A Child Was The One That Turned On The Switch
A Child Was The One That Turned On The Switch is an interactive, game-based installation with theatrical elements. With cardboard and other recycled materials, Sunny Allis constructs puppets, kinetic sculptures, animations and cartoons, creating immersive environments that guide the participant through a series of playful realities. A Child Was The One That Turned On The Switch explores theoretical physics, including black holes—a region of space with a gravitational field so intense that no objects or light can escape, the Holographic Principle—which suggests that we emanate from a flat, two-dimensional field, and the Simulation Hypothesis, which proposes that we are living inside of a computer program. Alongside these theories, there is the mind of a child and the world of make believe. These are all ways of investigating where God/The Creator of the universe is located, and how to free ourselves from the society in which we live by using the power of our imaginations.
The Storytelling Machine
The Storytelling Machine is an interactive sculpture for people of all ages. A series of dioramas tells a bilingual children's story, using kinetic elements that kids and adults can move to bring characters and scenic elements to life. The Storytelling Machine was a public art installation at the Annenberg Community Beach House, where Sunny was an Artist-In-Residence. The project was made possible through Santa Monica's Department of Cultural Affairs.
I Was A Landscape In Your Dream
I Was A Landscape In Your Dream is a collaboration between Sunny Allis and artist Daphne Rosenthal. It invites viewers to experience alternative worlds of the present moment, and welcomes them into a land of make believe. Performances of folk lullabies by Molly's band Bear Club were ongoing, encouraging a dreamlike state of experiencing the space. 3D and 2D landscapes of parallel objects were presented, asking viewers to "step into different sizes and scales and see what feels fabulous to you, on you. Embellish and accessorize your body with exaggerated body parts. Play with everyday objects that are non-functional. Exist in 2D and 3D landscapes simultaneously."
Possessing Nothing/Disguised As Monsters
Possessing Nothing/Disguised As Monsters is a roving, pop-up installation of hand-cranked toys and sculptures made out of recycled materials, operating entirely without electricity. It asks the question: If there was a social/environmental collapse, how would we make off-the-grid forms of entertainment? How can we create tactile, transient play spaces out of discarded materials? How can art and play be public, communal endeavors amongst strangers?
I'll Love You Since the Beginning Of Time
I’ll Love You Since the Beginning of Time is a sensorial journey to a tender space between death and rebirth. By taking an instruction manual and entering through a cardboard phone booth, the interactee leaves linear time behind, traveling through a series of stations to explore interconnectivity using the idea of signals sent out into the darkness of space. It poetically and playfully addresses themes from out of body experiences and higher states of consciousness. Singular and shared experiences are inherent in the installation: some elements call for more collective encounters, such as a communal blanket fort where upwards of 15 people can congregate to read hand-make books and comfortably listen to lullabies, while other elements invite more solitary experiences, such as the diorama boxes hanging in the dark that must be viewed with flashlights.
Soundtrack from I'll Love You Since the Beginning of Time:
Books from the installation, I'll Love You Since The Beginning of Time:
