If you find yourself on the first floor of Atkinson Hall anytime before June 10, tread lightly. Visiting professor Carlos Trilnick has constructed an indoor art exhibit ‘mdash; called the Anti-Personnel Mines Project, part of the gallery@calit2 ‘mdash; to raise awareness about the malicious use of landmines to kill enemy soldiers instead of targeting vehicles.
To simulate a landmine, the interactive exhibit includes a series of sensors hidden beneath a bed of Astroturf. Each time someone steps on a sensor he or she detonates an explosion composed of sound effects and images including maps, statistics and phrases projected onto a wall. The sensitivity of each sensor varies from moment to moment so that the explosions remain as unpredictable as actual landmines.
Trilnick hopes the exhibit will promote dialogue and encourage countries including the U.S. to sign the Ottawa Treaty, which bans the production and use of anti-personnel mines.