Saturday 28 August 2010

Final Show

The final show is ready.
I have two rooms for my work. One light room, with two windows facing west, and the other one is a dome with no windows - a dark room.
The rooms are one on above the other.
On the light room, I'm showing 3 pieces: one print, one bronze and one arrangement of 9 digital drawing prints.
The dome has 2 pieces: one video and one interactive video installation that responds to that video.
The five pieces are part of the continuous process taken along the year.
Based on the video Dance 01, all the pieces intend to be different perspectives on a dance. Taking an everyday life situation and trying to see it with different eyes, trying to visualize the data contents of a dance in distinct ways.

Sunday 22 August 2010

After two months away

After being away from writing in the blog for time unavailability, here I am posting the updates of my practice.

The critical research paper took lots of time and I had to remake it almost from scratch. I was writing about the idea of "transformation as a failure of transformation" but it wasn't working out. The issue was that there was actually no research question beneath my paper and that had to be done!
In an essay tutorial with John Cussans, this issue of not having a research question came up and was discussed as a main issue. Once my concerns are related with technological advance and what new technology adds to the way of seeing things, specially the new acquainted Arduino, my essay's research question became: How can Arduino help revealing the hidden details of everyday life?

So I've been working with Arduino a lot.
The projects I started working with were as much parallel projects to the path I've been taking as introductions to the use of Arduino.

The ON/OFF box was the start.


What happens in this piece is the translation of the words ON and OFF to binary code and their audio reproduction.
The point is to see in a switch more than a function. It is to think about it in other terms, undermining the function and underpinning the word by which it's called.
A function that is not understood is as if there was no function. Understanding a function implies calling names to it's components. Not understanding it's components is not understanding the function as well. ON/OFF box gives new meaning to the components and consequently new meaning to the function.

The next step was the Doorbell installation.

What happens when you ring a doorbell? Who is on the other side? Is it who you expect to be and in the circumstances you expect to be?
The cinematic experience of a doorbell ringing scene is here transposed to an installation where the viewer is made part of that scene. He is invited to decide whether or not to press the doorbell button and then to see what happens if he does.
The interaction of the audience is key to underline the thrills of the cinematic experience.

Meanwhile I was getting experience and understanding how Arduino works and can be used, I was also working around the whole Dance project.
The issue now was the integration of Arduino in this project. The reasons I have for this integration have nothing to do with adding technological gadgetry to my work. It has to do with the properties of Arduino and the interests I input in my work.
Interaction resumes it all. I interact with people in my practice using viewers' feedback to rearrange my work and Arduino allows interactivity processes for creation. It's the perfect tool to continue my research and practice.
This time, for my final show at CCAD, I am re-using the samples I have from the responses of my artist colleagues to the Dance video.
The aim is to create an interactive video installation where several different questions are going to raise.
Here is a "behind the curtain" video of this installation.