Umbrella

In the rush of daily life, people are often overwhelmed by anxiety and pressure, yet rarely stop to ask where it comes from. Umbrella takes the umbrella as a symbol: opening one creates a brief, quiet space of your own, a way to step out of the noise, turn inward, and sense the emotions and pressures that are usually buried.

At NCCU it rained almost every day, and the umbrella became something I could not live without. I began to notice that the small world under it was often where I could relax and collect my thoughts. That everyday experience led me to turn the umbrella into a medium, so visitors could find their own moment of quiet through interaction.

Three projection walls form a U-shaped immersive space that surrounds the viewer. Built in TouchDesigner, the work uses YOLO to detect in real time whether an umbrella is open or closed. This is the main interaction trigger and also drives the sound, sharpening the difference between standing under the umbrella and standing without it.

Arduino sensors detect when visitors touch the walls, switching the logic between images and scenes.

Concept lead: brought together ideas from a team of seven, filtered them for feasibility and creative potential, and set the overall direction.

Project management: planned the production schedule, tracked progress and assigned tasks so each milestone was met.

Space and build: designed the visitor flow and layout, managed cabling, and built the wooden structures of the exhibition space.

TouchDesigner development: built the interaction logic and system integration, including umbrella detection, sensor data processing, and the visual and sound feedback.