Risa Puno: Group Hug on view at The Fabric Workshop and Museum through July 21

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Interactive Installation Artist Risa Puno offers visitors a one-of-a-kind experience in her first solo museum show.

"Group Hug is an immersive installation," says Puno. "The entire exhibition is about care and the work that goes into caring for people."

It features games, transforming The Fabric Workshop and Museum into a space for connection.

"It's like a multiplayer version of whack-a-mole," says Puno.

"You'll definitely smile," says DJ Hellerman, Chief Curator for The Fabric Workshop and Museum. "We've never had something like this before."

Players choose their own path. You can either 'care for' someone or be 'cared for.'

Choose 'care for' and you're playing a whack-a-mole-type game.

"It's anxiety-inducing because there's this urgency to it, right? You can't plan for it," says Puno.

As you play and work to meet needs, you're helping the 'cared for' relax.

There is a banana leaf-covered chair that reclines you into the inside of a coconut pod.

Puno says the inspiration came from her feelings of being unprepared to care for her father's health issues.

"Games are such a great way to express emotions," says Puno. "You can talk about real things like risk and real challenges."

And the project fits the museum's mission.

"The Fabric Workshop is dedicated to helping artists explore and experiment," says Hellerman. "We have a studio team that works with artists to develop projects that they never thought were possible."

"I'm especially proud to be here as a FilipinX artist," says Puno.

Nods to her Filipino culture are infused throughout the exhibition.

"In the middle there is sort of oversized die that people can roll that has questions about care," says Puno. "And this helps them have a discussion about it."

She says that's really the "spirit of this exhibition."

"It's many people coming together in care," says Puno.

Risa Puno: Group Hug is scheduled to run through July 21 at The Fabric Workshop and Museum.

Risa Puno: Group Hug | Tickets
The Fabric Workshop and Museum
1214 Arch Street

Philadelphia, PA 19107