I finally made it out to Mass MoCA, and I have to say, my favorite piece, far and away, was, of course, text-based. Jenny Holzer’s “Projections” features two enormous projectors set at either end of a blacked-out warehouse space, pointed at each other, and throwing text across every surface in the room. I was so hypnotized by the visual effect that I forgot to read any of the actual words. I initially scoffed at the museum’s description of this as an “interactive” installation, since the piece itself doesn’t do anything differently as a result of your presence, but as I strolled around the room, I observed how my viewpoint changed, affecting the perspective in which the text was shown to me, which in turn defined its legibility. Standing here, I can read the words on that wall, but not the other. The piece becomes interactive as soon as the viewer-participant realizes that s/he must physically move around the space in order to take it all in. And when you’re tired of moving, there are several giant, 15-foot diameter beanbags set on the floor, so you can stumble over to one and sit or lie down comfortably to take in the text. One moment in particular stands out for me: the excitement, mixed with some fear, of watching a 20-foot long capital “R” approach menacingly before “spearing” me with its edges and blinding me with the projector’s light.

You can watch a live video stream of the installation, but it doesn’t do justice to the physical experience of moving around and through the letters.

Also at the museum was a projected, rotating, writhing, computer-generated tree by Jennifer Steinkamp — which I expected to be interactive, and was disappointed when I discovered it would go on writhing with or without me — and also a most striking, yet subtle installation by Mary Temple — apparently sunlight casting shadows of tree branches on a gallery wall, until you realize that you are standing in a windowless room.