This project is a collaboration with Paul Haim which we began during our first semester at ITP and was displayed at the ITP 2014 Winter Show. We created an interactive digital experience that simulated the experience of a graffiti artist. Below is a diagram illustrating the installation set up.
Inside the spray can is an Arduino connected to different buttons placed on the can. Inside the cap of the spray can is a green LED light which is tracked by a Kinnect under the projection. When the user pushes down on the spray can head, they begin to draw in the projection area. The user can control the size of their stroke as well as the color. There is also an option to have the drawing interpreted as a tag. When the user is done with their image, they can enter their cell phone number and have their final drawing sent via MMS to their personal phone.
Algorithmic Portraits is a personality based design system in which I leveraged design elements to express personality traits. Ultimately I was building a portrait of my relationship with the subject which speaks to the relationship between the artist and subject. The design system was built to accept a handful of subjective parameters to ultimately create a unique individual image - all based on the same algorithm.
I made decisions as follows
1. Color is defined by the emotional role each person plays in my life. My best friend, a cool blue, always makes me feel more calm. My sister, a lush green, is beautiful, healthy, and fertile.
2. Background organization is based on the level of anxiety each relationship creates. My relationship with my mother can be emotionally taxing so there is not much organization in her portrait. However, my sister is my most stable relationship, and her portrait is balanced and even.
3. Each image carries a amoebic translucent white shape. The boundaries of the shape directly relate to the boundaries in the given relationship, the size with the amount of influence I allow each person to have on my life, and the repetition based on how close I feel the person is to me.
This table was made using digital fabrication techniques. The wood bed was cut using a CNC mill, and the layers of acrylic on top that compose the geometric design were cut laser cut. The cutouts from each cat head were carefully saved and outfitted with a glitter adhesive to create this visual effect.
