Multiple Exposure in Real Time

20 individually exposed 8x10 silver gelatin’s showing the street scape of Chambers Street, as seen from the camera obscura installation. Concept, design, and fabricated by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — 20 individually exposed 8”x10” silver gelatin’s, recreating the multiple exposed view of simultaneously down and across Chambers Street.

MULTIPLE EXPOSURE
IN REAL TIME

2014 // TRIBECA [NYC]

Multiple Exposure in Real Time [MERT] is a multi-lensed camera obscura and darkroom. I was working intensively on two parallel photo-oriented tracks—room-sized camera obscura, and multiple exposure film photography—but it wasn’t until reflecting upon this project that I fully understood what I had done. I had scaled up the camera to the point where I was able to inhabit the multiple overlaid image and to experience what happens inside the camera over a period of time.

At Front Art Space in TriBeCa NYC, I built a camera obscura (a big black box, with a small hole with a lens in front, making it act as a camera. But rather than only having one lens I had three, which via mirrors on the inside all projected to the same surface where they created a multiple exposed image, in real time.

During the two weeks I was working in the camera, I had a sign on the exterior to invite passersby in and experience it. It was marvelous to see the expressions on people’s faces as we played with the framings and talked about why we see different things in these images and what the city is. A simple box with some holes and lenses enabled the audience to stop and spend time contemplating the simple gesture of looking across the street.

I had set up the back of the camera as a darkroom and started to experiment with creating silver gelatin prints inside the camera. Quickly, I realized that I now had access to the one thing I can never get to inside my camera: the photosensitive surface. I started conducting experiments along the lines of Richard Serra’s The Verb List, bending, folding, moving the surface. Besides this, I also experimented with liquid light, a photo emulsion that can be painted onto various substrates to capture images.

The project is quite complex so I have made a film describing it, see below. A special 3min cut of the film was accepted to Archishorts, an Architecture + Design Film Festival in Winnipeg, [Can], and won best analog film.

Street View of the camera obscura installation on Chambers Street. Concept, design, and fabricated by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Street View of the camera obscura installation.

Conceptual sketch of the camera obscura. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Conceptual sketch of the camera obscura

Plan of camera obscura in active position, rolled into Chambers Street. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, and poet Troels steenholdt Heiredal — Plan of camera obscura in active position, rolled into Chambers Street

Section of camera obscura in active position, rolled into Chambers Street. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Section of camera obscura in active position, rolled into Chambers Street

Street view of the camera obscura in active position rolled into the Chambers Street. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Street view of the camera obscura in active position rolled into the Chambers Street.

Juxtaposed exterior and interior view of the position of the three lenses on the camera. Concept, design, and fabrication by Artist, Architect, and Fabricator Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Juxtaposed exterior and interior view of the position of the three lenses on the camera.

Still image from film, exploring the ability to bend the image inside the camera obscura. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, and fabricator, Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Still image from film, exploring the ability to bend the image inside the camera obscura.

Double exposed silver gelatin of Chambers Street facade, created inside the camera obscura. Artwork by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Double exposed silver gelatin of Chambers Street facade, created inside the camera obscura.

Two unique silver gelatins. The exposure was made while moving the paper to follow a pedestrian’s walk across the street, art work made by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Two unique silver gelatins. The exposure was made while moving the paper to follow a pedestrian’s walk across the street.

Three unique multiple exposed silver gelatins, 8”x10”, focusing on building columns across the street from the camera, mixed with the view down the street. Artwork by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Three unique multiple exposed silver gelatins, 8”x10”, focusing on building columns across the street from the camera, mixed with the view down the street.

Unique silver gelatin, the paper was cut and overlapped prior to the exposure. The developed print is returned to its flat state, showing a bent image of the street. Artwork by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Unique silver gelatin, 8x10”, the paper was cut and overlapped prior to the exposure. The developed print is returned to its flat state, showing a bent image of the street.

Two unique silver gelatins, 8”x10” each, exposed together. The paper was bent during the exposure by hand, making the city scape seem liquid. Artwork by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Two unique silver gelatins, 8”x10” each, exposed together. The paper was bent during the exposure by hand, making the city scape seem liquid.

Digital photos of the informal darkroom set up in the back of the camera, where all the silver gelatins were developed. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Digital photos of the informal darkroom set up in the back of the camera, where all the silver gelatins were developed.

Street view of the Multiple Exposure in Real Time camera on Chambers Street, NYC. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Street view of the Multiple Exposure in Real Time camera on Chambers Street, NYC.

Digital photos of details from the camera. The door jamb securing the black-out fabric entrance and the black-out fabric skirt ensured light would not enter from below. Photo also shows the wheel, enabling the camera to move. Artist Troels Heiredal — Digital photos of details from the camera. The door jamb securing the black-out fabric entrance and the black-out fabric skirt ensured light would not enter from below. The second photo also shows the wheel, enabling the camera to be driven in and out of the gallery space.

Digital photo of the mirror that would reflect the lens parallel to the street into the camera. Concept, design, and fabrication, by artist, architect, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Digital photo of the mirror that would reflect the lens parallel to the street into the camera.

Still image from film, showing the translucent screen being unrolled inside the camera obscura. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, and fabricator, Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Still image from film, showing the translucent screen being unrolled inside the camera obscura.

Still image from film, showing a hand pushing the projected image on the screen inside the camera obscura.. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, and fabricator, Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Still image from film, showing a hand pushing the projected image on the screen inside the camera obscura.

Still image from film, showing the white of a truck passing by becoming a temporary screen for the parallel lens to show a person walking down the street. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, and poet, Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Still image from film, showing the white of a truck passing by becoming a temporary screen for the parallel lens to show a person walking down the street.

Still image from film, showing Troels Steenholdt Heiredal lifting the projected image, by liften the screen inside the camera obscura. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, fabricator, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Still image from film, showing Troels Steenholdt Heiredal lifting the projected image, by liften the screen inside the camera obscura.

Still image from film, showing a notebook opened inside the camera obscura, moving it around the space captures different parts of the projection. Concept, design, and fabrication by artist, architect, fabricator, and poet Troels Steenholdt Heiredal — Still image from film, showing a notebook opened inside the camera obscura, moving it around the space captures different parts of the projection.

2014 // TRIBECA [NYC]

MULTIPLE EXPOSURE
IN REAL TIME