For those living in a high-rise, have you ever wondered what was going on behind the closed blinds of your neighbor’s home directly across from you?

Caretaker is a concept project that explores just that. It consists of a custom-made switch board with which you can control the lights of the flats opposite of yours, providing active entertainment that stimulates your senses better than passive media consumption.

If you want one of your own, simply take a picture of the building that you see from your window and Caretaker will design a laser-cut scale wooden model of it for your use. The prototype runs on an Arduino and is battery-powered, allowing you to move it around freely. (It even makes for a perfect interactive night light!)

The project is the work of Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest (MOME) student, Máté Varga, in collaboration with Barbara Sterk, Miklos Erhardt, Adam Polhodzik, and FabLab Budapest.

In a recent article, Varga told Digital Trends:

“The concept comes from a personal experience of moving into the flat where I’m living now for my studies. I felt like I was being observed by other people living in the opposite building. This happened at night, when I was turning on the lights in my room, and felt like I was attracting the eyes of other people who could watch me. I’ve been living here for two years now, so I’m used to it, but I wanted to represent that initial feeling.”

You can see it in action below!

Categories:ArduinoExhibitionFeatured

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