Eunoia by Lisa Park

Eunoia collects the artist’s brain using an EEG sensor and then uses them to vibrate 5 bowls of water. Using Processing and MaxMSP, each bowl of water is receiving the frequencies of her brain activity (Alpha, Beta, Delta, Gamma, Theta) as well as eye movement. This is visualizing data that is usually difficult to grasp by the average person.

This is the data she is using as a graph, and it seems incomprehesible.Elements by Britzpetermann

Straightforwardly Elements is an interactive walkway. One of four elements will build up where the subject puts their hands. Because of its simplicity the experience of Elements relies heavily on its visuals, and the graphics aren’t as natural looking as they could be. Looking at Elements you are very aware that the images are computationally generated. It is very difficult to re-create something as magnificent and beautiful as natural fire and sand dunes, and not seem lame compared to the real thing.

Equilibrium by Memo Akten

Similarly to Elements, Equilibrium becomes disturbed when touched and settles to a calmer state when left alone, except with this project the visuals are stellar. It is very complex, but soothing at the same time, all in very good taste. Interestingly, I read from Memo Akten’s website that it was the wild landscapes of Madagascar which served as inspiration for this project, which adds a whole new frame. Equilibrium creates its own platform by becoming something that is incomparable to anything in nature, yet still reflects natural behavior.

For my final project I’m not exactly sure what I want to do. I only know that I want to work with sound. Without getting my expectations too high, i’d like to attempt to create a work which reacts to the conversations and interactions in a room. The projects I have selected each reacts to information presented to it. Some sound and some visuals.

Conversnitch – Conversnitch by Kyle McDonald is a device which listens to conversations around it, secretly uploads them to mechanical turk to be transcribed, and then tweets to the world what was supposed to be a private conversation. The integration of turking into this project is extremely interesting in that it is very difficult for computers themselves to transcribe audio. Integrating a “silent human” element to the work is extremely powerful because it makes the process still seem automated even though a majority of the difficult work is done by humans.

Conversnitch from Kyle McDonald on Vimeo.

Descriptive Camera – Descriptive Camera by Matt Rishardson is a device which snaps an image of an area and rather than out out that image, “develops” the image into a description of the scene in words. This project also uses mechanical turk to transcribe information but what’s most interesting about this project is that it changes what we expect. When a photo is taken we as digital individuals expect a lasting snapsht and when we are returned a description we are both jarred and freed. Freed in the sense that we can now use this information as we wish.

Giver Of Names – Giver of Names by David Rokeby literally gives names to objects which are placed in it’s view point. What intrigues me about this piece is that the computer is actively attempting to describe what’s in front of it with a name. It is immediately responding to information presented to it and then allowing the participants in the room to know it’s interpretation. I hope to achieve this in my final project.

The Giver of Names from David Rokeby on Vimeo.

Lit Tree by Kimchi and Chips

Kimchi and Chips maps the projectable surfaces of a tree in order to project onto the branches, stems, and leaves. In this way they are using the tree to create a 3D voxel display. I like this because it is an unconventional way to display a 3D image. It relates to my project in that I plan to work with projectors and 3D imagery.

Lighting of the Sails by URBANSCREEN

In this project the group URBANSCREEN projected onto the Sydney Opera House. I liked it because they used imagery which caused you to question the shape of the opera house. Particularly when the opera house appeared to be sails blowing in the wind. This is relevant to the work I’d like to do because I plan to work with projection.

Box by Bot & Dolly

Look Here.

BOX is interesting because it looks like magic. The camera movement is well planned and works perfectly with the movement of the screens and the projections. While watching I forgot at times that I was seeing a screen and not a moving box. This is relavent to my work because I would like people to watch a projection I made and forget that they are looking at something formed from technology.

So if you’d believe it or not, I had a really silly amount of trouble finding any large-scale installations or no-expenses-spared versions of what I’m aiming to do. There are, however, a lot of really ghetto built-in-mom’s-basement versions on Youtube, complete with horrible pop soundtrack playing in the background like so much elevator muzak.

This first project is along the same lines of what I’m up to; it’s a set of LED lights that respond to the music in much the same way that an equalizer does:

Second we have someone working with a whole lot of LEDs at once; they’ve made a full equalizer as well as various patterns that seem to move in time with the music:

Lastly we’ve got this guy giving a full video tutorial of his project, including the code. What he’s done, essentially, is pretty much exactly what I want to do only on a much smaller scale: He’s got three large LEDs responding to each of the low, middle and high frequencies. As far as mine goes, I’m mostly just doing this with more lights and more colors, but we’ll see how advanced I can manage. Anyway, here’s his video:

In addition to these, there’s a lot of really nice little tutorials out there that either have elements of or a version of what I’m trying to do, so I’m pulling together a decent idea of the work I have cut out for me.

Admiration: Puppet Parade

Puppet Parade, by Emily Gobeille and Theo Watson of Design I/O, is an interactive instillation that uses arm motions to puppeteer giant projected creatures. This project uses openFrameworks 007, an infra-red camera, and two Kinects to track motions and translate them into visuals. Puppet Parade was featured at the 2011 Cinekid festival.

I enjoy the bright, gaudy-yet-simplistic visuals that characterize Puppet Parade. I’m particularly impressed with how simple hand-motions create such a complex environment, and would be interested to see the process of fine-tuning the projected outputs of these simple inputs.

For more info on Puppet Parade, click here. For more info on Design I/O, click here. For more on Cinekid, click here.

Surprise: The Treachery of Sanctuary

The Treachery of Sanctuary, conceived and directed by Chris Milk, is an interactive triptych depicting inspired by the cave drawings on the walls of Lascaux. From left to right, each screen represents birth, death, and regeneration. Infra-red sensors and Kinect cameras are used to sense participants. The Treachery of Sanctuary made its debut at The Creators Project: San Francisco 2012.

I’m impressed by the visual effects The Treachery of Sanctuary utilizes. The fluidity of the bird’s wings is quite striking, and I imagine how harrowing it must feel to become the subject of such projections.

For more on The Treachery of Sanctuary, click here. For more on Chris Milk, click here. For more on The Creators Project, click here.

What Could Have Been: Bird on a Wire

Bird on a Wire was created by Ben Light, Christie Leece, Inessah Selditz, and Matt Richardson, for a Master’s course at NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP). The birds animate when a specific phone-number is called.

I like the playful interaction Bird on a Wire has the potential to inspire, but I do have a nitpick: the flight of the birds is not fluid. I think more variation regarding the birds’ flight paths and animations would give this instillation the finishing touch it needs, although I understand such an addition is not critical to the success of the project itself.

For more on Bird on a Wire, click here. For more on Ben Light, click here.  For more on Christie Leece, click here. For more on Inessah Selditz, click here. For more on Matt Richardson, click here.