An' experiment in storytelling', Whale hunt is a project by one of my* favorite interaction designer/artists, Jonathan Harris. An ex-fabricante, he 'designs systems to explore and explain the human world combining elements of computer science, anthropology, visual art and storytelling'.
I remember seeing two of his pre-fabrica projects, 10X10 and Wordcount long time back and it had fascinated me with its smartness. Most of his projects stimulates our basic instinct of wanting to know, which the seniors say killed the cat. They allow you to play and yet not feel like a stereotypical addict (O.K, read bum) whose thumb can't forget the joystick even while its holding the mandatory burger.
'Whale hunt' retains these attributes but takes us on a journey and offers space (And what a space it is!) to create an experience different from the rest of his works. It is documented like a journey and hence takes us on one too, not necessarily the same for each one. It introduces us to Inupiat Eskimos in Barrow, Alaska, and captures a thousand-year-old tradition, the Inupiat whale hunt. The law allows the community to hunt 22 whales every year to maintain their food supply.
Check it out and see the primeval reds stirring up the dead greys.
*I am that you are not.
