SMSlingshot

SMSlingshot (2009)

Christian Zöllner, Patrick Tobias Fischer, Thilo Hoffmann, and Sebastian Piatza of VR/Urban (Germany, est. 2008)

High frequency radio, Arduino board, laser, batteries, plywood, and ash wood

14 3/16 x 8 5/16 x 1 5/8″ (36 x 21 x 4 cm)

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Ever since I posted about Mark Jenkins, I’ve really been digging street art / public art / interactive type pieces. At the same time, after shipping out two of my pieces from last semester to the LAL Scripts and Systems show, I’ve been revisiting some of the ideas surrounding the digitization of art and the incorporation of modern technology.

The project SMSlingshot incorporates all of these things and creates a sort of digital graffiti by creating a virtual splatter paint slingshot. The device takes the form of a traditional wooden slingshot (albeit beefed up in size) and hybridizes it with an embedded faux cell phone device. The user can type in text messages and then shoot them onto large surfaces (such as the walls of buildings), where the text shows up in a splash of color. The text is also tweeted at the same time.

As stated on moma.org, “The SMSlingshot marries the traditional weapon with digital technology, splattering information onto facades and other surfaces that then serve as public screens… The device fuses a prehistoric tool, vibrant urban art, and innovative technology into a product that encourages interaction, information, and empowerment in the city.”

Though the digital splatter paint is not fully realistic and definitely still pixelated – I’m not sure if this is on purpose or not – the concept of this project is a unique fusion of several other arenas of art, while simultaneously incorporating the technology most of us already use everyday (texting, Twitter). This perfectly fits the inherent casual nature of a slingshot, but is updated to fit the norms of 2012. Kids are not slinging rocks anymore (or not as often at least) but rather texting on their cell phones from the age of 10, and this project fully adapts to that fact. This project is also perhaps not considered as “high art” and is more temporary with an uncharacteristic type of media, just like graffiti, but it’s fun and original and that is good enough for me.

I’m hoping SMSlingshot circulates around the world and eventually makes it’s way to Rochester, NY.

nyt r&d: reveal [smart mirror]

The NYT R&D Reveal mirror ties more into the work I was doing last semester dealing with digital data and the interaction between humans and technology – the work that I’ve abruptly stopped this semester for reasons still not fully understood – but it’s too cool not to share… even if it’s not technically an art project and even if it’s not relevant to my current work.

 

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The New York Times R&D Lab is working on a project they call Reveal, which is basically a smart mirror with the ability to project things you typically receive on your smartphone or laptop on a large mirrored screen. It looks like a huge mirror you’d typically have in your bathroom, but the special semi-reflective glass surface overlays your reflection with real-time graphics such as news feeds, a calendar, the weather, and health stats. They call this “augmented reality” and the various features are designed to be personalized to your specific interests and needs. They’re also voice-activated so you can still do your hair or shave or put on makeup while hands-free commanding the screen on the mirror to change to show the information you want.

 

 

 

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I really want one of these. Or at least just test one out. And maybe this is just me being a pre-med nerd, but I’m probably the most interested in the health stats part of the mirror, where it can take your temperature, track your sleep patterns, and who knows what else. I almost think of it like a radically updated mood ring or sorts (but one that is actually accurate rather than changing color in response to your body heat).

I’m not sure how practical having ALL of these components really is, but I’m definitely down with the weather and news headlines features. They’ve probably also already integrated this and I just missed it, but having your email inbox pop up would be super useful too. I’m a self-proclaimed email addict between my laptop and Blackberry and check it first thing in the morning every day. To have it come up on a mirror when I’m putting in my contacts would be really great. That, or I’m just too lazy to start up my laptop and open a browser.

As much as I love the idea of Reveal, I’m not sure if I’m 100% on board – it might be closer to 98.9%. I feel like we’re already constantly so connected that brushing your teeth or getting ready for something in front of the mirror are some of the only times you’re not checking your cell phone or staring at a screen. This sentiment isn’t strong enough to not still want a smart mirror, but Reveal is just a touch excessive to me. In today’s world though, that’s not surprising at all.

If I had continued my Craigslist Missed Connections work from last semester, I could have seen my art take a turn towards this digitized, hi-tech, video/sound/interactive realm of art. The professors last semester were all really helpful in giving me ideas, such as using augmented reality phone apps or projects or sound to accompany my post-its or faux metrocard system but instead, of course, I’ve decided to just go back to pencil and paper. Not sure if this is considered growth/branching out or regression, but I guess I’ll find out once my exhibition goes up.

frank h. netter, MD

Dr. Frank H. Netter is a medical illustrator whose drawings have served as the authority for anatomy diagrams for decades. Though today there are so many digital/3d/animated/hi-tech diagrams that are used as tools for medical students, there is something so appealing about Netter’s good old-fashioned hand-drawn pictures that nothing in this era of digital art can replicate. Even though they may not be as intricate as digitally generated pictures or 3-dimensional models, they are beautiful in their own right and works of art that are impressive in both form and function.

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I’m obsessed with labeling, organizing, sorting, categorizing, and anything to do with these activities, and since I’m also starting medical school in August 2012, it only seems logical that I love Netter and was bound to mention his name sooner or later.

His drawings are very graphic and realistic, but not at the same time. This doesn’t make a lot of sense, but here’s what I mean: real human organs are obviously not as clean cut and perfectly proportioned as they are in Netter’s illustrations (my autopsy observation proved this to me three years ago) but the drawings themselves do look real by virtue of their level of detail and precision. Netter makes these drawings to serve as guides for the real thing. They are almost too real for their own good – perfect organs – leaving every vein & vessel, muscle & tissue accounted for and completely documented. This is what I like most about them and why I see them not only as educational tools but also as pieces of art.

 

stefanie posavec

Considering my tendencies to gravitate towards systems of categorization of found data in my work, it probably comes as no surprise that I absolutely love Stefanie Posavec‘s artwork, especially her “Writing Without Word” series. Posavec visualizes text in purely graphic ways that are extremely structured and scientific, yet retain an organic and delicate quality. Her creative approach is so organized and methodical, yet the finished pieces are not overworked; rather, their simplicity and handmade quality are allowed to shine through.

I am particularly intrigued by Posavec’s “First Chapters” pieces in which she depicts the first chapters of literary classics through tangled lines generated by a specific invented system. The length of each segment of the line is proportional to the number of words in each sentence, and each right angle denotes the start of a new sentence. Using this system, an author’s writing style is translated into a visual work of art.

Click to enlarge images.

“The more tightly wound the drawing means a shorter, choppier flow of sentences was used, while a larger drawing represents a writing style that utilises long, flowing sentences.” – Stefanie Posavec

All images from http://www.itsbeenreal.co.uk.

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I really love how tight and controlled the system is that Posavec developed to generate these drawings, but then how, when applied to these various books, the final product is unpredictable and unique. From geometric spaced out shapes to wound up squiggles of all sizes, the drawings are diverse yet fit together so completely as a series. The simple labels of title, author, and date are the perfect complement as well, leaving plenty of empty clean white space but providing the viewer with just enough information to connect to and understand the source material of the pieces.

There is also a book-like quality to the images, in their portrait orientation and thin lines, augmented by the fact that each book has its own drawing separate from the rest but in the same size and style. This creates pages of an entirely new book being spun from these drawings. Together, they become anthologies of these famous authors’ classic works, but represented in a modern manner from a fresh perspective.

This ties in to another aspect of Posavec’s creative process that I am really impressed by. The bank of data Posavec uses is already there and well-known, and instead of rewriting these books she is selectively extracting important elements from them, and then presenting in a concise fashion. Just glancing at each piece gives the viewer an immediate sense of the respective author’s writing style – the same sense that is generated by actually reading the entire first chapters of these books. Posavec creates a new (visual) language that uses lines in their simplest form, through original reinterpretation. It’s almost as if she unravels the letters of the alphabet as we know them and reshapes those lines into these drawings, like bending wire or unfolding a paperclip.

One other aspect that I really appreciate about Posavec’s work is the degree to which it is so analog and handmade versus the highly digitized infographic-esque aesthetic of much artwork today that utilizes similar systems of organization of data. There is a necessary intimacy involved in Posavec’s process of counting words and collecting her data personally, and this humanness is retained by how she presents her drawings. Instead of using combinations of fancy fonts and a collage of photoshopped shapes, Posavec’s First Chapters are clean and simple yet just as meticulous as any digitally graphically designed piece would be. Her work is centered around hard data yet presented with a soft hand, which is quite refreshing.

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All images property of and posted with permission of Stefanie Posavec.

Artist’s website: http://www.itsbeenreal.co.uk