My newest artwork titled “stream” is on public display at the “Rejuvenation” exhibit at the newly remodeled Ojai Valley Museum.
The show, curated by Museum Director Michele Ellis Pracy, features the work of over 60 members of the Ojai Studio Artists association. The show opened Saturday April 26th with a gala reception and runs through June 14th, 2014.
“Stream” is an alpha level prototype of a much larger and richer interactive environment designed for public spaces.
It uses a structured light imaging sensor to capture thirty 3-dimensional images per second, which are digitally processed to identify and isolate any humans from the background, the resulting silhouettes are flipped (mirrored) and then traced to form polygons and filled with a stream of energized particles, all happening in real-time.
Viewers are encouraged to interact with their “energetic reflections” without the need to understand the underlining technology.
I chose to render humans as “containers” of energy to illustrate our collective connection to each other and to all things in the universe – ultimately we are all made-up of the same energy and matter.
In keeping with the theme of the show “Rejuvenation”, this is my return to writing software since abandoning it in 2006 to become a full-time artist. There is a purity and truth in exquisitely architected code – logic, math, art and science melding together to create a unique experience.
This installation would not have happened without the efforts of dozens of talented programmers who have provided their talents to the common good via the open-source model. I will be posting more on how this sculpture works and where it is headed in the near future. For now, I encourage you to visit the show.