Last Friday, a small group of Monmouth students stepped away from the buzz of campus noise into a basement full of light, sound, and sensory overload. The trip, co-sponsored by HawkInteractive and the Art Club, brought students to ARTECHOUSE, a high-concept digital art space neatly tucked in an old boiler room underneath Chelsea Market, New York City. The day spanned from an afternoon of city exploration, inspiration, and a little wandering.
An immersive exhibit titled ‘Submerge Project’ transformed walls and floors into living storyboards using projection mapping, motion graphics, and ambient sound. Some pieces told a story, some a feeling, all an experience. The space moved between large-scale abstract sequences, surreal landscapes, and interactive moments that placed students inside the art. You didn’t just look at the visuals, you were inside them.
“I really enjoyed how the moving images were projected all over the walls and the floor,” said Jefferson Gonzalez, a senior communication major and president of HawkInteractive. “It really felt like you were actually there.”
The trip itself started with a simple conversation. HawkInteractive had already been planning a spring semester trip when Jefferson Gonzales connected with Art Club president Mia Ossandon, who was organizing something similar. The clubs joined forces, booking the same shuttle, and opened it up to the student body. Most attendees opted to stick to the itinerary for a side tour of the Whitney Museum, already en route. While others, including myself, spent time walking the High Line, an old central railway turned art-filled scenic trail near the Hudson River, scoping out local pizza joints, and soaking in the Chelsea atmosphere before regrouping at the main event.
While unconventional compared to a traditional art museum, ARTECHOUSE aligns almost too perfectly with HawkInteractive’s goals. “Our main emphasis is experimenting, and experimenting with new technologies,” said Gonzalez. “This is definitely one way projections can be used. We had a recent event with projection mapping, so it ties in neatly with that. There’s more than you think you can definitely think outside the box.”
Associate Professor Dickie Cox, faculty advisor for HawkInteractive, emphasized just how important this kind of experience is for students. “It is incredibly difficult to describe the phenomena of immersive video remapping… without embedding one’s own body in such a space,” he said. “Witnessing this kind of media firsthand is transformative… it brings a new lens to bear in the design process students are learning.”
The sentiment echoed strongly across the group. For senior business major, Michael Moscoso, who had never been to a digital museum, the exhibit flipped his expectations. “My thoughts on digital art used to be, like, drawing on an iPad or something,” he said. “But seeing the short films helped me realize digital art is an experience. It can really immerse you.”
In addition to the awe-inspiring main exhibit, the space featured interactive installations developed by NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program. Some used motion sensors, others responded to voice or proximity. One shared trait: an experience designed to be touched, felt, and explored.
For Cox, watching students engage with these tools was a highlight. “The students were inspired and said we should make projects like these… what they did not realize was that I had modeled several of the Communication Department’s courses and equipment purchases around concepts I learned through my previous work with ITP…” he said. “So I was delighted to see that projects and technologies that inspire me at my core are now inspiring Monmouth students.”
And that’s kind of the beauty of the trip. It wasn’t just a club outing or quick city escape. In many ways, it was a look at where the media is headed, and students can take part in building such an experience. In a few hours, we experienced art in motion, tech made tangible, and stories told across every surface.
“I hope these kinds of experiences drive students to be curious and to go searching for new opportunities to see what is happening creatively in emerging media and design spaces.” Cox said. “I hope the work of others inspires their own work.”
As someone who spent too long staring at a single shifting pattern projected on the floor, I’d say it worked.
