Another part of our 4th years work involves a rather large and in depth essay on our research topics. I’ve just written up a semi-draft of how this might look, and in what direction I might go with it. Its not due for another two months, and this is about half the length it will be in the final.
Graphic Design Research Essay Draft for DESI401
Creating Hyperrealities through Interactive Conceptual Design.
Technology is advancing so rapidly allowing people to exploring their creativity through it as a medium so much more. Every year new computers are created, new interfaces are developed and as a creative, it’s our job to utilise these technologies, exploring and taking them beyond places previously never imagined. The majority of the schools within the arts rely on technology to enhance or in some way generate work. As this technology begins to get more and more complex and advanced, logically, so does the work we create with it. Software begins to get so complex people spend their entire lives working towards completing it, and others therefore using it. Therefore we are confronted with ideas of reality, hyperreality and virtual reality, which hold within them strong ideas of what is real, and what is not, and how we tell the difference between them. Artists have been exploring these ideas for some time now, and thanks to technology the ability to distinguish between what is real and what is not is actually quite difficult. Although in some cases, people chose not to, living in a constant state of what is called hyperreality.
What is a VIRTUAL/HYPERREALITY?
So what is this ‘hyperreality’? It’s not natural, nor is it virtual — its something in between or a multitude of these two things. Hyperreality is then some kind of enhanced or altered state of reality. There are two parts to this way of thinking, there are hyperreal objects or forms that have been intentionally changed for a purpose, and there are people or ‘proxy’ that live in a constant state of hyperreality mimicking someone else, always attempting to be like something else, and therefore not themselves. Today’s culture, media and consumerists can be seen as being a hyperreal world. Objects are altered to become more desirable and wanted or needed. People strive to be like cultural or celebrity icons, rather than being themselves. Some people even live in a way where everything is taken care of for them, like the lives of celebrities which can be seen as a hyperreality. Sometimes losing the main essences of life like simple communication. The opposite of this is someone trying to imitate the lives of others portrayed in the media, television or film, after watching this fabricated world, they then wish to be in it themselves, which becomes a hyperreality.
Advertising and Consumerism are a perfect example of imagery that’s intentionally altered to create a perfect world, where if you purchase a particular product, all your problems will be resolved, which obviously, is a hyperreality—this is also true with mass communications such as television and movies, even radio! Further more Video Games is a prime example, games such as World of Warcraft— a massively online role playing game lets players indirectly interact with people through their computers. The player moves through a computer generated world quite literally filled with millions of other real players/people—unfortunately some people become so immersed in this hyperreality that all they want to do is constantly be immersed within it. Contrastingly, virtual reality is some what different, its another step forward to literally being in another world. A virtual reality allows someone to navigate or move quite literally through a computer simulated environment using high tech equipment such as a heads up display and electronic receptive clothing such as gloves and shoes, giving a full body immersion, and interaction.
What is CONCEPTUAL and INTERACTIVE DESIGN?
Ever since the first paintings, sculptures and architecture was perceived, people have been interacting with art, objects and form by simply looking at it, or even touching it, but the art generally doesn’t respond to those acts of interaction. But what I’m interested in is the recent advances in technology allowing artists to generate truly interactive art on more levels than just simply looking at it. Involving a persons senses in a whole new way, but also in what seems a natural way. This type of interactive work then begins to bring something new generating emotion, feelings and other things to the experience. All whilst having a certain unpredictability about the whole thing. Installations in gallery spaces can often come across as vacant cold and boring, but by bringing in a sense of interaction whether it be through physical touch, movement or sound suddenly people begin forming a bond with the work—a relationship, even emotions come into play. Another huge part of an interactive work is the uncertainty or that sense of discovery, the process of figuring out how to interact with the work itself. A quote from Wikipedia justifies the definition of interaction perfectly; “Interaction is a kind of action that occurs as two or more objects have an effect on one another. The idea of a two way effect is essential in the concept of interaction.”
Where do they MEET?
Now, after defining the differences between hyperreal, virtual reality and interactive design, I’d like to explore where they meet. At the moment a work of art is placed into a gallery, people begin deconstructing it, and looking at in from every possible angel they can. They literally stark laterally thinking about it in every possible way. So, as a soon as an artist alters a work, digitally or physically it becomes something new, something different something hyperreal. For example, I’d like to look at Build, and particularly a designer named Mathew Falla. Falla uses conventional print display systems to create animated posters. A kind of merged media installational conceptionalist, or the intersection of graphic and interaction design. Falla can be seen employing media from print to motion, generating a digital environment from a conceptual idea. The work ‘It’s ok to touch’. Made in December 2007 in London, is an A1 interactive poster design for the “Intergraphics” show in the London ARAM Gallery. Users can interact with the piece by touching the conductive ink, this then triggers a series of events (slogans, FlickR feeds and animations) beamed direct (via Bluetooth) onto the poster using a high resolution projector. The screen print is by K2 on G.F Smith Colourplan, with gloss UV varnish, fluorescent green ink and silver granules (suspended in a solvent). Although this concept seems very unique and original, its now being employed by many artists around the world. Installational art using projectors and interactive elements through touch by receptive surfaces or motion sensors are becoming much more common. I like the sense of a kind of relationship that begins to get built up between the viewer and the electrical technological side of the piece.
EXAMPLES/ARTISTS who create work like this.
I’d like to look at a number of other artists who also employ the use of installations, with interactive aspects to their work, all of which can be perceived as hyperreal in some way or another. Hyperreal paintings by Adam Stennett are executed with the utmost attention to detail, but clearly the detail has been exaggerated ever so slightly making the images look larger than life or not real. For example water features in a number of his works and its scarily realistic looking, but there’s also something else about it, something uncanny, something different. A. Stennett (b.1972) living in Brooklyn New York. Moving onto a light based installation piece, Japanese Based Designer and Artist Makoto Tojiki (b.1975). I’m absolutely blown away by his projects, and in particular this work titled “The Man with No Shadow”. Although this specific work isn’t interactive, it’s a great example of how technology can imitate nature, in this case, lights are imitating the human form. The work is created completely from LED lights suspended in space. I love how this work blends ideas of human nature with electronics and technology. Quite literally blurring the lines, but also bringing in ideas of Hyperreality. A direct quote from Makoto illustrates his ideas for people to look at things in a different way “I hope the message I convey in a product changes the way people look at things”.
But the most fascinating in interactive work I’ve come across is that of ‘Multitouch Barcelona’. Multitouch Barcelona is a small collaboration of people working on using surfaces to create interactive work with. They explore the way in which people connect with surfaces, communicating with the technology and how these triggers emotion. They attempt to use the entirety of the human body to interact with a given work but this is generally in front of a larger screen. After developing tabletop multitouch technology and working with that, they began moving onto a conceptual installational space where large (up to 6meters wide) screens were used, on a wall generating a huge touch surface for one to be involved with. Titled “HI - a real Human interface” was designed for the Red Bull Music Academy in 2008 and by involving people forms a natural relationship with the technology. Its made up of a two projected display system and a multitouch wall some 3m x 2m in size. Multitouch Barcelona created themselves from the ground up applications designed to engage the viewer into friendly user experiences rather than flashy visualisations. Space invaders is a prime example, just like the original game except the viewer literally throws foam balls at the screen to ‘hit’ the enemies. You can digitally paint with your arms by brushing them across the surface. A physics simulated applications lets the user toss around or throw balls about and literally even hold a ball in the air by pressing against the surface. “Multitouch Barcelona’ tries “to blur the boundaries between real and digital with natural interaction”. I think that is what they have succeeded in making but what does the future hold with advancing technology? Where will it take design and conceptual art in and out of the gallery space?
This writing is still a draft, please take that into consideration.
I’d really like some feedback, so if you have time, please leave a comment. Thankyou.
