Art project: “präzise vergnügen" (precise delight)
compArt (here represented by Frieder Nake, Matthias Krauss, Hendrik Poppe) has adapted the old 1966 program of “Walk-through-Raster" to the peculiar conditions of the media façade of the HVB building. The program is generating sequences of abstract signs as Markov chains, and unwinding the chains onto the hexagonal shape of the light array of the façade. Word fragments indicate, at the same time, the mathematical and algorithmic context.
“Signs" here are groups of 2-by-2 light bulbs that may be lit or dark or take on some internediate lightness level. Out of the large set of possible elementary combinations, we have selected a few only to be used as the repertoire of the Markov chains. Other artists who were given the opportunity of playing the media wall are usually employing high-level semanticly rich signs (faces, bodies, text - recognizable image elements). Quite differently, we decided to be concrete: the material of the façade itself, the light bulbs as such, became our material. Our animations do not have any meaning, they display nothing other than the lights. Or, rather, our animations show a bit of mathematics. Since mathematics is terra incognita to most people they see lights and nothing else.
Makov chains are sequences of events were the probability of the next event's appearance depends on the event before. We use the dynamic case where those transition probabilities vary over time.
Tim & Jan Edler (realities:united) have designed the HVB building light media façade, and are the curators for the various shows now there on display. It is on during early morning and evening and night times. Visit http://www.spots-berlin.de
“Signs" here are groups of 2-by-2 light bulbs that may be lit or dark or take on some internediate lightness level. Out of the large set of possible elementary combinations, we have selected a few only to be used as the repertoire of the Markov chains. Other artists who were given the opportunity of playing the media wall are usually employing high-level semanticly rich signs (faces, bodies, text - recognizable image elements). Quite differently, we decided to be concrete: the material of the façade itself, the light bulbs as such, became our material. Our animations do not have any meaning, they display nothing other than the lights. Or, rather, our animations show a bit of mathematics. Since mathematics is terra incognita to most people they see lights and nothing else.
Makov chains are sequences of events were the probability of the next event's appearance depends on the event before. We use the dynamic case where those transition probabilities vary over time.
Tim & Jan Edler (realities:united) have designed the HVB building light media façade, and are the curators for the various shows now there on display. It is on during early morning and evening and night times. Visit http://www.spots-berlin.de