The Oracle, an immersive living wax works, transformed The Brick, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, into an exhibition hall where artifacts and a series of live dioramas told the story of Iris Atalanta Lee. A historical figure from the first British Industrial Revolution, Lee was beheaded by the government for inciting a Luddite riot against the automation of stocking factories. After her publicly displayed head was stolen it traveled the world, purportedly sharing secrets from beyond the grave. Visitors were asked to determine for themselves whether this historic and Promethean oracle foretells the future.
Audiences were invited to engage in Iris’s life story through video, listening stations, interactive media displays, historic artifacts, and interactive, performed dioramas that looped continuously throughout the event. The Operating Theater is known for an inimitable phantasmagoric style, an astounding eye for detail, and a mischievous sense of humor and The Oracle brought to life an incredible world that went beyond ordinary science-fiction or fantasy to forecast an uncanny and incomparable prophecy of the future.
The Oracle was devised by a talented team of interdisciplinary artists: story and curation by Jason Schuler; managing director: Dori Ann Scagnelli; produced by Sandra Garner, Lingua Franca Arts; performances by Kourtney Rutherford, Ben Becher, Alessandro Magania, Estelle Lee, Christine Holt, and Ariel Whitfield; live dioramas written by Alison Folland, Eleanor Hutchins, Jennifer McKenna, Jason Schuler and Jon Leon Torn; artifacts & interactive installations created by Brittany Loesch, Ken Nintzel, Eva Peskin, Jason Schuler and Eva Von Schweinitz; videography, editing, & effects by Keith Chandler Jr.; exhibit design by Brittany Loesch; costumes by Jennifer Paar; technical advisors: Mike Taylor and Dr. Stelios Sidiroglou-Doukos. Poster Design by Jason Schuler.
This is the commercial that we made for a successful Kickstarter campaign. Performances by Jason Schuler and Kourtney Rutherford. Videography, editing and visual effects by Keith Chandler.
A video presented within the exhibit. It is a dramatization of Iris Lee’s encounter with Emperor Hirohito. Performances by Estelle Lee and Kourtney Rutherford. Written by Eleanor Hutchins, Directed by Jason Schuler. Videography, editing and visual effects by Keith Chandler.