Closer
CONCEPT
Relationships between the body and technology evolve in parallel with technological progression. Super connected devices enable us to see and experience the world anew. We keep them close. They fuse the virtual with the real. They are part of our everyday. The intention of the closer Sprint was to reflect on the relationships between the body and technology. This included the importance and repercussions of our proximity and intimacy to technology. Devices and technologies are embedded in our clothing, accessories and wearable items. The aim of this sprint was to develop outcomes that could afford a critical perspective to our everyday experiences with technology.
PROCESS
At a warehouse in Lincoln Street, the initiators of the 3 selected projects as well as a range of collaborators joined us in the 9 day Sprint. The first couple of days were spent refining the projects conceptually in a collaborative way – mostly discussions around the table and furious butcher paper scribblings. During this time some basic electronics and soldering skills were taught as well as an introduction to the Arduino programming environment. Days 3-8 consisted of project development and occasional brainstorms when faced with technical or conceptual impasses.
Here’s a video of the second last day of the Sprint, when things were winding up:
OUTCOMES
Day 9 was the final presentation in an exhibition format. The three projects were presented or performed in a semi-formal environment and we came together to discuss whether the hopes and expectations of all involved had been met. The projects developed during the sprint were the following:
The Mediated Body of Plants
This project is about articulating the spatiality of our living environment. While we keenly and attentively look for applications of technology to the body of the human, broadening our awareness of mediated spatial relations with our environment, we have a ...Read More >
Honest Conversation
Becoming more accustomed to speaking online, we can develop a different persona; typing things we wouldn’t have the confidence to speak. We are constantly renegotiating privacy and pushing the importance of sharing through Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, Youtube and ...Read More >
Sim Needs Meter
This project is a kind of electronic Sims Needs Meter wristwatch, for ʻnon-simulatedʼ users to track their needs in real life. Within the computer game Sims, players utilise a needs meter that functions like multiple standard health bars. Needs such ...Read More >