Digital Craft Minor 2017 - How to be human
Contents
technology and the body
collaboration with Vera, Philip
The parts of the body we are working with are the eye, mind & body. During the first class we did some sketching and brainstorming for our first idea's. To merge the three parts was a challenge so we focused on what we found interesting. What worked well for us was to take it step by step. And the first thing we wanted to do was to copy a hole body. The slitscan was the first prototype. We took pictures with a webcam and through processing we literally abused someone's body by deforming it. We wanted to bring this concept to the next level and decided to produce a 3D file from the visitors of the exhibition (live). We want them to feel the detachment of their body. What did not work well for us was the technical part behind it, and since it was only a week's time we considered a new solution.
http://neural.it/2017/07/the-digital-skin-series-the-stranger-in-my-face/
http://neural.it/2004/07/fenlandia-slow-pixels/
I agree
Nowadays the abusing of your identity happens more and more in a digital context. The interesting part is that we allow our pictures and other content to services. Because we want to use their services we accept the terms without knowing what to do with now our shared content. It feels that we are being abused. This was an interesting thought we continued to work on. The first step was to get the image of a visitor through a webcam. The exposure to this also plays a role because it extrinsically infringes you as a person. There for the webcam is attached to a spotlight. The next step is that thousands of pixels appear on the screen and slowly take your identity to one frame. To show how this looks like, you'll find my bodypart, the eye below. After this your photo will appear on any conceivable monitor in the room to make you aware of the consequences.
We live in a digital era in which it is nearly impossible to stay anonymous. The digital world contains so many recources that are directly available. Especially the fact that the accessibility takes so little time is quite convenient. When a service has a large amount of users, it creates a feeling that the service can be used safely, and makes an individual blindly trust it. The desire to use a popular service as fast as possible in today’s time spirit, results in skipping to read the services’ terms and conditions. Besides, what harm can pressing ‘I agree’ actually cause? Somewhere in these conditions you will be protected, one would think. Somewhere in the back of your mind you know a few negative scenarios that have happened to a few unknown people. But in comparison to the fact that so many people use these services it would never happen to you. But should you really expose so much of your body, your identity, your brains, to the eyes of the whole world? The digital network and the amount of (personal) data is growing to extends we can not even imagine. And because of this unimaginable factor the awareness of our digital footprint we leave behind for eternity fades away. With the project of ‘I agree’ we want to raise awareness about this phenomenon of blindly accepting the terms and conditions of these services, and possible consequences. [edit]
the process: I agree' consists of a webcam attached to box with the terms and conditions. They asks if you will agree to see what's next. Pressing the button will make the webcam take your picture and spread it to multiple screens throughout the room. If you reed the terms and conditions you would know this. If you feel abused their is a way back. Enter all your information, the ironic part, delete your foto out of the databank and to complete you pay 5,- by a simple payment system.
Inhuman Factors / Sensitivity Training
Gij zult niet storen - EMP/ EMP device stands for electromagnetic pulseEMP devices can damage any electronic devices or disturbed there working. I did not want to be disturbed by sensors that abuse because of my presence. I convert a electric fly swatter into electromagnetic pulse gun. By removing the case and replace it with homemade copper coil. When you discharge the capacitor into the coil,electromagnetic pulse is created by high voltage absorbed in capacitor. I used different coils but not one damaged my test object. When I tested this all the way in the station, this was not taken into account. On the internet they tell you to be really careful and to keep your electronic devices away. I also really like the conversations on the internet about this 'gun'. How this is will only be appreciated by terrorists, criminals or the american army haha. It was a fun day to explore the subject but because it did not work at all I went to something else.
Virtual sensor, Matlab - Motion-Based Multiple Object Tracking, The example shows how to perfom automatic detection and motion-based tracking of moving objects in a video from a stationary camera. Detection of moving objects and motion-based tracking are important components of many computer vision applications, including activity recognition, traffic monitoring, and automotive safety. The detection of moving objects uses a background subtraction algorithm based on Gaussian mixture models. Morphological operations are applied to the resulting foreground mask to eliminate noise. Finally, blob analysis detects groups of connected pixels, which are likely to correspond to moving objects.
I was very curious to work with motion tracking. I wanted to explore this for a long time because it is used for a lot of security reasons. Therefore I worked with for my a new software: Matlab. which made it more difficult. But this way I came closer to how it is used in society. The input I used was of course security footage (internet). The next step was to work with a live stream. Interesting to the script was that it predicted motion. It made me think about how this predictions in the future will be a part of our system. The aesthetic part for me is the blob analysis, the group of connected pixels. But I didn't now how I like to go furher, it feels like a dead trail.
'beyond own biological limits.'
collaboration with Timo
sensor types: Hall-sensor / Fluxgate magnetometer
The first step is to experiment with a hall-sensor, arduino and magnets. The project explores magnetism from a human point of view. In other words the project explores what we associate to magnetism, an invisible force that attracts or repel two points revealing an hidden unescapable dramaturgy.
http://dewidevree.org/magnetoceptia-2/
http://www.rlfbckr.org/work/the-conversation/
The first prototype show you four sensors that reveal the magnetism spectrum trough sound. What had to be visible to the viewer was it magnetic force, so the magnet had to move out his self. Therefore we used the counterpoles of the magnets. Revealing the hidden unescapable dramaturgy. The installation is there for build, by using a pendular motion. This system could slowly uncovering a message creating a dramaturgical tension of attraction. This tension was both governed by magnetism both governed by having a message appearing and disappearing. The motion of the magnet would briefly pass over the sensors and revealing short data of the message by then losing pendular motion and slowly setting over the magnets procedurally uncovering the message played as audio file.
For the installation we used four hall sensors, magnets, arduino and max MSP.
For the next step we need to go back to the base, to keep it as clean as possible. The audio will not be a music (viola) but a voice Recording of a stanza from "The Prometeus" by Shelley. because it was not working with the context. As a conclusion, the narrative message layering over a conceptual landscape often works the best. The system slowly uncovers the stanza and this process creates a acceptable human analogy to magnetism. This is also a problem with the design it must be brought back to a core. We removed three sensors (because I bought three digital hall-sensors) to one analog hall-sensor. With a analog hall sensor it is not just a switch, It brings te possibilty of a spectrum. That way you can hear the sound slowly disappear. The design had to fit the pendular motion. So we welding a tripod, big enough to stay away from the magnet.
mind of the machine
collaboration with Jeanine / compression study
http://www.dwbowen.com/underwater/
one our of rain.
Anthropomaterials
essay; seeing machines
The further I come in my study of photography, the more I want to distance from it. The urgency still lies with images. But the way I want to acquire them changes. The problem isn’t photography itself but the way it is used over time, it has undergone a transition – Something that’s difficult to make sense in his existing framework. To me, it seems that the traditional way of photography is still used as the industry (and by the military) have developed it. The world they’ve shaped looks nothing like the world we thought we lived in. It became a very aggressive form. The saturation of the image, the overflow of data, the 21st century world pushes me to think about new ways. This oversupply of footages brings new opportunities and I want to explore them. Eventually I will always come back at the point that the viewer will be allowed to look critically again and revalue the image.
The last project I did was an investigation at the hidden images that constantly crossing the public space. Invisible communication networks observe our surrounding and produce constant recordings. I wanted to make a device that let me see, there perspective and will capture it. By building my own tool. [1]
Nowadays I'm still fascinated by ‘seeing machines’. Not only humans see the world. Machines see the world for other machines. How do they see the world? How can I make this visible and what can I learn from seeing like them? What will I receive from those systems? I would like to think about what role the medium within is playing. No ground-based photography can capture those systems as well as the hundreds of satellites operating above us. Representing the new world order. When the world changes, the Image together with it. I want to go along with this and not feel the limit of the frame. The position of the image changes and I want to explore new forms.
My working titel for the new project will be 'Seeing machines'. It seems I want to build a automated capture system
