Home | Podcast | Embracing unpredictability and physical process in immersive art with Georgie Friedman

Embracing unpredictability and physical process in immersive art with Georgie Friedman

In this podcast, discover how physical prototyping, water systems, and shifting sound and light bring Georgie Friedman’s installations to life.

In this interview, Georgie Friedman explores the creative process behind Dissolution, an immersive installation blending spatial sound, projection-mapped video and dripping water to evoke a dark, cave-like stillness. The work was installed at Gallery A2, part of Artisans Asylum, a collaborative makerspace in Boston.

Georgie is a Boston-based interdisciplinary media artist and educator. Her background in film, sculpture and digital media informs a practice rooted in physical experimentation, environmental phenomena and spatial design.

Listen to this podcast to learn about:

Why physical prototyping is essential for immersive media work
Creating installations that incorporate live water
How projection mapping changes when your surfaces sway, drip and shift

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Chapters

(00:00:00) Introduction to the Dissolution
(00:00:33) Podcast introduction and acknowledgements
(00:01:14) Interview with Georgie Friedman begins
(00:01:35) Exploring the installation Dissolution
(00:03:06) Concept and inspiration behind the piece
(00:05:46) Technical aspects and challenges
(00:09:42) Projection mapping and unexpected outcomes
(00:16:24) Reflections and future projects
(00:17:42) Advice for aspiring artists and conclusion

About Georgie Friedman

Georgie Friedman is a Boston-based interdisciplinary media artist whose immersive installations explore psychological and societal relationships to natural phenomena. Her work integrates large-scale video projection, sculptural forms, spatial sound and physical elements like water to create contemplative, sensory-rich environments. Drawing on site-based research and footage, she reflects on themes of climate, transformation and human fragility. Georgie holds an MFA from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University, where she currently teaches. Her projects have been exhibited internationally and commissioned for public spaces

Takeaways from this interview with Georgie Friedman

In this episode, Georgie Friedman discusses the making of Dissolution, a sculptural video installation using projected light, sound and water systems to create a slow, cave-like atmosphere.

Working with unpredictable materials

“I intentionally made it like each cone has dripping at different rates, and now, you know, I chose that. But people started talking to me a lot about time, you know, like at first, like in the dark space, there was kind of no sense of time. You could get lost in there, but you would have these like different layers of time.”

Georgie describes learning to work with water not as a controlled element, but as an active, shifting part of the installation. Drips caused light to scatter, reflections to move and the sculptures to subtly shift. What began as a challenge became central to the work’s mood and meaning.

Composing spaces

“I always do, as I say, like, all physical lockdown first, like the sculptures where they're going to be, the projectors, all lockdown, so all physical stuff is done. And then I'll plug my computer into whichever projector for the pieces. Do the masking. Sometimes I'll use Med Map, or sometimes I'll actually just use After Effects, depending on what the project is, and then assemble my video tracks under that.”

Georgie’s approach blends projected video, physical materials and sound to create an environment that feels alive but subtle, more like weather than narrative. Her intention isn’t to tell a story, but to guide how people feel in space.

Creating a space for slowness

“I was definitely thinking about making, like, a slowing-down place, like where the hectic world and we could kind of go in and have a very kind of quiet and meditative space and that kind of slowing down of time, but not in these more complicated ways. People were talking about it, and I thought it was lovely.”

The installation is structured to change at a glacial pace. Drips fall irregularly, light pulses softly and sound is spacious and layered. This slowness encourages a bodily shift in the viewer, creating an inward, contemplative focus.

Projection mapping in motion

“But for me, the spill lines weren't my favorite, but it was a clear, like, technical choice that I made. But what was fun is that actually most viewers really liked them, and they kept having all these different associations that came up from it.”

Unlike many projection setups that rely on rigid precision, Dissolution embraced movement. Lightweight sculptural forms swayed as people passed through, and the projection moved with them. Instead of correcting for spill, Georgie integrated it, adding an ambient softness and a feeling of motion that aligned with the work’s themes.

Prototyping and testing

“After doing some tests like the miniatures, I'll make full-size tests to kind of see how the actual size and shape like feel like body and relationship to them. So I always do full-size tests before going forward too.”

To develop Dissolution, Georgie built a cardboard scale model of the gallery in her studio. She projected video onto scale models of the sculptures, then lifesize test sculptures, to see how video and movement interacted on the forms. For her, prototyping wasn't about miniatures or diagrams; it was about feeling how the space worked with the body.

Advice

“I would say, test, test, test. Like, you know, do some setups and see, like, you need to see and to kind of test it on yourself. See if you feel it. Like if you do something and if you feel nothing, nobody else is going to feel anything.”

Links from this podcast with Georgie Friedman

Edited transcript of this interview with Georgie Friedman

How do you prototype immersive installations using physical models?

Robin Petterd: What’s it's like to experience Dissolution?

Georgie Friedman: People come into a dark room at Gallery A2, part of Artisans Asylum, a collaborative makerspace in Boston. There are eight hanging inverted cones, kind of truncated shapes. Three of them drip water, and there are bases below to collect it. You hear the real sound of dripping water, but I also created a full spatial sound system. The audio moves through the room, so the sound really expands the space beyond the 23 by 28-foot gallery.

Robin Petterd: I’m curious about the dripping sound, was that amplified or just the natural sound of water?

Georgie Friedman: It’s all prerecorded. The real drips aren’t amplified. I recorded a range of dripping sounds and used spatial sound programming to control how close or far away they seem. And then, on the cones, I projected video of different substances slowly dripping or sliding down the forms. They all move at different rates. There’s this tension, will the drip make it all the way down? Sometimes the visuals align with the actual water drips, even though they aren’t directly synced. That accidental alignment was a fun discovery.

Robin Petterd: That layering is really nice. Where did the idea for this piece come from?

Georgie Friedman: It grew out of several threads. Personally and professionally, things were shifting. In the US, the political and social climate felt like things were falling apart. And then, in winter, I’d see massive icicles forming. That made me think about how liquids, through temperature or chemistry, can build or dissolve materials. I was also thinking about tree sap turning into amber. These transformations became metaphors for what I was experiencing.

How can artists safely integrate real water into an installation?

Robin Petterd: Water’s fascinating, it exists in different states and constantly changes. You’ve worked with water in your visuals before. Was this the first time using real water?

Georgie Friedman: Yes. I’ve used imagery of water before, but this was the first time incorporating it as a live element in physical space.

Robin Petterd: How did that shift affect your approach?

Georgie Friedman: It made the piece feel more grounded in the present. The unpredictability of water, how it slows or stops, added a kind of liveness. It’s still fluctuating. I often find that ideas from one project influence future work, even if I can’t predict how. I’m interested to see what this opens up next.

Robin Petterd: You’ve been deinstalling the show this week, did anything come up during that process that pointed to a next step?

Georgie Friedman: Not specifically, but I always sit in the space on the last day and take notes, what worked, what felt interesting. That sense of slow anticipation from watching the drips and the calming soundscape really stood out. I’d like to explore that further.

What’s the best way to do projection mapping on swaying or moving sculptures?

Robin Petterd: What was the process of making the piece?

Georgie Friedman: I started with physical models of the gallery and sculptures. Then I finalised sizes and structures, filmed different substances to get varying drip speeds and viscosities, recorded audio, tested the water system, built bases, and ran tubing. Then came the projection setup. I used ten projectors, my most to date, and had to map content to 16 surfaces. As the sculptures shifted slightly, I had to remap projections too. Lots of troubleshooting.

Robin Petterd: Was your initial model physical?

Georgie Friedman: Yes. I used a 1:24 scale, cardboard, miniature figures. I like to move things around physically. I also projected onto the model to get a sense of how it might look. I always make full-size tests too, so I can understand how the sculpture relates to the body.

Robin Petterd: Did you have standard sizes for the cones?

Georgie Friedman: I figured out ideal diameters in the studio, between 8 and 16 inches. Heights ranged from over 7 feet to 2 feet. Even if cones had the same diameter, their lengths varied. The tallest needed to hang at about 8 feet off the ground.

Robin Petterd: Did you do the projection mapping on site?

Georgie Friedman: Yes, all on site. I came in with my footage, having tested some favourites in my studio. But final decisions were made in the gallery.

Robin Petterd: That’s something many media artists don’t tell galleries,we turn their space into a working studio.

Georgie Friedman: Definitely. For Hurricane Loss, I had to build a 14-foot-wide, 12-foot-tall spinning sculpture in the gallery because my studio was too small.

Robin Petterd: Can you walk me through your projection mapping setup?

Georgie Friedman: First, I lock down all physical elements, sculptures and projectors. Then I connect my computer and start masking. Sometimes I use MadMapper, sometimes After Effects. Then I build the video tracks to match.

Robin Petterd: Were there unexpected things that came up?

Georgie Friedman: Yes. Normally I rear-project so you can see the piece from both sides. But with these solid cones, I had to project on both sides. They also swayed slightly, which made tight projection mapping tricky. I chose to allow a bit of spill to ensure full coverage, which created light outlines.

Initially, I didn’t love the spill. But viewers responded really positively, they saw silhouettes, shadow cones, cave wall cracks. Some said it doubled the cones. It became this beautiful, unplanned layer of the piece.

How does spatial sound enhance the experience of a media installation?

Robin Petterd: That’s a great outcome from a technical limitation. And the unpredictability of analog materials, water, motion, brings in another layer.

Georgie Friedman: Definitely. I also varied the drip speeds intentionally. Viewers started talking about time, the lack of it in the dark space, or how the layers of motion suggested different temporalities. It wasn’t something I planned, but it was a lovely takeaway.

Robin Petterd: So that wasn't originally a conceptual focus?

Georgie Friedman: I wanted to create a place that slowed people down, quiet, meditative. But the deeper associations with time emerged from how people experienced it. That was a beautiful surprise.

Robin Petterd: It’s nice when a piece grows organically like that.

Georgie Friedman: Yes. A friend said the slight movement of the cones made it feel like the room was breathing. I wasn’t aiming for that, but it was a lovely interpretation.

What techniques help create a meditative or slow experience in immersive art?

Robin Petterd: Let’s circle back. What did you learn from making this piece?

Georgie Friedman: That the slow visuals and layered audio really created the slowing-down effect I hoped for. After all the technical work, sitting in the installation as a viewer confirmed that. I kept notes, moments like watching a drip slide down evoke the same fascination as rain on a window.

Robin Petterd: It's often a messy phase when you're just out of the space. What are you working on next?

Georgie Friedman: I’m still documenting this piece and the one before it, documentation becomes the work. This one is hard to capture because of the scale and space. I also have an upcoming group show from August to October about art, science, and the ocean, at the Rocky Neck Art Colony Cultural Center in Gloucester. I’ll be doing a site-specific interior projection there, and giving a talk with the Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute. Then maybe a research or filming trip… possibly to Oceania.

Robin Petterd: I’ll help you brainstorm that trip.

Georgie Friedman: That’d be amazing.

Robin Petterd: Final question, what’s your best advice for artists building sensory installations?

Georgie Friedman: Test, test, test. Try things out, see if you feel something. If it doesn’t work for you, it won’t for others. Ideas can look great in a sketchbook and fall flat in reality. I always test at full scale when possible, even hanging cardboard in a doorway to check height and sightlines.

Also, be clear with the gallery about what you need, especially if you’re building onsite. Clarify who provides what.

Robin Petterd: So if the work is about sensory experience, make the prototyping process physical too.

Georgie Friedman: Yes, test, revise, test again. A student once asked me about failure, and I realised I don’t really think that way. If something doesn’t work, it’s just part of the process of figuring it out. You keep testing until it does.