Artist Bursary 2018: Interactive programming, glass, light and sound.

This is a bit of a stock take of what I’ve achieved over the past 8 months. I’ve not only made a massive step forward in gaining Max MSP programming knowledge and created a system which includes light, glass, and sound that I can use to develop new interactive work. I’ve  gained skills in soldering, building electronic circuits, laser cutting and the inevitable troubleshooting of all of the above. I’m pleased I pushed myself to create a complete functioning unit as opposed to solely concentrating on the programming, because other than acting as a great motivator, taking on this challenge has given me an insight in how well/bad certain factors I initially had in mind work.

As mentioned in an earlier post, I was part of the Come Find Us event in Leeds this December (https://www.facebook.com/events/973814029473879/). I was given the opportunity to install the work and chat to visitors about my progress. It is a bit daunting to show unfinished work, but I got through it. I installed 4 glass sculptures each with their own hanging structure which incorporated anywhere between 6 to 16 neopixels, totalling 52 pixels x6 soldering points each, I can tell you, that is a lot of soldering!  I can address each of them individually with any colour under the rainbow; a wide angle webcam to detect and track visitors in the space and a set of speakers to play field recordings triggered by the amount of visitors detected.

Playing with the installation these past couple of weeks was invaluable and has made me think about what I want to create in terms of experience/perception of the space and our place in it as opposed to just getting excited about what the technology can do. Making a tool that was purely reactive was never my intention, but I did go back to the, I-move-and-a-light-comes-on- stage, in order to really understand how all the different elements work together. Having the installation located in a well used area means I got plenty of feedback, which was really helpful.

I am now at the stage to play with perception and anticipation and how sound becomes almost a physical thing when it is linked to your movement. Exciting times ahead so watch this space…!

I love learning Max MSP, particularly the control over the structure of my program visually and how that helps me to construct its framework, the help functions are extensive and actually helpful! Getting constructive feedback on my patches makes the process of learning so much more efficient, as it’s not so much about making mistakes, as things just won’t work if you do, but for someone to show you a shorter or more robust way of programming something kills bad habits from the start.

The structure of the program is built with modularity and flexibility in mind. I’m developing a number of parameters accessible to change so this really becomes a tool in addition to my glasswork, something I can use in various ways to develop new and different work.

The structured and directional learning of Max is in sharp contrast with trying to get various elements of hardware to talk to each other. I have definitely underestimated the time, knowledge and effort this would take to get right. I naively assumed, as I’d more or less decided which peripherals/externals I’d be using based on other projects and some research, it would be a matter of purchasing them, reading the manual (yes, I actually enjoy this part!), connecting everything up and after some trouble shooting with the programming I’d be able to get them to work.

Newsflash: electronic parts frequently come, in an incredibly anonymous way, in a small plastic bag labeled with just the part number, placed in a jiffy bag … and that’s it! Never with instructions, rarely with a schematic of how to wire, what or where; any particular warnings; what you’d use it for, etc.…

This is where you spend hours on the internet, you learn about schematics, power adaptors, electric circuits, wires, resistors, capacitors, voltage and so on. Then the troubleshooting of getting the various elements to talk to each other and in the way you want easily becomes a couple of days or weeks. I’m going to spare you the very long, tedious explanation and reasoning that happened in between and why I’m now using Max MSP with a Teensy 3.5, SK6812 Neopixels and my very solid basic laptop webcam, instead of Arduino, WS2812B Neopixels and a Kinect.

It’s actually quite hard not to get side tracked. So many possibilities are opening up and ideas are coming thick and fast, but the only way to get anywhere is to keep my goals in mind and concentrate on the task in hand. Making a stable prototype that can be used as a module in larger implementations/projects. The desire to make this into something more specific would lead to a short time gain, but I really want something that I can treat as another element I build work with, a flexible, scaleable, interactive unit that opens up my opportunities to work I’m really interested in.

Alongside this I’ve been working with Hackspace Leeds to make acrylic hanging structures to incorporate the Neopixels in and hang the glass work from. For my demo I’ve decided to use some existing pieces and build a larger installation out of that. I’ll be demoing and talking about my progress so far as part of Come Find Us – Leeds. It’s on Dec 7, 2018 at Patrick Studios, LS9 7EH: 7 – 9pm. Find out more here https://www.comefindusleeds.co.uk/ and for up to date info on the event go to their fb page

https://www.facebook.com/comefindusleeds/.

Diving into a world of sensors, programming, hardware, software it becomes evident to structure what I want to learn, whilst keeping an open mind for the possibilities each separate element has to offer. A form and functionality is roughly shaping in my head, but to see it clearly I need to start forming questions, setting out a flexible framework for the thing I want to make. This project is as much about learning new skills as it is about developing my own answers to them. Why do I want to bring these elements into my practice, what do they really mean, how are they relevant to what I’m doing? Some of these come up as early as the funding application. As much as you inherently know that this is the path you want to take, it takes some prising out for substantial answers.

To define the physical elements I would need to complete my project, I started writing down the vision, descriptions of experiences and images I had in my head. I did this over a period of a couple of weeks trying to limit my thinking to what I wanted as opposed to what I thought/knew was possible. Then I’d start to look at those critically, did I think anyone would really be interested in any of those, would these actually create a real value as opposed to creating a gimmicky effect,  fun to play with but not really saying much, and what is it I really want to say? How do I include/ use silence as another sound?

The elements that I want to be part of this project in its finished prototype state are:

• A sculptural object made out of several glass sculptures.
• A way to detect visitors in the room.
• A way to analyse their behaviour, be it actual movements or patterns of movements in the space.
• The proximity of those visitors to the, which I currently imagine as central, object.
• A response from this sculptural object in the form of light and sound.
• For all of these elements to be able to be reconfigured in new combinations, with different behaviours and sounds and to be able to add video / audio in and out to this.
  

Background

As an artist having used glass as a main material for about 10 years, I’ve been collaborating extensively with a digital artist for the past three years. Those projects re-ignited my interest in programming and introduced me to the creative possibilities of Pure Data / Max MSP. The reason for selecting this specific programming language is that it is developed with sound, video and light in mind; elements that are already part of my current work. It is also extremely suited to interactive programming.

The A-N magazine Artist Bursary 2018 offered me the chance to explore and expand my technical skill in Max MSP programming with well grounded teaching; to find my own voice in using technology in combination with my glass work. The aim of the project is to have a working stable prototype by the end of the year.

Max MSP is a visual programming language geared towards manipulating sound and visuals. Taking in audio, video and other externals such as sensors and program them to respond through those externals.

I’ve expanded on my choice for MaxMSP here, following a conversation at Hackspace Leeds on this topic, because there are a multitude of options when you want to explore what I’m trying to do. The world of programming is very diverse and there’s no one answer to anything. I’ve decided to use a language that I’ve had some experience with already, that I knew would be up to the task and that I felt an affinity with. In the future I might expand to other programming languages, if after having worked with it intensively I find it no longer fulfills my needs. It’s as much a personal exploration as a structured way of learning new skills, no running before you can walk.

A short word on blogging. Writing about my work doesn’t come naturally to me, so I’ve made many a draft up to this point. Questions on what makes an interesting blog, what parts are interesting to share, how detailed do I make the content all play a part. I’m sure I will get it a bit wrong at times, so if you’d like to know more about a certain aspect then ask the question and I’ll give you as much as I can. As you can see I’m a visual artist first and foremost, images will have a much more up to date state of where I’m at.

The process of developing this kind of work isn’t linear, there are various strands that can be developed simultaneously, the glass objects should be developed along side getting the hardware to function as limitations of both can influence design decisions you make along  the way. Lots of time goes into developing new skills, such as soldering electronics, researching/testing/discarding sensors and other externals, making power connections that are safe and suitable . Which means reaching out to people with specialist knowledge, so when stuck in one area, I continue on another until I’ve solved the problem. For that reason I will post whatever part it is I’m working on.

Beginning

After the joy of having been awarded the bursary, (temporary) disappointment came fairly quickly. The course I planned to take, Max Visual programming for artists and designers at London College of Communication, was postponed to July and there were early signs the same might happen again. I was worried my fairly flexible schedule was to be delayed beyond the point of making my goals for Dec achievable. I reached out to a programmer friend who put me in touch with the Yorkshire Sound Women Network, which eventually led to arranging one to one classes with James Bradbury, Phd researcher at Huddersfield University (extensive experience in Max and teaching). We discussed teaching plans and after getting the go-ahead from AN-magazine, It turned out to be a blessing in disguise, double the amount of teaching time, closer to home, on a one to one basis.

I set myself the project of developing a prototype that is stable and functioning, with the idea that in future it can be used in multiples to develop various installations in collaboration with other artists. The prototype has five suspended glass elements combined with the use of ultrasonic sensors and Kinect to detect movement in a space and respond with various behaviours. The idea is that these behaviours can be tailored/completely changed in response to different spaces, briefs and intentions of use. I guess I’m expanding my core materials for developing work from the physical and liquid side of glass to the immaterial world of electric connections, zero’s and one’s.

Arduino Uno, 16-Neopixel ring, ultrasonic HC-SR04 sensor, separate power supply for the Neopixels, and some props to create a circuit to test the connections. Once this works, the plan is to channel the readings to Max Msp, analyse them, and send a message for action back to the Arduino.