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(This piece is a current work in progress for my senior thesis project at an art program I attend, hence the format. I'll continue to update this page as development continues!)
Describe the ideas behind the piece you plan to create. Be sure to think about the audience you are speaking to.
In a world where we as a species have grown dependent on technology, companies and corporations find more and more ways to sell people the newest, flashiest devices, sold with intentional restrictions in repairability and other faucets that force the machine to be rendered (seemingly) useless within 4-5 years, becoming another piece of waste in a landfill. The rise of artificial intelligence in recent years has also contributed negatively to the culture of technology, particularly with the general public. From using immense amounts of energy to operate at large scales, to being integrated into machines that are already designed to be non-functional within a few years, it’s not hard to see the decline in technology being at the fault of money-seeking corporations.
Technology wasn’t always this way however. The computer especially was a very utilitarian device, a tool to express one’s self and do what mattered most. They served as “bicycles for the mind.” (Steve Job, Apple co-founder, famous hater of repairability) Being akin to that of something like a car, computers were very commonly made and sold with repairability in mind. From hot-swapable batteries to quality of life mechanisms to get into the components of the computer easily, repairability once was a standard for computing. However as time went on, this became less so the case. Computers would be designed to become obsolete to make way for the new, “better” version that they were continuing to work on, integrating uncommon and difficult means to repair one’s computer, ensuring that the only way to keep their device functional was by buying a new computer.
Many efforts have been made to help combat this, however, the constant waste of various hardware has grown to inevitability, resulting in an onslaught of devices used to make money quickly and cease operation within a few years. My piece tackles this by creating a scene of digital gore, putting viewers into an unsettling situation of watching a physical representation of the degradation of a piece of technology.
3D work - Width x Height x Depth (Variable)
Include sketches, thumbnails, scripts and samples.
(TODO)
The piece would ideally work best in an isolated light-and-sound-controlled space with a 90° angle in said space. The two thermal printers would be placed equidistance from each other, centered on each of the adjacent walls. Large rolls of thermal paper would likely be exposed. About 4-6 feet above the printers, the strip of LED dots would be attached to the wall. The center of the strip should be directly on the angle of the walls. The computer (either a Mac Mini or Raspberry Pi) would be mounted to the wall nearest to the entrance of the space, about 2-5” away from the respective printer.
The space would ideally be dark, allowing as little light in the space as possible.
From a technical perspective, I’m not entirely sure how I will get each component working. I know what could work, but often when working with hacked electronics and things that probably wouldn’t be typically used together, issues almost always arise.
From a non-technical perspective, I think the most difficult part will be successfully creating the desired atmosphere. There’s a lot of variables to keep in mind (including location) and it’s hard to be certain if the correct atmosphere will be able to be achieved based on a number of things.
The first step I should take is getting each individual component of the piece working beforehand. I estimate this will take a majority of the time, around 2-3 months. I want to be sure to get the printers working before any other part.