Category: LookingOutwards-02

The project I was inspired by is called Diffusion Choir, a kinetic sculpture that represents the natural beauty of the movement of a flock of birds created by David Wicks. Holding hundreds of small elements that open and close individually from its custom software, this piece of work is driven by the simulation of flocking movements of birds. Over time, a small portion of the ‘birds’ come together and form a single whole group, collaboratively flying through the air. What I love the most about this project is how well David Wicks represented the flocking of birds just through the opening and closing of each element. Thus, the white color of the sculpture provides a soft, pure, and relaxing beauty of the nature of birds. The special collaborative movement of the sculpture from the algorithm creates an aesthetic unity between the nature (of birds and its movement) and men (from the computational calculations to move each element of the sculpture).

I was inspired by Manolo Gamboa Naon who is a generative artist from Argentina. What I admire from his work is that it appears to be a work of the 20th century, even though it was all generated by code. Manolo defies the common misconception of digital art as cold and mechanical, with his vibrant pieces and extensive attention to color coordination.

mantel – Manolo Gamboa Naon, 2018

MMGGK2 – Manolo Gamboa Naon, 2018

He pieces each geometric figure into algorithms and code to produce his art. Manolo uses Processing. Manolo’s appreciation for geometry in his work is evident in his code, centered as his main focus alongside color.  He states he is not very interested in AI or deep learning, as he is content with generative art and geometric figures. I admire how we sees failures in code as beautiful mistakes in his art. It is evident that Manolo is not concerned over accuracy, but rather the coordination of shapes and color. 

Manolo’s work: https://www.behance.net/manoloide 

Google PAIR’s project, Waterfall of Meaning

I saw this installation by Google PAIR’s project in the AI: More than Human exhibition at the Barbican Centre in UK over the summer. Waterfall of Meaning is based on generative machine learning system that translates sentences to create a “map” of word meanings. It shows how a machine absorbs human associations between words and analyze them into categories by using the algorithms. I remember putting a word “theater” into the machine and the word travelled from the top of the installation in a style of word embedding where you can also see all the other words that associates with “theater.” As the word travelled down, it went through different level of categories in certain direction where the machine identifies which category the word belongs in. (i.e. good vs bad, human vs machine, female vs male)

LIA created a generative application which expresses feelings of summer. Slow-moving zigzag lines are generated as bands going across the screen. These colors and textures are sampled from images of beaches and ocean waves. LIA herself is based in Australia. She is considered a pioneer in the medium of generative art on the internet. Although the work is created with code, many traditional drawing and painting concepts are employed to create an artwork. The ‘Summer’ series should give the audience feelings of calmness and heat. The lines simulate ocean waves as they roll into the shore where you sit watching. Lines cross in these bands, which appear like reflections in the water and waves. It is important to note that perspective is considered in the widths of the bands in order to convey the depth and distance of the ‘waves.’ LIA also created 3 other versions: Spring, Fall, and Winter, which employ their own pallets to express their respective season. Together, the series is called Four Seasons, which all use live generative art to create a moving image. Below is a random still from ‘Summer’.