2019 Honorable Mention – Dakota Lewis and Juan Marco

The Control Room

PROJECT_DESCRIPTION

Our installation is comprised of several technical aspects that come together to create an interactive space. With the use of vintage computer and TV monitors as digital canvases, we run codes that exhibit hypnotic imagery as a response to live audio and video input. The data generated is sourced from the input of the attached microphone and camera, and is used to create the visual graphics observed on the screen, resulting from activity in the environment.

INTERACTION

The intention is to re-create a psychological experimental experience, focusing on the idea of subject-bias. We want the user to enter into a conscious state of knowing what the piece/installation is about, what information it is providing; yet as many psychology experiments are, the user/subject will actually be unaware of the true intention of the piece as their unconscious/ unintentional actions will instantly make them a collaborative element of the entire installation. This will be experienced/ captured through the reactive graphics displayed on the monitors that will consistently respond to the environment’s alterations due to user engagement with the space. Record of the experience is also comprised of an interactive entryway leading into the space that will consist of a confrontational booth where the

VISUAL_SOUNDSCAPE

A Processing program, designed to take in a video input from a webcam, averages the color of the image to a single hue. It then uses the averaged values of red, green, and blue to compute sine waves that are applied to an oscillator to generate a soundscape unique to the color of the room. This is a live code that constantly changes as the colors change.

SOUND_RECEIPT

A Python program, that takes the input of sound from a microphone and generates a visual output similar to the output generated by a lithograph. After a wave fills the window, it is exported as an image file and sent to a receipt printer to constantly print the sound history of the space.

DIGITAL_INKBLOT_TEST

A Python program, utilizing 6 turtles in reflected groups of three, uses visual and audio input to decide whether to turn left, right, straight, or stamp a red box and re-center. The purpose is to replicate a traditional Rorschach ink blot test in a digital medium. Because this program makes decisions based on a live feed, the figure generated is a result of random human activity over time. The end result is an abstract digital composition that is used in the same manner of a Rorschach test.

CREATOR_ABSTRACT

Dakota D. Lewis + Juan V. Marco have been peers since high school where they met studying industrial/product design. They have since expanded their knowledge on the sciences at the University of Michigan where they both major in Art, and explore how technology can influence their practice. Their collaborative work is heavily influenced by design elements and executed in regard to their formal art education, moreover it is a form of inquiry where they are able to test and challenge each other’s skill sets and abilities.