Tag Archives: installation

Suspend your Disbelief | Documentation | Analog Midterm

March 14, 2017 Yi Xian Leave a comment

Some Thoughts on Process

What started as a working title became surprisingly apt when I had doubts about whether this project could be materialised. It reminded me of an article in the local newspaper a few weeks back about Christo and his 2 decade long project in Colorado. Interestingly, he mentioned in the interview how getting permits and approval was an integral element of the spirit of the project.

Variations between Planning and Execution

Initially, I intended the swing and larger hammock to be closer together. However, the larger hammock had to be placed further to the right, down the stairs so as to not obstruct the fire sprinklers.

Example of fire sprinkler underneath the staircase

Making a Prototype

Before getting loads of rope and fabric, I made a prototype using scrap materials such as wires, shoelaces and some spare cloth.

I tied this makeshift hammock onto my bed post and experimented with the placement of ropes (3 points vs. a single pivot) and the motion it created using each method.

Trying out these prototypes was very useful as it allowed me to gauge the strength of cloth needed and shorten the width of the hammocks based on the wood flexibility and strain. Instead of winding the fabric around the pole, I opted for sewing as it would be more secure and able to bare more weight.

Creating the Components

As the forms in the installation become increasingly open from right to left, I choose 3 different earth tones to emphasise this gradation and complement the space underneath the stairs. The darkest fabric corresponds to the shallow hammock which is wedged by the stairs and forms an enclosed private space.

First, I cut the fabric to width. I initially intended the hammocks to be at least 1 metre in width. But due to the flexibility of the wood, this had to be reduced quite a bit.

For extra security, to bare heavy weight, and to prevent unravelling in case of wear and tear, I sewed several lines over a large area and ‘locked’ the sides.

Problems and Revisions

During the initial setup on Sunday, 1 of the sticks broke in the middle after some use. Oh the horror! Each hammock/swing had 2 points of support on each side (4 points in total to share the load). To prevent excessive flexing and bending, I revised the design by adding an additional point of support at the centre of the wooden pole.

I cut out a gap enough for the rope to go through and coil around the pole and reinforced the stitching with… more stitching!

Video Documentation

FYP Proposals

FYP Ideas | Seed Stage

March 14, 2017 Yi Xian Leave a comment

There’s this wise line that goes something like “I’ve spent so much of my life regretting the past, and worrying about the future, that I forgot to live in the present”. This, coupled with an incapacitating indecisiveness and overthinking, pretty much sums up a large part of my life. However, after reaching a recent turning point, I try to live by this motto each day.

Regretting past mistakes, worrying about the unknown and indecision share a common trait — stagnation. Although I’m in the process of tweaking these habits through trial and error, the best counter measure I’ve developed to combat overthinking and inaction is simply, doing.

I’d like to continue this personal exploration and extend it to my work as an artist. Stemming from the Art of Doing, I’ve come up with 2 initial FYP possibilities. Despite having the same starting point, these take different directions which I hope to be able to reconnect after more research and exploration.

1. (working title)__

Final deliverable
A full body immersive installation

The work will play with ideas such as sensuousness, feeling, and engage the physical body over the thinking mind. It aims to create an environment for visitors to experience simple, physical pleasures; to concentrate more on the experience than themes and narrative. Some simple yet gratifying pleasures that come to mind:

Still from the movie ‘Amelie’ (2001), uncoiling a ribbon

Still from the movie ‘Amelie’ (2001), falling dominos

Still from the movie ‘Amelie’ (2001), peeling dried glue

The installation would alter aspects of experience possibly through suspension, instability, weightlessness, textures, tactile sensations and smell. It will also employ sound to enhance the environment.

On scale
The large scale of the installation will allow visitors to engage with the environment using many different faculties. More than just sight or hearing, when users put their whole body into action in something bigger than one’s self, they may feel small and even disembodied. User’s will also tend to test the limits of this large and unfamiliar space, not unlike how a child would explore the full potentials of a new toy.

2. Emporium of the Ludicrous

On Form, Process and Medium
I’m looking for ways to move away from a single final installation and incorporate the process, performance, prototypes video and installation into an inclusive 12 month long project. I feel that Maywa Denki’s cohesive presentation methods is an excellent example of this.

Final deliverable(s)
Series of seemingly ridiculous inventions and prototypes + a final installation which would integrate these devices into an emporium space along with a final more developed kinetic and mechanical installation.

The final installation which will be shown alongside the interactive devices will primarily be a mechanical and kinetic interactive installation with a domino effect. Sound (either generated digitally or mechanically) will be an important element in creating mood.

Related research topics: Kinetic art, kinetic sculpture, mechanical art.

For both these potential ideas, I don’t wish for the viewers to engage in literal ‘doing’, which is more a personal aspiration and starting point for the works. Rather, it will prompt visitors to experience the space through instinct and sense, and let intellect take a back seat.

Scrapbook

dotw5: Sensible Data

October 4, 2016 Yi Xian Leave a comment

Martin Hertig’s Sensible Data is an art installation made out of 3 interactive devices. It invites participants to make a physical passport through 3 distinct steps. The devices are modified variants of Piccolo CNC (an open source machine which uses arduino) and a Raspberry Pi coordinates all 3 machines to create a seamless process.

First, the participant takes a selfie portrait using the iPad. The first device will start making a line drawing passport photo of the participant.

Next, the participant is tasked to send an email to the a given address. This analyses and judges the selfie portrait they previously took using an algorithm. It returns data and triggers the second device to stamp in specific details on their passport such as beauty percentage, age, gender and mood. This information is stored in a database. The machines are very well made; not as efficient as a printer but the mechanical action is visible and adds visual interest.

Lastly, the participant presses a nondescript button which is actually a fingerprint scanner. This validates their passport, and the third device stamps a seal onto it. The physical passport is thus completed. An email with all the data of a matching person in the database is sent to the user. This begs a question so relevant in our modern age of information and technology: how much do we value confidentiality and the privacy of our personal data?

While the circumstances and conditions are intentionally absurd (it sends participants the data of another user whose portrait drawing has the same number of lines), Sensible Data brings up important issues that we have to consider, such as the tradeoffs of technology and immediacy, placing trusts in systems, measuring human qualities using computerised systems and assigning numbers to these qualities etc.

The devices come together pretty well and have a key role in the installation. Each device has a simple core concept and task it performs. I feel that asking the viewer to go through multiple steps and perform different actions is often less effective as the drawn-out experience requires sustained attention from the participant. It often makes for a choppy and cumbersome art experience. However, Hertig’s work doesn’t strike me as tedious or overly-complicated. It is successful perhaps because the end goal is clearly made known to the user from the start: simply make a passport. Each step also provides instant gratification and each action has an immediate, visible outcome. This sustains user attention and increases the continuity of the work.

Sensible Data in action:

Sensible Data

More details regarding the technical process can be found here:

Sensible Data Process

Martin Hertig:
http://martinhertig.ch/

My Work, Prototypes

Stretch | semester project

April 22, 2016 Yi Xian Leave a comment

Stretch is an interactive art installation which invites participants to interrupt and manipulate a stretch of time through hand gestures. It distorts sound and movement, mainly through granular synthesis, ultimately creating a frenzied yet stimulating interactive experience.

Participants wear gloves and play with an unfolding cube to control the screen projection and sound in the space. The wooden cube is the main point of interaction and guides the participants’ gestures. The setup includes a base with a pressure sensor to detect if the cube is lifted off the base and in use; this starts up the sound and visuals. Each glove has a gyroscope attached to capture the gestures made. Additional data from the right hand is input into MuBu, a machine learning system, in order to detect when participants shake the cube. The left hand also has a bending sensor to measure grip.

Part I

The screen projection is made out of several familiar head actions such as a rotating stretch (typically used for exercise warm-ups) and nodding. The head movements correspond to and act as feedback to the gestures and sound. The visuals were inspired by Modell 5 by art duo Granular Synthesis, as well as the warped portraits of Francis Bacon. I found the face and head to be a suitable subject as we are immediately drawn to it and it catches our gaze.

However, on hindsight, I would have built a physical setup consisting of objects such as pendulums and weights, and filmed clips of it instead of the face. Although the face has its advantages and recording footage of it is much easier as it does not require extra time to build, I do feel that it possibly adds another layer of narrative. This may divert the participants’ attention away from the motions and sounds, to the identity or purpose of the person.

Part II explains the technical elements behind the work:

Screenshots of Max patch:

The Forge