MUSEUM MENACE

   

Client:
The Beano @ Common Works
Year:
2021
My Roles:
Coding, Concept, 3D Animation, Electronics

DESCRIPTION

Beano: The Art of Breaking the Rules was an exhibition celebrating the history of The Beano comic. We were commissioned to create an interactive game that allowed visitors to channel their inner Dennis the Menace and destroy precious works of art by launching fruit and vegetables from a giant slingshot.

My roles involved designing and fabricating the custom controller, which was built to resemble Dennis' iconic slingshot. I used a CNC to cut the initial silhouette of the slingshot out of solid oak. I machined it in two halves with a pocket inside to house the electronics. I then routed the final shape before sanding, finishing and wiring the finial controller (twice actually, so we had a spare).

It allowed players to aim and control the game through physical movement, using technology similar to that found in motion-controlled game controllers. I also programmed the game and made the 3D animations used throughout the experience, creating the artworks, projectiles and destruction sequences seen on screen.

The result was a playful physical-digital installation that combined custom hardware, creative coding and real-time interaction. Visitors could bombard famous artworks with tomatoes and other projectiles before ultimately unleashing larger vegetables to spectacularly destroy the piece. The exhibition ran for four months at Somerset House in London.

sam@samtripp.com
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