Title :
" Surface Tension" by David Rokeby (collaboration with Eve Egoyan)
Choice of media :
Live Visual
Details :
Made in Montreal, 2010
Concept:
The artist used the concept of interaction between the sounds from the piano into visual. The art appear on the visual is based on the piano key or piano sound that the user interact. The idea is when an interference is added into a visual, it interact with the visual and appear as a perfectly mixed elements between the sound and the visual. In the other word, the sound from the piano effects the visual appear on the screen.
Description :
The installation is an acoustic piano with a computer interface and a screen for viewing the visual. There are a few patterns in the artwork that the artist produce which are "The Pool", "Harmonic Orbits", "The Tower", "Tendrils" and "Flurry". The patterns appear is based on the analog signal from the piano and the signal will be converted into digital and the patterns appear on the screen.
Interaction :
The interaction medium is the piano key or piano sound. The interaction is between the piano sound and the patterns appear on the screen. This will allow the user to create certain patterns on the screen. When the user play the piano key, the patterns on the screen will change according to the sound of the piano. The piano sound is interpreted by a computer into live visual images projected onto a screen rising from the body of the piano. The visuals respond to a variety of performance parameters including dynamics, pitch, the harmonic relation between pitches, the use of the sustain pedal, and the duration of the notes. Each note played on the piano contributes to the construction of a 3D.
Movement/Pattern 1 - "The Pool"
This pattern is about a pebble dropped into the pool, sending ripples flowing outward, disturbing the image. The slow notes give small disruption while loud notes gives the larger disruption. The ripples continue to unfold when the piano sustain pedal is down. The ripples dissolve quickly when the pedal is up.
Movement/Pattern 2 - "Harmonic Orbits"
The patterns form is determined by the loudness of the piano notes. The complicated patterns will appear when two or more notes are played at the same time. Loud octaves produce what looks like a collapsing solar eclipse.
Movement 3/Pattern 3 - "The Tower"
Louder notes push out the patterns further from the center of the pattern while the softer notes will make the patterns close to the center. A chromatic scale produces a spiral around the spine. Repeated piano notes will make the patterns become repetitive.
Movement 4/Pattern 4 - "Tendrils"
The patterns appear is the interaction between notes played on the piano. The low notes will appear on the left and the high notes will appear on the right. Tendrils means the previous patterns interact with the current patterns on the screen.
Movement 5/Pattern 5 - "Flurry"
The base of the visual on the screen is the snow falling. When the piano is played, the snow fall will be visible while when the piano is not played, the patterns will be invisible. When the piano notes played more, the brightness and the visibility of the pattern is high.
Technology involved :
The technology involved in this artwork is the used of the acoustic piano with the computer interface and a screen that is attached to the piano. The computer interface is the medium or the converter between the analog signal from the piano to the digital format which is the visual appear on the screen. This simple technology gives the wonderful patterns on the screen.
Personal Comment :
In my opinion, the artwork is really fantastic as when the user press the piano keys, the nice patterns will appear on the screen. I look it as a simple mechanism but gives the wonderful product of visual on the screen. Next, I love the combination of the piano keys gives the interaction between the patterns on the screen. This looks very fantastic in terms of the arrangement of visual appeared.
As my suggestion, the artwork may have a few improvement in terms of the variety of the patterns on the screen. The more the patterns appear on the screen, the more complexity of patterns will produces as more piano keys is pressed.
Images
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| Movement 1/Pattern 1 - "The Pool" |
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| Movement 2/Pattern 2 - "Harmonic Orbits" |
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| Movement 3/Pattern 3 - "The Tower" |
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| Movement 4/Pattern 4 - "Tendrils" |
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| Movement 5/Pattern 5 - "Flurry" |
References
