‘As Long as the Server Runs’
2023, HTML, CSS, JavaScript
As long as the server runs is a multimedia installation that examines how personal data circulates, persists, or disappears once it enters networked systems. The project uses distributed QR codes, web forms, and real-time installation feedback to test what happens when people are asked to share intimate responses without knowing where that information goes or who receives it.
I printed and distributed over one hundred QR-coded cards to participants across multiple cities. Each card prompted them to place the sticker in a location they felt needed a voice, often outside institutional spaces. Scanning the code led to a web-based form that asked a series of personal questions. Participants submitted responses without receiving confirmation of where the data would be stored or how it would be used.
The project intentionally withholds feedback. Participants are told only that their response has been “sent somewhere.” This lack of transparency mirrors the everyday conditions of data collection, where individuals contribute emotional or personal information without meaningful knowledge of its destination, longevity, or impact.
In the physical installation, responses were projected in real time, creating a temporary sense of visibility and presence. Once the installation was dismantled, that feedback loop disappeared, leaving contributors without access to their own data or responses. Additional screens included a motion-tracking script that followed visitors with the phrase “don’t leave me,” and a generative text loop that rendered the project title illegible through repetition.
This project was hosted on Glitch, a platform that has since discontinued support for this type of web-based project. As of June 2025, the server is no longer running and the collected responses no longer persist online. This outcome reflects the project’s central concern with platform dependency and the fragility of networked systems that hold personal data.
This project received the Minneapolis College of Art and Design Senior Web and Multimedia Scholarship.