Center Flee + c4ss4ndr4

Center Flee + c4ss4ndr4

Center Flee Smart Poi are interactive performance tools with networked accessories. Sensor based, the in-poi LEDs change according to the velocity of the spin, networked hat and dress complete the look.

What inspired you to make this project?:
Cassandra started fire spinning on the Brooklyn Waterfront in 2002. She started spinning staff and then poi a few months later. She quickly became on of the best poi spinners in New York performing at clubs such as Webster Hall and events such as Art For Life in Montack. A natural teacher, she taught a poi spinning workshop for three years after being granted funds from the Black Rock Arts Foundation.

At the same time she was learning to spin fire she began experimenting with el wire props and various non-fire toys. Center Flee was initially a computer interface to control music or video. She wanted to use the motion of fire spinning as a computer controller. Two accelerometers and a micro controller sent midi to a computer and were used to play music, video or draw lines on screen.

The first version of Center Flee was showcased at the Festival of the Falling in 2003 and Dumbo Arts Festival in 2003. In the fall of 2003 she started at ITP and didn’t work on them again until Maker Faire 2012. Then she dusted off a few old projects as potential Maker Faire entries and was delighted they still worked, but unimpressed with the clunky wires to the computer. She became determined to refine the design and update the project, make them wireless and add LEDs.

In 2013 she completed Center Flee 2, two Arduinos with accelerometers, LEDs and XBees, each of the two poi feeding information into the computer wirelessly. What started out as an LED debug, became the most fun and rewarding aspect of the project. The RGB LEDs and the accelerometer made some pretty interesting patterns. Something she anticipated in the first version of Center Flee, but wasn’t able to visualize until ten years later. She has since added both a hat and dress, also networked, to increase the impact of the poi.

Project Website