Back Again!

So huge delay since I last posted. I'm lazy. And sick. Mostly over a cold now. How lame. But I am relishing my mid-semester week off! 

Anyway, last week Brad turned me towards a mix of biology and technology in design and art. Natalie Jeremijenko is a "design engineer and technoartist" now based in USA. She is super talented and an all-around genius with awards and commissions and features. More info here: fondation-langlois.org. 

Allan Giddy was another mentioned more specified towards sustainable energy systems. Part of COFA school of art staff (cofa.unsw.edu.au) he directs the ERIA (The Environmental Research Initiative for Art) at COFA, an "organisation aimed at reinvigorating decaying public spaces through the installation of "active" artwork".

And lastly, James turned me towards social experiments including Studio Moniker's "Do Not Touch" interactive video. Ta Da:http://donottouch.org/. Have a go! Its strangely addictive. Like 'pong' or 'pacman' or 'tetris'. (Are these still around?)

While I had seen this particular game before meeting James, I felt slightly narrow-minded or more-so narrow-sighted in identifying the process as a designed element. Perhaps being so focused in 3rd year on a particular niche, I havent exercised my thinking too much. Maybe I just have slacked off and have shut off the part of thinking that allows experimentation in outside design elements to be considered. Does that make sense? Probably not. On the other hand it may have been the way the university has been conditioned to teach. Im not saying or trying to imply that COFA teaches in an archaic way...at all. I feel that teaching has not developed as far as I believed it should have. Do we rely on principles that have not evolved to the level we should demand of it? Its always been understood (in my mind at least) that university study is a more personal, independent-driven level of learning. So why does it still revolve around high school systems? The courses themselves are designed to expand your knowledge on a particular subject you are aiming to pursue in future. They are tailored to inspire, educate, contemplate, drive...If they develop people and their thinking, why is the idea of obtaining optimum marks such a high consideration? Shouldn't the focus be on your ever evolving sense of self and design philosophies and personal growth within said subject? Waaaaay off topic.

Ive been researching the idea of social experiments, particularly frog and TouchTunes' Crowd Sourced DJ'ing at South by South West (SXSW). core77 - has a blog outlining the process of generating and realising this project. Its pretty damn interesting. 

It got me thinking of the Sony Bravia ad. What I would give to let this happen at COFA or UNSW campuses! Screw safety. I want to be emersed in colourful bouncy balls. Perhaps we should stick them to the grey concrete encasing the cofa campus.

Sony BRAVIA Bouncy Ball Advert from Josip Kostic on Vimeo.

Back to the project. The more I look into social experimentation, it develops a stronger tie to the project I am undertaking. Last week I was stuck on the idea of "melting walls". It was really bugging me. Somehow melted cheese was stuck in my head (which is odd, because I hate cheese). Its not necessarily the direction I want to take, but I would like to know the Why behind its consistent reappearance. Perhaps its just the aesthetic I find appealing, or maybe im just too damn narrow in my thoughts.

So. Next step: research (yay) into tech and social experiment (and how to display and integrate this information). Oh yeah, presentations coming up on thursday. Its gonna be interesting: Richard and Karina are "judging"...High school all over again. Maybe I should re-direct and element within my project to question and develop ideals of education. Too late to start a new project? Maybe i'll keep that on the back burner.

DFTBA

HEARTS

Previous posts have hopefully alerted you to the fact that I plan to utilise a 'pulse' concept in this project. BA BOOM! So I did some youtube digging and found this...on the first page and listened to it repeated. I am in fact now listening to it. It makes me nervous. LISTEN!

See. Its creepy. Yet, the beginning half of the video feels oddly comforting. Somehow through media and Healthy Harold and you know, living with a heart beat, it has formed within our 'self' as a (hopefully) sustaining piece of knowledge - that we are alive. That we continue to remain alive. And as the first and most primitive action that generally directs how we live, (well most people) it is strange to find such an odd sound so genuinely intriguing. 

The following couple of vids are from BIODIGITAL SYSTEMS and show pretty much everything else Heathly Harold missed. They've constructed 3D systems and show how our internals function. Even though logic prevails throughout most of my thinking and consciously I understand the roles and regulatory actions my insides conduct on a daily basis, I still find it creepy. 

And this guy, TOMIWA007 (really 007? REALLY) has some internal medicine lectures which are actually quite engaging. He spends 20 mins discussing hearts and beats and location, location, location. Now I don't pretend to know anything to do with medicine other than my allergy pills are running low, but I would listen to this guy and probably wouldn't question his ability...though that might just be based on his fancy-pants stethoscope. 

I guess I should talk on a bit about what i've got concept wise....

Right, so between that last sentence and nooooooowwww I have watched a couple youtube videos, retrieved every single craft googly eye from a box of beads, and brushed my teeth. Yes I am on the ball. The googly eye thing was actually somewhat part of this assignment. Ill keep you posted on that front later. 

Concept. The overwhelming response my subconscious and even consciousness has directed me towards is rather than copying a 'pulse' in form, i've seemed more interested in creating an atmosphere. I might have mentioned this before, but I am pretty sold on the idea of ATMOSPHERE. I think that will go over much better. Ive alway stuck to my gut. Its a pretty good indicator, especially since I keep coming back to it. Close your eyes and listen to that heart beat again...with earphones...and a blindfold. BA BOOM!

More research and sketches to come! Tomorrow however, whilst trying to explain to a certain someone that my internal calendar was off a week, I will (alongside Maureen and Sam) be trying to complete excess work that seems to have snuck up on us like younger siblings. This most likely includes tangible models and 3d models and more sketching. 

DFTBA.