Mdambruc, Generative Art, LookingOutwards-02

Demonstration of installation

weirdfaces

Every piece is unique

Matthew Dorfelt (MOKA), “Weird Faces Vending Machine”, 2013

Link to piece: http://www.mokafolio.de/works/Weird-Faces-Vending-Machine

Matthias Dorfelt’s (Moka) “Weird Faces Vending Machine” is a piece that creates a limitless amount of hand drawn faces that are each unique for $3. This project caught my attention because a robot was creating drawings that had the same style as the artist. This piece allowed the viewer to have a truly custom experience due to the robot conversing with them with their name, as well as receive a one-of-a-kind artwork. I admire Dorfelt’s efforts to attempt to create a robot that created drawings that did not appear mechanical or computer generated.

All of the faces were expressed by algorithmic rules and were programmed in Java Script using paper.js. To create the custom experience, I assume there was a changing variable that substituted the current name of the buyer. Dorfelt created this piece in an attempt to combine both his interests in illustration as well as programming. I believe Dorfelt did a great job of attracting people through his use of humor in the robot as well as the customized “handwritten” notes on the back of the piece – people want to feel special and “Weird Faces Vending Machine” supplies that. Moka’s work is daring to me because it questions the value of his art, as well as art in general by creating it with a robot.

 

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