Wednesday, February 22, 2006
Data Visualization
Lisa Jevbratt is a computer programmer who used the idea combining programming data into art, which makes new visualization possible. In her data visualization, she includes sublime representations of Internet activity into her work called 1:1, data mapping. Basically, the programming system that she creates enables to map all the IP (Internet Protocol) addresses in the Internet. However, the tracking targets on every URL which every of them has IP address that consists of 4 numbers. In fact, data mapping can create as an art piece of its own style, which software carries the main part of this creating art. There is an important fact that visualization is contrasting with the idea of high ache of making art. I think that the piece visually looks very unique and it shrink all the possibilities of IP address into an statistic form which gives me a total new experience towards programming Art. Moreover, is the author trying to guide the audiences to the IP address or not? Most likely, he is not trying to guide the IP addresses, since there are too many of them and it is not possible to find exactly the one you want to reach. Most importantly, he is just giving a general idea of Internet IP address, which is to show the audiences that how the IP address are migrated. In short, this piece can be viewed just as a visual product, and looking at this piece as a conceptual art, which used program as art. 
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
Changing Space: Virtual Reality as an Arena of Embodied Being
Changing space implies an important fact that virtual reality is changing viewers’ usual sensibilities. However, the participants- or immersants will experience a whole new communication with a space that they have never seen before. Technology enables us to interact with cyber virtual world. In fact, the space does not change, but the nature has change through our visions.Char Davies, an international recognition for pioneering artworks that employ the technology of virtual reality. Davies developed his work as natural virtual worlds which enable the immersants to experience cyberspace with their body as in human-computer interaction. Again, the changing of one's usual sensibilities of space can prompt powerful emotional and psychological responses.
Davies and her team introduces Osmose (1994-95), an interactive virtual environment that users use a stereoscopic head mounted display, which goes along with three dimensional sound that gradually immerse the participants into another space with their breath and balance. Once the users are interacting with the space, breathing is used as a tool to control locations as up and down and body movement will control directions.
Osmose demonstrate an important aspect of Multimedia while it can lead immersants into a total new experience. Breathing can be considered as a relaxing tool that clam the users into another level. Not only that, Osmose consists many environments and spaces. For example, one of the environment- Leaf is a space designs like leaf, but once the users are immersed into the environment, it really collapse the sense of reality and virtual world.
Next, another fact of Osmose is that the audiences do not have options to change the environment since the environments are settled. The whole point is the experience for the users to interact in a total new space, and it is just like the experience of watching a movie in the theater, which the screen will be the total focus to the participants. The piece can depict as a world of stage instead of world of art. Finally, the responses and expressions from the users will be the experience through the piece.
In short, this article inspires us to look in a deeper depth of the theory of immersion. Especially, in the work of Osmose, it focuses mainly between user experience with the technology, such as three dimensional interface and use of breath. Because of that, viewers' participation is the central to the work, and they are the main characters in the narrative, which they are along in the space observing the environment.
Wednesday, February 01, 2006
Telepresence Art
Telepresence implies the participants who experience the remote action of the environment of cyberspace, which dissolving geographical boundaries. Because of that, art can confine between multiple places in real time, but not just in local space.
Eduardo Kac introduces Telepresence Art in the 80’s and 90’s. Basically, he creates a connection between imaginary and reality world. His work encourage users to experience the communication in personal interaction, functionality, and responsibility of a define purpose of Multimedia. For example, the project called Telerobots allows the participants in city A to control a telerobot in city B. Again, this real time interactive installations, robotics and telecommunication really presents what telepresence is about, while the users immerse in the cyberspace as they enter the virtual image of the partnership between man and machine.
Telepresence and virtual reality can only correspond when the participants immerse into the cyberspace which they can remotely control telerobot and receive feedback from their teleactions. Due to that idea, geographic location, size, color, materials can all take place as one image and that image will be the users who experience the virtual space in real time. This similar idea also relates the projects of Ken Goldberg’s Telegarden and Sherrie Rabinowitz and Kit Galloways’ Hole in Space. Overall, a screen can be a bridge that builds up another space of a new vision possibility, while users manipulate the environment.
Next, users have the power to control the virtual space as a two way interaction between human and machine, but there are some critical points among its purpose. For example, people might be curious if the reality can make telepresence more interesting than just virtual reality. I think participants will be more exciting if the virtual space really exists. They want to feel that they are really handling the virtual environment while also handling the reality. Not only that, the intention of users getting into a new visual environment will be an expectation. The impact of interest leads from a powerful feedback or result. They want to know what they can do or feel in that space. Lastly, the experience of telepresence can be seen as an “imagination” from the users. They see and feel the virtual image through new human technology, and those are mainly psychological impact. In fact, the users who deal with telepresence can not have a direct physical contact towards the virtual space.
Lastly, telepresence art has achieved a new level of human experience though art and technology. The users are able to change the art in their vision of space while they are in that space. Indeed, telepresence leads art out from tradition as it narrow all the possibilities down into an image.
