Tag Archives: Technology

The Geranium Project (R&D) 32

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This week the project hit a bit of a standstill as all I need to do is round things off for the project. I’ll post a version of the final report next week as a final R&D post. I sgot hold of a 10m HDMI cable to move the projector to a darker part of the studio and put up some extra curtains to restrict the light.

Projection from Unity executable

The projection is not great although it is better than the photograph shows and I can run the VR from an executable file now.

I’m writing an essay about the philosophy of the piece after my last meeting with Mike Stubbs but I’m not entirely comfortable with it. I’ve followed up on the artists he mentioned and I find little common ground other than technology. They’re all interesting artists in different ways and I’ve always found it much easier to be interested in artists who I don’t feel as if I’m competing with. I’ll think about explaining that sentence more when I’ve finished this project. The closest work I’ve seen to mine is Jakob Kudsk Steensen, there is an interview with him on the Louisiana Channel here, https://channel.louisiana.dk/video/jakob-kudsk-steensen-%ef%bb%bfour-middle-existence

and he has this work https://catharsis.live/ on at the Serpentine. It represents an ancient forest, created from studies of several real life locations in America, and he models in great detail. In the end though he’s made a film. What I’m really thinking about now is agency within the artwork and whether that is important or not?

This video is from the executable file.

The Geranium Project (R&D) 31

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Monday was spent making further adjustments to the VR world. One of the difficulties of working in VR on your own – the way I do it – is that you are continually moving into and out of the virtual as you make slight adjustments in Unity. It is hard to tell what effect they have had without taking the time to try out the world. On Monday I spent time doing this having been frustrated that I forgot to copy the bird_knot animations onto my portable disc so I couldn’t bring them into the model.

You get a sense of the small iterations I mean from the video above.

I’ve managed to work out the PIR for my arduino for the thunder inside the installation but part of working it out meant I discovered a collection of new parts I need to make the finished article. I tried to get the webcam working to cover this on Wednesday but there is a fault that means I can’t adjust the motion detection subtly enough to detect movement when I want it.

Friday was a chance to copy the current version of the VR before I attempt the build again and to shoot a view of the installation in its almost finished state.

I’ve also managed to set up a projection of the VR experience.

Projection from VR

The Geranium Project (R&D) 28

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On Monday I was back in the studio checking things over and with the intention of working on my 3d models. I forgot to take the disc with me so that went out of the window.

garden painting

One of the garden paintings displayed in the gallery

I took some pictures of the paintings I have on display downstairs and had a look at the VR model, I tried enlarging the sky domes I put on for the last run through but they were awful so I’ve taken them out and am working on some other options.

I also wrote a press release over the weekend and sent it to Doncaster Free Press, Sheffield Star, Yorkshire Post and Doncopolitan. Doncopolitan will put it out through their social media channels so I know I’ll get some traction there, the other press is a fingers crossed affair and unlikely to lead to any publicity. I posted the press release to LinkedIn, a-n (artists newsletter) and Axisweb sites under events and onto the local doncastercreates website where it is now sitting on the front page. I’ve emailed six or seven organisations regionally today and have a few more to do. I also sent the press release to bbc radio. I don’t expect a response from any of these outlets, the bbc have an automated response saying we might use it or we might not, but if you don’t ask you don’t get.

On Monday evening I got a reply from the Doncaster Free Press and they will be running a piece in the paper, as things stand they’re sending a photographer next Tuesday afternoon to take pictures for the piece. I got a lot of traction on LinkedIn, including new local connections and interest in viewing the piece.

On Thursday I had a visit at the studio from Marcus and Tim who are associated with the Doncaster TedX organisation. They suggested that I could showcase the work at the TedX Youth conference in April, and potentially have some involvement with TedX in October. We also discussed several other options for this piece and the installation as a stand alone piece. The Hexthorpe Park idea I had also got some traction with Marcus and he’s going to connect me with someone who might be interested in collaborating.

Luke came to the studio and with his help I managed to get the animated garden working, he also managed to get the AR element for the installation working, we now just need to finalise the interior and the installation will be finished.

Friday I started by painting the interior of the new installation, I got the first coat done before my meeting with Mike Stubbs.

one wall of the new installation drawing

one wall of the new installation drawing

The meeting was interesting and quite challenging. Mike commented on my blog that he wondered about my ‘philosophy’, and couldn’t pin it down, so this meeting went over some ground around this. Essentially he complimented the blog on its detail and comprehensiveness but questioned the lack of any discussion placing my work in an ‘art’ context. He believes that a clearer understanding of where you want to place yourself as an artist improves your work. He also gave me a list of artists to look at who he felt I might want to position myself against (not ‘counter to’, just relatively) and I’m pondering.

I shot a short video in the new installation, where the drawing has to be very bold and busy to aid the AR, but its incredibly dark.