A constellation of an origami boat carries a tree sapling as smaller constellations of animals follow behind. The boat lands in a Louisiana bayou, and the sapling sprouts into a healthy tree. Plants grow around the tree, and wild animals scurry up and around it. The scene fades to black, and the origami boat floats through the sky once again.
This is the animation playing in the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center lobby. Digital Art professor Derick Ostrenko, the director of the project, said it is a symbol of the support cancer patients receive as they undergo their cancer journey.
Ostrenko unveiled his new art installation, Journey to Wellness, at Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center on Feb. 19. Ostrenko worked on the project for three years with assistance from art graduate students Jake Hamill and Sarah Ferguson and the Ann Connelly Fine Art gallery.
He also received help from a visiting Chinese scholar from Wuhan University of Technology, who primarily created the animations.
“[The project] made me think a little bit more about my role within the Baton Rouge community more so than my role in a global and national context,” Ostrenko said. “A lot of times as professors, we’re focused on the global stage. It’s interesting to refocus and think about the local community a little bit more.”
The installation comprises a transparent screen over an LED panel, which plays the animation. It is part of Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center’s efforts to incorporate more art into the facility.
Studies show that art and art therapy help cancer patients feel better, including an analysis of over 1,500 participants performed by the National Institutes of Health. These studies found that art therapy helped cancer patients reduce anxiety, depression and physical pain.
Ostrenko’s interest in digital art began during his childhood, where he spent most of his time in science museums. He said he was fascinated with interactive exhibits, and wanted to make a career in incorporating technology and art.
“The world is so much about technology now,” Ostrenko said. “It’s changing so much of our lives. I grew up with the birth of the internet, and I have always thought that creating art is about what’s happening in the world around us — both on a personal and cultural level.
Ostrenko came to the University seven years ago and now holds joint positions as associate professor of digital art and a member of the cultural computing research group at the Center for Computation and Technology.
In the future, Ostrenko hopes to research quantum computing in order to incorporate this new technology into art forms. He also hopes to incorporate artificial intelligence and machine learning into interactive poetry readings, in which the audience may interact with the poem and reader with their phones.
Journey to Wellness is now open to the public at the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center.
Journey to Wellness plays its digital animation at the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, symbolizing the healing journey of cancer patients.
