Re-Tratos

Camagüey International Video Art Festival in Cuba (April, 2013)

Real-Time Face Tracking and Projection Mapping.

Re-Tratos (Portraying || Dealing With) is an interactive work that establishes a temporary connection between audiences in two contexts, which are divided but also interdependent: Cubans living on the island and Cubans living in Miami.

The interface is a two-way mirror that not only reflects images but also emits light, transforming the spectator into another mirroring surface for video projection. Thus, the faces of two people living in two different places are combined in real-time, creating a third image that is reflected back to the viewer in the mirror.

The technology used in this work is based on a custom-made computer vision application that overlays images from a database of portraits onto a real-time video feed. The application continuously analyzes the facial features of the audience in Camaguey and use the data to overlap images from participants living in Miami. This piece appropriates alternative projection surfaces for moving images, by using the body of the viewers to reflect and retain the video projections.

Some of the portraits from participants in Miami:

Video Station at the Domino’s Park in Little Havana, Miami:

Credits:

Made with OpenFrameworks and ofxFaceTracker.

Development and interaction design:
Dan Wilcox (http://danomatika.com/)
Felipe Castelblanco

With Support from:

The Frank-Ratchye STUDIO for Creative Inquiry at Carnegie Mellon University

The Graduate Student Assembly (GSA), The Provost office and the Dean of Student Affairs at Carnegie Mellon University