Breathe On Me is an installation/internet work consisting of a three-walled space with a number of hybrid fan/webcam devices affixed to the walls. The fan/webcam devices are modified netcams such that Internet users can control the direction of the fan from the remote webcam view combined with pan and tilt controls. Internet users can choose one of the devices in the space, log onto the “FanCam”, visually locate visitors in the physical space and then turn on the fan and "breathe" towards the person. Visitors in the physical space are invited to enter a space where they will be remotely seen and will not know who is telepresent. Once seen by internet participants, they will receive an offer of fan “breath’ as a fundamental form of communication. Visitors who enter the space are asking to receive a telepresent stranger’s glance and touch in the form of wind. Internet users reach out to physical visitors in the simple offer of moving air.

This installation proposes to test and explore questions of the possibilities and limits of telepresence. It hopes to redirect the surveillance motive of webcams into a tangible situation of giving and receiving. It explorers the boundary between technological ephemerality and corporeal presence. It reconfigures the increasingly cheap technologies of the netcam and the hand-held fan into alternative world-net transmission vehicles for a gestural meeting space.

Technologies:

The base technology of the installation is the Breathe On Me Touch You (BOMTY) Net FanCam. Operating seamlessly in conjunction with Touch You robo-controller software, internet visitors from anywhere in the world can log on to one of the FanCams and contact physical installation visitors. Once logged on the ephemeral net visitor visually finds and tracks a nearby corporeal visitor. They can then activate the fan as a gesture of breath and an offering of communication. Physical visitors sense the interest of remote internet participants by the motion and activation of the FanCams. They can then acknowledge and accept the remote gesture by looking into the cam and receiving the gentle fan breath.

The BOMTY 700PT Net FanCam is a custom modified Hawking HNC700PT Remote-Motion CCD Network Camera with a hand-held fan mounted to the pan/tilt camera. When programmed, the control of the camera and fan are accessible to network users anywhere. Touch You robo-controller software is a modified version of the Hawking interface to facilitate optimum use of the FanCam.

The Breath On Me installation space is approximately 10' x 12' though dimensions can be variable. Five Fancams are installed on the walls and wiring is configured on the outside of the freestanding walls. The container space is highly scaleable and adaptable to different workable environments. In situations where space is highly limited, on BOMTY 700PT Net FanCam can establish the installation concept.

Equipment and Specifications:

•  5(+) BOMTY 700PT Net FanCams (modified Hawking HNC700PT Remote-Motion
   CCD Network Camera created and supplied by the artist)
•  Local Ethernet Network 6+ port hub/router with broadband access
•  Permission to open router ports for FTP,HTTP, and Streaming Channels for
   control and video*
•  Ethernet Cable various sizes to connect FanCam devices to hub and internet
•  Electrical extension cords or wiring to connect five 3 volt DC transformers
   to power fans
•  10” x 12” three-wall space (variable) painted off-white
•  Lighting, medium level

*FanCams need to be accessible to anyone in the public domain of the internet. They function well with a DHCP environment. Each will have a unique web IP address as well as its own router ports for streaming video and control.