Project Hydra: Iterations - IRL + VR
See them both at The Coliseum of Art
I’m excited to share that Project Hydra: Iterations has been selected for The Coliseum of Art, a months-long exhibit hosted in the historic 1916 Coliseum Theatre in downtown Seattle.
I was in the building Tuesday of this week to install - it’s such a cool space! I love getting to be a part of the behind-the-scenes action, getting to see other installations in their half-installed states, pictures being hung on the walls, cords being taped and routed. This is when a thousand micro-decisions are being made… where should the projector be placed? Is that in focus? Which frames belong next to each other? Do we tape the floor so people don’t step on things or will they know not to step there?
And these decisions are happening across the entire exhibit, one artist at a time.
For me, starting with a pile of cables and hardware on the floor, spread out so that I have a clear inventory of what I’m working with, requires a constant mental reminder of where I’m going, what my destination is… what the final layout should look like, the overall feel the installation should evoke.
The mess on the floor can be distracting, rushing against time so that I’m not installing for hours and hours, but giving myself the space to let things come together. I’m realizing that it’s during what I originally considered to be the last stage - taping cables, tidying up cords, cleaning up and packing stray pieces - that I’m letting my head clear a bit to make one last pass.
I almost always make some slight adjustments after this exercise. In this latest installation, I chose to add a collection of prints to the floor. I had considered adding them previously of course, otherwise I wouldn’t have had the prints with me. But I wasn’t certain. Deciding whether to include them was something I needed to feel and make an in-the-moment judgement call on.
Here’s my thinking - the algorithm that drives this digital work was created to drive my pen plotter (a drawing robot) almost eight years ago. These prints (drawings) represent the origin of Project Hydra. They show the (sometimes messy) early thinking that I keep iterating on. With the prints in place, this installation includes a full origin to present (VR expression) of this concept. Full loop.
The final installation
This is how I summarized the final installation:
Project Hydra: Iterations is a multi-piece installation anchored by a projected video loop, the Hydra Series – 7x7: Complete Cycle. The Complete Cycle animates Bézier curves across a fixed grid of rings over nearly 13 minutes, with ambient audio synchronized to each movement of the focal node. The projection is accompanied by wall-mounted digital frames and a Looking Glass holographic display, each presenting different iterations of the Hydra algorithm at smaller scales and alternate configurations. Pen plotter prints, the original output medium for the Hydra Series, are included alongside the digital works. The algorithm is generative and code-based, exploring how bounded randomness applied to simple geometric rules produces forms that feel organic.
Live VR Demos Opening Night (6/26/2026)
Last week I shared that Project Hydra: Iterations (VR) is now available for free in the Meta Horizon Store. This is the VR extension of this work that culminates with you standing beneath a towering version of the 7x7 Hydra grid, at a scale not possible in a physical gallery.
I’ll be demoing the VR experience for the opening on Friday, 6/26/2026. The show runs through August 15, so if you can’t make it out this first time but want to see the VR demo, I expect I’ll be there a few more times giving demos.
Opening Night Details
The Coliseum of Art is open June 26 - August 15, 2026. Always check the event page for the latest information.
Event Site: https://conruartfoundation.org/coliseum-of-art
Location: Corner of Pike & 5th, Seattle
Opening Night Hours: 5 - 8pm