Intent
by Danny Goldfield
In a world fractured by othering — where differences divide and identities become barriers — my portrait photography looks beneath the surface to reveal what connects us. The problem isn’t difference; it’s disconnection — the failure to see one another as fully human.
My projects respond by capturing vivid, specific emotions generously expressed by people who happen to meet the specified criteria. The more personal and intense the emotion, then the more universally it resonates.
When we truly see someone in a portrait, we feel seen ourselves. And in that moment of recognition, othering softens — and belonging begins.
Augmented Reality (AR)
1 to Infinity, MIT AR (version 0.7.0)
What if a corridor could lead us anywhere?
In this virtual exhibition, you don’t walk past the portraits — you walk through them.
Inspired by the MIT community and the dimensions of the MIT Infinite Corridor, this portable experience works best in a long, open space — about 50 yards or meters. Try it in a hallway, park, or sidewalk. Or test it in a smaller space and see what strange things happen.
Get Started
Download the Hoverlay app to walk through a virtual Infinite Corridor with MIT community members — one for every age.
31 people so far, with many more to come as we reach toward infinity.
Prototyping Now
This AR experience is new and evolving. Your feedback helps shape what comes next — thank you.
Tap the button and walk infinitely. Share your results online with #1toinfinityMIT
Origin
Following a photography project for Good Magazine in 2013, Version 1 of 1 to Infinity began in 2014 as a wandering idea — a portrait series of people from anywhere, at any age, unfolding without a fixed plan or endpoint.
Thanks to grants from the 2025 MIT Artfinity Arts Festival and the MIT Open Documentary Lab’s Layers of Place collective, the latest version, 1 to Infinity, MIT, started on the first day of Spring Semester classes, February 3, 2025. With graduation and alumni events through June 2, how many more people can be included by then? One hundred?
Attribution
