Looking Outwards – Arduino

I was inspired by “ToDo” by Chris Eckert.

“ToDo” is a sculpture by Chris Eckert which uses an Arduino Uno to “numerically control” a mechanical arm which meticulously writes a never-ending todo list. By merging random aspects of his life together, Eckert manages to de-personalize small endeavors of his own by bringing them into this public sphere. Aside from the personal aspect of the list, something about the handwriting of this machine intrigues me. I love the way that it has it’s own, unchanging personality separate from it’s creators which is identifiable.

“Cube Pix” by Xavi’s Lab was a bit dissapointing.

Cubepix Demo Test – by Xavi’s Lab from Glassworks Barcelona on Vimeo.

“Cubepix” by Xavi’s lab and Glassworks is an interactive installation which allows viewers to control the display itself. It had the potential to be a wonderfully interactive display which married physical motion with projected imagery, however the means by which it takes user input is too exaggerated. It relies on major body movements to actuate the cubes which are overused. I would have like to see the display integrate subtle movements if at all possible rather than these cliche hand wavy gestures.

“Linyl” by Ishac Bertran, Natalia Echevvarria, and Shruti Ramiah was pretty cool but it left me wanting.

Linyl from Ishac Bertran on Vimeo.

“Linyl” is a project which converts photographs into colored disks which can be read to create ambient lighting. I think that the idea behind the technology of Linyl is awesome. Condensing one form of a data, a photograph which contains multiple compositional elements into a single dimension of color is fascinating to me. In turn, taking this condensed form and utilizing it as a light source is a subtle way of transferring that image to the people in a room through some sort of “osmosis”. I feel that the strict integration of this project with sound takes away from it’s potential however. The light itself, without sound, should be able to speak for each image it represents.