Fifteenth International Conference on The Inclusive Museum

Abstract

Web Model Dot Space is a suspended, bell-like dome that graphically represents the interior of an existing Detroit church as a floating, immersive, performative venue. Viewers become active participants in this work as they enter the overhanging structure and become enveloped by its phenomenal nature. The environment incorporates looping tracks composed by musical luminary Waajeed. Entitled “Worship Tones,” the music is derived from legacies and experiences within the Black Church and therefore both draws upon and inspires certain religious themes. The mash-up of musical scores within represented, existing architectures is meant to stoke a deeper and more critical engagement of both elements. Web Model Dot Space becomes an entry point, or portal, to critical dialogue around how existing spaces can facilitate visionary use. Our everyday built environment is filled with static, ancient architectures and institutions that symbolize a kind of permanence. Jones’ architectures are forward-thinking in how they reimagine these familiar spaces in unfamiliar, sensory ways. The viewer steps inside this shift in place; an experience that prompts consideration of how inclusive these sites have historically been in terms of diversity of people, methodologies, and thinking.