GDB-LookingOutwards-1
Murmur Study – Christopher Baker
Murmur Study from Christopher Baker on Vimeo.
Murmur study is an installation consisting of thermal printers that constantly search for and print Twitter messages containing common emotional utterances, such as argh, meh, grr etc. These Tweets are printed continouosly on reels of paper, forming a waterfall of information that ends in chaos on the floor. I’m fascinated by this idea of giving social media, which is so transitory and ephemeral, a physical space where it dominates. It succeeds beautifully in its goal of pointing out the quiet rise of social media, but I feel that the work could have been made more visually imposing; The printers themselves seem too spread out, and Baker chose a white wall to set them against, making the paper blend into the background.
Baker himself was trained a scientist, and only recently turned to artistic expression, which likely led to his observation of society of and through technology.
Rock Paper Scissors – weAREmedienkuenstler
Rock Paper Scissors from weAREmedienkuenstler on Vimeo.
Rock Paper Scissors consists of two computers who play the titular game, randomly selecting a move, and keeping score ad infinitum. This is a surprising way to play with both chance and play, and the piece openly points out the essentially ‘brainless’ nature of Rock Paper Scissors. There is also something reminiscent of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to these two machines. I would like to see this piece bring up the computer’s inability to be truly random.
City Symphonies – Mark McKeague
City Symphonies – Westminster from Mark McKeague on Vimeo.
City Symphonies is a concept for sound generation in electric cars, which relies on the vehicle’s interaction with the surrounding vehicles and environment. I find the idea of using traffic data to generate music very interesting, and the traffic simulation McKeague uses to demonstrate the program is nice, but I feel that the implementation needs more refinement. The data could be better processed, an I don’t think that a car is the right setting for this kind of experience.