too. To that end, picking a process/subject that had the risk of being uninteresting was part of my goal for myself and I am happy I took the time to explore thermal, timelapse and the potentially banal.
