TARA engineering and art portfolio
Make and Mend (2021-2023)
Visitors learn how to sew at this simple and engaging exhibit. Using a rainbow selection of shoelaces, lasercut felt patches and lasercut wood buttons, they can experiment with different stitches and techniques. Instructions are entirely diagram-based to be accessible by removing barriers of reading ability and language.
I developed this exhibit from early concept generation through multiple rounds of prototyping, visitor testing, and material testing. Floor testing greatly impacted material choices and the format of this exhibit. I engineered a final design, modeled it in CAD, and constructed parts of the final exhibit.
What's In A Wall (2021-2023)
At What's In A Wall, visitors explore the systems in home through visual observation, touch, and sound. Framing (studs, insulation, drywall, siding), electrical, plumbing, and HVAC are all highlighted. Sounds filter through the wall, like mouse squeaks, toilets flushing and a running shower. Discarded soda bottles, dropped spare change, drawings slipped into the air register hint at the builders and previous residents in this home. Touching the pipes below the sink reveals one warm and one cold water pipe, and a faint breeze exiting the air register demonstrates a working HVAC system.
I developed this exhibit from start to finish including running brainstorms to generate exhibit ideas, exploring this concept through research, prototyping and visitor testing, and engineering a final design in CAD. I fabricated and assembled the majority of the final exhibit.
Watch Seeds Grow (2021-2023)
Watch Seeds Grow gives visitors the chance to glimpse below the soil as seeds begin to sprout. Four planters are filled with corn (monocot) or squash (dicot) seeds to show each type of seed at two different stages of early growth. Visitors explore with and without the magnifying lens to identify differences between the two types of seeds or the same plant at different stages of growth.
I developed this exhibit from the starting idea through multiple rounds of prototyping with a focus on visitor engagement and exhibit maintenance feasibility. Once I had finalized the exhibit interaction design, I moved onto the engineering and mechanical design of the planters, the enclosure, and the sliding magnifying lens. A teammate and I collaborated on fabrication and assembly of the exhibit.
