Black Box Camera Obscura

University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, Minnesota

The Camera Obscura (“dark chamber” in Latin) is an ancient optical device. In its most basic form it is, quite simply, a dark room with a small hole in one wall. On the wall opposite the hole or lens, an image is formed of whatever is outside. This image is upside-down (inverted) and back to front (laterally transposed). The Black Box Camera Obscura is part of the Pop-Up Northrop Initiative at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. The Pop-Up Northrop Initiative was a series of temporary events, objects, and performances inspired by the revitalized building and its four resident units in 2014.