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When considering how to present the art and ideals of the past and present to future generations, it seems important to not simply focus on showing advances to technology and the ability of human beings to create artistic works of great beauty, but instead to show ourselves for what we are. Human beings are inherently imperfect creatures in spite of being capable of awe-inspiring achievements. With this in mind, my ship and the contents it contains are meant to inspire the people of the future to see a message of great aspirations motivated by the turmoil of human emotion. As with all things context is an important part of conveying any message, so for this reason each work will be presented with as much information as possible in order to provide the most complete context possible for the viewer as to the history and influences surrounding each item.

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Upon approaching the time capsule room the viewer will be greeted with a door over which is a replicated painting of Leonardo Da Vinci's 'Last Supper'. After Leonardo's 'Last Supper' was painted, a portion was knocked out to make room for a door, providing the perfect space for a replica of Tintoretto's version of the 'Last Supper' to be placed. A mechanized door will slide open and shut inside the area of Leonardo's 'Last Supper' that was removed, and on the surface of the door will be the recreated Tintoretto piece. Keeping in mind that stored data is effectively weightless and large amounts of it can be kept even on a small system, a touch screen informational console will be located on the wall adjacent to the doorway. This will provide a copy of the Bible for viewers to read, as well as a biography on Tintoretto. A pedestal with a glass case containing a representational model of the wax lay-outs that Tintoretto used to prepare his paintings will stand on the side of the door opposite to the screen display. In this way the viewer will be allowed to have the context of the religious text that the paintings were inspired by, as well as information about the artist and an example of the techniques that Tintoretto used. By placing the Tintoretto painting in relation to the same painting by Leonardo Da Vinci, there is an added layer of both contrast and context added as well. At the time when Tintoretto painted his version of the 'Last Supper', there were several advances being made to the world of art. Tintoretto was one of the pioneers of tenebrism, which is a method of painting in which the atmosphere of the painting is dark and shadowy, or 'tenebrous.' Tintoretto was also a pioneer of chiaroscuro, which is the method of creating a stark contrast between shadow and highlights. Although the technique was not entirely a new one, Tintoretto used miniature models to plot out his paintings beforehand, allowing him to create painstakingly detailed and realistic work. Religious art was an extremely popular subject matter at the time – and for the centuries leading up to the time of Tintoretto – and has continued to be both controversial and integral to mainstream society. Christianity has had a huge impact on not only the world of art, but also on the rest of human culture, making the 'Last Supper' not only important because of the advances in art that it represents, but also because of the ideology that is involved. The story of Jesus and his betrayal by Judas in particular has had a profound impact, so much so that even today anyone who commits an act of betrayal is typically referred to as a 'Judas.'

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Entering into the actual display room, the layout will be the circular floor plan of the original Globe Theater, complete with a balcony level and recreated as closely as possible with materials as similar to those used in the original Globe Theater as can be acquired. Since the remaining pieces of work I will be including all began as either plays, films, or have been adapted to film, this will be where the remainder of the works are showcased. Each seat will have a screen available for additional information, which the audience will be able to review at their leisure while watching each work performed on the stage. Since having an actual, live cast of players would be difficult and unfeasible, there will be a three dimensional holographic display arranged so that the works can be cycled through at timed intervals. The first play scheduled will be William Shakespeare's 'Titus Andronicus'. To provide as much historical context as possible, the holographic performance will be as similar to the original presentation as possible, to include historically accurate costumes and dialogue. For those who are unable to understand the original dialogue, there will be headsets available to play translated versions. While the audience is watching the holographic display, they may peruse through a transcript of the play available on the informational screens, or they may choose to read from a biography of Shakespeare, with information included on the Globe Theater itself as well as a brief over-view of the period and foot-notes to explain references made in the play as well as out-dated concepts that might give the audience difficulty. Both Shakespeare and the Globe Theater were something new and unusual in the time period where they existed. Most of the population of Europe was illiterate, so plays allowed people to digest new ideas and see material that they would not have had access to if it was available only in a printed version. Shakespeare relied heavily on classical stories that had been handed down, making many references to past masterpieces and lauded works by authors such as Virgil, Plato, and Socrates. Since plays were the only way that the majority of the population could learn about historical events as well, Shakespeare was effectively reaching out to educate as well as entertain a portion of society that would have been denied access to such things normally. Shakespeare and his company of players also performed for royalty as well as the general public, and it was not uncommon for him to include social commentary layered into his stories which at times proved problematic depending on which audience he was presenting his work to.

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Using this same Globe Theater arrangement, the second holographic performance will be Mary Shelley's 'Frankenstein'. As with Shakespeare's play, 'Frankenstein' will be displayed with costumes and dialogue as closely matching the oldest available copies of the book and based on the styles at the time it was published. There will be translated audio feeds available for those who require them. While the audience is watching the performance, they can review either a transcript of Mary Shelly's novel, or they may read a biography of Mary Shelley, complete with a brief over-view of the culture at the time and foot-notes to explain any out-dated concepts. Mary Shelley was an extremely young woman author at a time when most successful writers were male, and the novel that she published was the beginning of an entire genre. Many people believe that Mary Shelley launched the science fiction genre, and she was a large part of shining the light of popularity onto the gothic genre, which encompassed a relatively small body of works prior to the addition of 'Frankenstein.' Although by modern standards the advances in science and health care were relatively primitive, religion played a large part in halting advances prior, and so by the standards of Mary Shelley's time there were many new and marvelous improvements being made to both fields. Shelley's ability to produce an almost prophetic vision of science gone wrong was a large part of what made her work so popular, and has left a lasting impact on human culture. Even today, medical professionals and scientists are keenly aware of the moralizing story of Frankenstein, and what can go wrong when playing God. The story of Frankenstein also gives an insight not only into the immorality of science, but into the depths of human nature, and our internal battle against our own nature in an effort to be more moral.

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The final holographic production to be displayed on the theater's line up will be Hayao Miyazaki's 'Princess Mononoke.' Because 'Princess Mononoke' is an animated film, it needs only to be rendered for three dimensional display and then replicated. While the audience is watching the holographic film, complete with the same translated audio versions for those who need them, they will be able to review through a biography of Hayao Miyazaki and see brief clips of the original animated film as well as still frame artwork both of 'Princess Mononoke' and other works by Miyazaki. Cultural foot-notes will be provided as well to outline influences on the film and the director, as well as a brief over view of events that impacted the creation of 'Princess Mononoke.' Released at the apex of the environmentalist movement as well as the high point of the anime phenomenon that hit America in the time frame between the 1980's and the early 2000's, 'Princess Mononoke' exists between worlds in several ways. It is palatable to the American sensibilities, as well as those of the Japanese. 'Princess Mononoke' contains heavy themes of conflict between humans and other humans, as well as humans and nature, both of which would have been extremely relevant to the time period. It also exists in between the time honored tradition of hand-drawn animation and the revolution of computer animated graphics which has now come to dominate a significant portion of the film industry. 'Princess Mononoke' provides the perfect ending point to the historical over-view presented in this time capsule. While the majority of the other works highlight the struggle of humans to come to an understanding of the world that surrounds them, they do not offer the same finite conclusion that 'Princess Mononoke' comes to, which is that the ultimate answer to our emotional struggle is to learn forgiveness and understanding.

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By beginning with the 'Last Supper' the viewer is given an understanding of not only the way humans previously understood God, but also the fact that our struggle with our own morality extends as far back as there are written records. Continuing on through 'Titus Andronicus' and 'Frankenstein' brings the focus fully onto the battle between human emotions and logic, while 'Princess Mononoke' provides a continuance of the theme while providing some closure to the problematic subject. Within this continual framework of good versus evil, revenge, betrayal, morality, and the drive of humans to find their way in a morally ambiguous world there is plenty of room available to bring attention to the advances of society and the way we have attempted to achieve our full potential despite both internal and external conflicts. Hopefully the way each work has been presented will allow the viewer to have a fuller, richer experience as well as enough context for each work to be as fully educated as is possible with the limit of four pieces to the exhibit.