The vision of Cambridge Regional College’s ‘Get A Word In’ project evolved out of a need for students to have a communication tool where they could voice their opinions, messages and emotions.
However, complete freedom of speech was not considered an option and it was agreed that an element of censorship must be designed into the running of the artwork.
The envisaged system was required to allow students to upload messages in 3 different ways; by inputting ‘words’; searching and selecting from a database of ‘phrases’; or searching and selecting from a database of ‘icons’.
The project called for a large roof-suspended pixel screen display on which messages uploaded by students via a touch-screen interface could be scrolled.
To apply a measure of control over what is displayed, activation of the input screen would only be granted after authenticating the user by swiping a student card through a barcode reader. The system was also required to log the student’s activities and monitor what has been uploaded. Additionally, a remote administrator was required to have the ability to update the ‘words’, ‘phrases’ and ‘icons’ that the students had selected, and to view a record sheet of what has been uploaded and by whom.
Blueberry was asked to design all the software required for the project, including the touch-screen interface, an admin interface accessible via webserver, and a control system for the pixel display screen.
“Jason Bruges Studio has thoroughly enjoyed working with Blueberry Consultants on the ‘get a word in’ artwork. Throughout the course of the commission, Blueberry Consultants were highly adaptive to the needs of the project. Blueberry Consultant’s holistic approach helped to ensure the overall success of the artwork.”
Miriam Sleeman - Project manager for Jason Bruges Studio