Experimental Interaction – G5 – Page 2

February 6, 2018February 6, 2018

Hello World!

Hello World! is a work by artist Christopher Baker where he compiles over 5000 videos of different individuals speaking to an imagined audience from their private spaces onto a single screen as an installation to talk about participative media and the human desire to be heard. He is inspired by the interconnectivity present in our world today, where we might be alone in our own spaces but yet we can be together on this online platform. The viewers can either listen in to each speaker or just be immersed in the cacophony.

The artist wants to discuss about how technology created the existence of social media platforms which functions as a medium for people to share their views with the world, while expressing concerns as to if this ‘third space’ is really providing a suitable platform for them to actually be heard. He wants to focus on the concept of a third space and how it gives people the idea of their presence being noticed. The individuals in the videos continue sharing their opinions with the idea that there are people paying attention to them. However, this makes the third space of the social networking platform seem very one-sided in a sense that although individuals are given the opportunity to share their opinions, their opinions are not essentially heard by everyone else. This brings to a discussion as to if these platforms are social if they do not effectively provide a response to all the opinions voiced out.

Installation in the gallery
Source: http://christopherbaker.net/projects/helloworld/

The entire work in the gallery, one can imagine how chaotic it must be to hear each individual with their own opinions
Source: http://www.strozzina.org/identitavirtuali/e_baker.php

February 2, 2018March 15, 2018

Micro-Project #3: Telematic Embrace

Telematic embrace, what an appropriate name isn’t it! Although we have been discussing about the concept of a third space for awhile now, I find it very intriguing how the third space can offer a sense of intimacy that we used to think can only be experienced first hand in the real world.

The class going on adobe connect
Source: Taken from my phone

In this micro-project, what we did was to go onto adobe connect as a class and interact while following the instructions given each time. We did things such as trying to poke each other while synchronising our movements and angles, trying to form something with our arms with the whole class, and we also made use of objects to show regularity amongst everyone.

A shot of us on adobe connect
Source: Taken from my phone

A shot of the screen when we were trying to align our fingers together in pairs
Source: Taken from my phone

The class showing something pink that we have
Source: Taken from my phone

The class doing a cross across the screen
Source: Taken from my phone

Through this project, I realised the importance of communication and how we can actually interact and negotiate via this third space during the process of social broadcasting. We had to discuss and reach a consensus amongst everyone, before we were able to coordinate in our movements, to actually create something from it. I particularly like the one where we did the cross across the screen. Other than the fact that it looks really interesting in terms of composition, it also displays this fun side of working together in the third space. The first activity where we tried to connect our fingers together in pairs also aroused my interest in a sense that as we do that, not only were we connected in our movements (our fingers), but also connected spiritually although we were technically physically apart. Because of this project, it also got me thinking if the emotional bandwidth from the third space will eventually be strong enough to replace the feeling of intimacy from real human interactions since we will all be so absorbed and comfortable with our identities in the third space.

January 27, 2018January 28, 2018

Grand Theft Avatar?

The moment I received this assignment, I went ahead to watch the video Grand Theft Avatar by Second Front. To be honest, I was completely lost in the video because I could not understand what was going on in the video. Upon researching and re-watching the video a couple of times, I think I am able to gain a better understanding and appreciation towards the work. The video Grand Theft Avatar was a work created by this group called Second Front, which uses the software of a game called Second Life to create life in this virtual world. In the video, the characters mimicked members from the ‘From Cinema to Machinima’ panel, robbed the ‘Lynden Treasury’ then freed the money and left on hydrogen bombs.

Second Front freeing the lynden currency
Source: Grand Theft Avatar video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoHctMuI_HU

Second Front wanted to explore the virtual reality of the third space and this work was an experimentation by Scott Kildall to produce a work using the Second Life software as an emerging cinematic form. I feel like in a sense it is quite interesting as the work showed the possibility of a creation of a space where different people from all around the world are able to interact online. At the same time, it also opens up a world where everything is literally possible, such as the scene where the characters sat on hydrogen bombs.

Virtual identity of Scott Kildall on a hydrogen bomb
Source: Grand Theft Avatar video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoHctMuI_HU

The third space is a multifarious web of connections for all who inhabit and explore and share its dimensions.

-Randall Packer, The Third Space

This proves that there are no restrictions to this third space and everything nonsensical can be explored, unlike having rules in the real world to hold us down, providing the experience of a tangible virtual world.

January 25, 2018January 25, 2018

Open Source Culture Summary

Let’s talk about open source! Source: http://geezam.com/linux-open-source-technologies-benefits-jamaica/

The concept of open source is a relatively new concept which was a remarkable change away from the traditional methods of creative world production. The introduction of open source gave way to much more brand new possibilities that were not explored given the traditional medium and way of sharing. Open source allows and promotes the interaction from people all around the world to alter or to make up a piece of artwork to give the work another level of depth and creativity. From the IEEE POTENTIALS’s article by Randall Packer, he mentioned that due to the introduction of open source, artists are also able to better themselves and their works through a more elaborate research in collaboration with other artists. In relation to production, works are not necessary about making money through it but more of a social process to actually encourage social interaction with others to view and evaluate to improve the work. It becomes like a platform which appears to be a blank canvas and everyone will be able to work on it collectively, producing something so unique like a shared masterpiece.

Several people can come together to generate ideas for a work Source: https://www.linkedin.com/learning/teamwork-foundations

However, from the essay on Open Source as Culture/Culture as Open Source by Siva Vaidhyanathan, he mentioned about some issues caused by the concept of open source, one of them being the copyright issue. Copyright was meant to help to stimulate creativity by limiting the rights but now with the rise of open source, it seems like it would be harder to enforce copyrights for just a single individual for a piece of work.

Risk of stealing of ideas Source: http://www.howdesign.com/design-business/business-issues/intellectual-property-copyright-issues/

January 24, 2018March 15, 2018

Micro-Project #2: Tele-Stroll

Posted by Jasmine Foo on Tuesday, 23 January 2018

For our Tele-Stroll, Me and Nadiah thought that we could film our livestream at two different locations that is very relevant to us in our daily lives now, in hall for me and at home for her respectively. We thought that we could use this to show the differences in our lifestyles since I stay in hall while she does not. We also thought maybe we could use this to compare how one may constantly reminisce their childhood even as we age.

In our video, we discussed to synchronise our moves, however replacing it with different objects to suit the context. I would be representing the outer appearance of a person, the more matured side who has to deal with work and is constantly stressed out. On the other hand (or other side of the screen), Nadiah represents the inner child in us, of how we secretly still have that immature side of us that we miss as we grow older and carry more and more responsibilities. We tried to synchronise from the start, closing of a laptop on my side of the screen as she closes a children’s book. We then continued the half body method to carry out other actions such as packing our things, wearing our shoes and walking out. We also tried to synchronise our eye direction when the camera pans to our face, however we later discovered that it would be quite hard to do especially since the cameras might face some technical issues and lag behind. We tried to do the synchronisation by communicating beforehand about actions we will do to prompt a change since it was relatively hard to calculate the exact timing of our different locations.

Although there were some technical issues here and there which made the synchronisation kind of off, I appreciate and was able to see the beauty in this realm of a third space where me and my partner were able to connect spiritually without actually talking if we actually communicated beforehand. It amazes me how two or more people can actually be literally at extreme corners of the world and yet still be able to connect via their phone due to the introduction of technology. Isn’t it amazing?