On/Off Cinema
Digital projector, light switch, exhibition lighting, motor control system, mouse cursor sticker
Site-specific
Hsinchu 241 Art Gallery, Hsinchu, Taiwan, 2021
Hauptplatz 6, Linz, Austria, 2023

Installation view “Full-size Image – On/Off Cinema “, Hsinchu 241 Art Gallery, Hsinchu, Taiwan 2021

In a dark exhibition space, a projector replaces the exhibition lighting, casting a "blank light source" instead of an image and directing it onto a self-operating light switch mounted on the wall. A motorized mechanism repeatedly presses the switch, causing the space to alternate between illumination from the exhibition lights and the projected light. As a result, the switch itself continuously shifts between its physical and image-based states.

By allowing the switch to determine its own state of existence through the interplay of light sources, the work disrupts the traditional hierarchy of image production. Control is shifted from the photographer to the subject, which now decides whether to appear as a tangible object or as an image—challenging the logic of representation and inviting reflection on how visibility is constructed.

Installation view “Full-size Image – On/Off Cinema “, Hsinchu 241 Art Gallery, Hsinchu, Taiwan, 2021

Installation view “Full-size Image – On/Off Cinema “, Hsinchu 241 Art Gallery, Hsinchu, Taiwan, 2021

Installation view “Full-size Image – On/Off Cinema “, Hsinchu 241 Art Gallery, Hsinchu, Taiwan, 2021

At the Ars Electronica Festival, the installation was adapted to fit a venue that retains its original architectural features, including protruding columns, arched windows, and existing light switches. A standard Taiwanese-manufactured light switch was installed in dialogue with these different-context elements. Its presence introduced a reference to overlapping spatial systems—those of virtual imagery and physical architecture, as well as Taiwanese and European construction logics. This overlap subtly shifted spatial recognition and allowed the installation to be integrated into the building’s structural environment.

Installation view “Full-size Image – On/Off Cinema “, Ars Electronica Festival, Linz, Austria, 2023

Installation view “Full-size Image – On/Off Cinema “, Ars Electronica Festival, Linz, Austria, 2023

Installation view “Full-size Image – On/Off Cinema “, Ars Electronica Festival, Linz, Austria, 2023

Installation view “Full-size Image – On/Off Cinema “, Ars Electronica Festival, Linz, Austria, 2023

Full-size Image – On/Off Cinema, 2023 │ the interplay of illumination between the projector and the exhibition lights

Full-size Image – On/Off Cinema, 2023 │ a wall extends from an existing column, retaining original elements such as trim and electrical outlets on the column

HO KUN-HAN

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