Sketches made with Wblut’s Hemesh library

This blog has been quiet for a while, due not to laziness but rather lack of time. Some random notes to let you know what I’ve been up to:

• I just set up a Tumblr blog to post more theory-related thoughts that don’t fit this blog so well. First post: Things I’ve learned from disagreeing about (Media) Art on the Internet
• I’m working on some new objects for 3D printing, experimenting with interfacing Modelbuilder to Wblut’s Hemesh library. I have some promising results so far, but actual print tests remain. I will try to post more about this later, specifically providing a class that acts as a bridge between my UGeometry objects and the HE_Mesh data structure. Interchange of mesh data is the biggest issue for 3D libraries right now, hopefully the upcoming PShape3D structure will facilitate this.
• The Modelbuilder lib is due for an upgrade, I’ll do this when Processing 2.0 is out for good.
• I had a great time doing a solo show in San Francisco this summer, as part of the SF Film Society’s Kinotek series, see documentation on Flickr: SFFS Kinotek – Automatic Writing. Thanks to Sean Uyehara and the others at SFFS, as well as the excellent people I met during my stay.
• The SF show featured the biggest collection of Makerbot objects to date – about 25 pieces: Form studies (Makerbot). As always my thanks go to the Makerbot clan for excellent support, at the craziest I had 6 Makerbots printing at once.

Form studies (Makerbot) at the Automatic Writing show

I recently came back from a one-week visiting artist stay at Florida State University, more specifically at tbe Small Craft Advisory Press. SCAP publishes artist books in low editions, usually by working with visiting artists. I had the pleasure of being invited by Denise Bookwalter and Meg Mitchell, excellent hosts both.

The goal of my stay was to start work on an artist book of my work, using laser cutting to engrave woodblocks for printing. Initial tests were promising, although the laser cutter has some limitations in reproducing smaller vector details. Rasterization tends to smooth out certain features and limits graphic complexity at smaller print sizes.

Modular printing system

My original idea was a modular system with circular print blocks that could be rotated for every run so that each book would be unique. This would mean a lot of work for the printers, however, so we agreed on a small print size of 4×4″. We did extensive tests with promising results, but in the end I decided that the small size just didn’t work. To adjust for the small size I had to reduce complexity to a point where it no longer had the qualities I was looking for.

The revised game plan is to do a book of 8×8″ single-color prints (in an edition of 50). The larger format allows for a much higher complexity, while the reduced color palette emphasises the computational geometry. Four alternating colors will provide variation through the book, and 24 pages should give me plenty of space for experimentation.

The book will be printed over the next few months, I can’t wait to dig into the printing process in more detail. My thanks again to Meg and Denise for the invitation!

My solo show Extrusion opened at ROM for Kunst og Arkitektur in Oslo last Friday. I’ll be posting some of the pieces here over the next few days.

Prime Hex, 2011. Light installation w/ 12 fluorescent light tubes controlled via DMX using Processing. 300 x 270 cm. Behavior is dictated by prime number relationships, each element having a given time period where the light is on and off in equal measure.

Prime Hex is a variation of “Prime”, a 2010 public commission for Bybanen light rail tunnel, Bergen. It uses Henri David’s Processing library dmxP512 for lighting control.

Grid Distortion (2007-): Typology and density study

I’m working on a new 6-panel Grid Distortion piece for my Extrusion show next week, the final size will be 540 x 50 cm. I’ve been revisiting all the previous incarnations of the piece and tweaking the code to elicit new interpretations. Which led me to compile this summary of formal “typologies” that the piece is capable of exhibiting.

Given that the piece is essentially a variation on a very simple attractor simulation it tends to give very obvious (even almost boring) results, and its only through extensive tweaking of parameters and custom rendering styles that I’ve found results I’m excited by. Dave Bollinger made an accurate comment on Flickr that these are perhaps not very “watz-y” images, but its the translation of the form onto wood or metal that somehow completes the form for me.

Grid Distortion expanded: CircGrid on aluminum

Just last week I had some new aluminum pieces made in Berlin with Martin Bauer at Lasern in Berlin that represent a new direction in the series. Loosely titled CircGrid, these expand the same process to radially oriented grids. This might seem like an obvious extension, but the results are actually quite different. The images look less architectural, bringing to mind structures from nature like neurons, blood veins and plant roots etc.

I’m definitely enjoying this new and slightly more chaotic direction, as well as the crisp technical look of the aluminum.

Previews of generated geometry for installation for “Extrusion” at ROM

Hot on the heels of the Interactive Parametrics workshop I’m now in Oslo working on a solo show that will open March 11 at ROM For Art + Architecture (Oslo). Titled “Extrusion”, the show highlights how my practice has bee evolving to dealing with ways of physically communicating code-based processes beyond the default means of the computer screen or projection.

The show will feature a new version of the light installation Prime, this time realized with fluorescent tubes and DMX lighting control. Other elements include a wall drawing made by retracing projected vectors with painters tape (1.2 km of it), as well CNC plotter and laser drawings (Arc Drawings and a new multi-panel Grid Distortion.)

Finally, I’m building a large geometric structure (see above) using my ModelBuilder library in Processing. The forms are designed to be easy to unwrap to 2D without tesselating polygons. I’m outputting cutting templates as PDF files to be used by the CNC routers. This is a new process for me, despite having followed the success people like Martin Fuchs has had with unwrapping polygon meshes. It allows me to work on a fairly large scale (as in 3 x 3 x 1.5 meters), articulating actual structures rather than representations of structures.

All in all it’s a very exciting show to be working on, and I’m grateful to ROM and its director Henrik der Minassian for supporting all this craziness… If you’re in Oslo next weekend I hope to see you there!

• Extrusion opens Friday March 11, 19:00-21:00
• ROM For Art + Architecture, Maridalsveien 3, Oslo

Previous tape drawing: Exploder at System:System

To be revisited: Prime light installation

I am currently working on a solo show for ROM Art + Architecture in Oslo under the title “Extrusion”, opening on March 11th. The show will focus on physical installations, a bit of a departure from my software works that I’m very excited about.

One of the pieces will be a new version of my light installation Prime, a public art commission for the Bybanen light rail system in Bergen last year. The Bybanen version uses LED lighting elements and electric relays, intended to be stable for a minimum of 5 years in the rough environment of a subterranean tunnel. The new version will use fluorescent tubes and computer-controlled switching via a DMX-512 lighting control interface.

Fortunately there are several USB interfaces for DMX control, as well as a recently released Processing library by Henri David titled dmxP512. Thanks to the generous assistance of Dan Shiffman I was able to test my interface with dmxP512 today. I’m very pleased to say that both the USB box and David’s library worked without a hitch, literally working perfectly on the very first attempt.

Even given the simplicity of the DMX standard it’s rare that anything works that easily, let’s hope I don’t jinx myself by writing it publicly. In any case, the exceedingly simple code I used is listed below, based on the sample code provided with the dmxP512 lib. Happy hacking, my thanks to Henri David for the library!

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MakerBot model tests

I’m excited to announce that I’ve been asked by Bre Pettis and the MakerBot crew to be first ever MakerBot artist-in-residence. This means that I am free to use and abuse their new Thingomatic model and waste spools of ABS plastic, trying out forms suited to the MakerBot’s quirky plastruder 3D printing method.

If you’ve somehow managed to miss the buzz about MakerBot, what you need to know is that it’s an Open Source 3D printing platform using a plastic extruder head with a moving platform controlled by stepper motors. By laying threads of plastic in layers calculated by slicing 3D models into cross-sections, the MakerBot is capable of producing durable 3D prints for a fraction of the cost of high-end SLA or SLS systems.

Having shipped close to a thousand of their MakerBot kits, MakerBot Industries is the most popular Open Source 3D printer out there. Their new Thingomatic machine is a big improvement on their Cupcake model, adding an automatic build platform and improved layer alignment, as well as replacing some of the Cupcake’s more vulnerable parts with superior equivalents.

The MakerBot is a DIY hacker project and wears its colors on its sleeve. It might lack the slickness and of a SLS machine, but at a fraction of the price it makes 3D printing affordable for experimentation on a shoestring budget. With some tinkering skills and loving care a MakerBot will deliver endless amounts of 3D printed fun. If you need convincing just look at all the models on Thingiverse, the Open Source sharing site for digital designs.

MakerBot’s core community is based on hackers and DIY enthusiasts, for whom assembling a kit and even hacking the hardware is no big challenge. A logical next step is to reach designers, artists and architects, who want 3D printing but might be less technically inclined. But as Bre Pettis likes to say, if you can assemble an IKEA bookshelf you should be able to assemble a MakerBot. Your mileage might vary…

My interest in the MakerBot is as a low-cost platform to test parametrically generated geometry. Having experimented with SLS printing as a way to produce miniature sculptural forms (the Object 1-3 series), I want to make much larger objects and installations. The MakerBot is perfect for hands-on testing of shapes I can later replicate at a larger scale.

The MakerBot is also ideal for parametric models for mass customization. A typical workflow might involve an applet on a web site allowing the user to customize their model, with parameters sent to a server-side application that generates a STL file ready for printing. Nervous System already have several such interactive applets showing how their jewelry is designed.

My goal for my MakerBot residency is to produce a set of models for my upcoming exhibition at ROM for Kunst og Arkitektur in Oslo next month. As part of that process I will be developing a new Processing library for 3D model building, to be released as Open Source along with a series of models I’ll publish on Thingiverse (see thingiverse.com/watz) in the MakerBot spirit of openness. You can already get a preview on Flickr, I can’t wait to add more!

Screen prints: Arcs04-00 (2-color print in edition of 50, 20×16″)

I’m excited to announce a new project in a new medium: Arcs04-00 and Arcs04-01 are silkscreened prints for Random Number Multiples, a new division of Random Number curated by Christina Vassallo. The debut release will consist of two prints by Jer Thorp aka blprnt (see his Flickr set) and these two by myself, and will be for sale through Random Number on February 1st.

It might seem ironic to use silk screening as an output for code-based processes, but my reasons for pursuing this medium go beyond mere nostalgia. In my work with physical formats I am always looking trying exploit the inherent nature of the medium at hand, whether it’s CNC milling, 3D printing or inkjet. Silk screening gives a very different print quality from inkjet or 4-color offset, with much richer solid colors. In these prints I’ve explored the use of overprinting to create a graphic effect, and I’m very excited about the results.

The four prints will be released in an edition of 50 and will sell online for $100 each. Random Number Multiples will officially launch February 1st, interested readers should check out the Random Number blog post which also includes information about how to pre-order.

See also my Random Number Multiples Flickr set for more images and process documentation.

Screen prints: Arcs04-01 (3-color print in edition of 50, 20×16″)

New piece: abstract01js. Built with Processing.js

I finally had an excuse to take Processing.js for a spin. Aram Bartholl is doing one of his Speed Show exhibitions this Wednesday (SPEED SHOW vol.4:’Super Niche’). The Speed Show format is based on taking over an internet cafe and showing artworks that can run in regular browsers without any special software.

Since most of my pieces use OpenGL they’re not suitable for web I decided to try porting an old 2D sketch to Processing.js. Rendering Processing code in the browser by using the HTML5 Canvas and Javascript is a nice idea, but I was curious to see if it would work for my purposes.

As it turns out, the code for Abstract01 from 2003 (originally created for Abstraction Now) worked on the first attempt. After a few adjustments I now have one interactive and one “automatic” version running perfectly in Firefox and Chrome. I have to say I’m officially impressed with Processing.js, my hat off to John Resig and crew!

SPEED SHOW vol.4 takes place today Wednesday, Oct.27 at 90 Bowery in Manhattan, in the 90 Bowery Internet Cafe. Here is the list of participating artists:

Erik Andersson, Cory Arcangel, Michael Bell-Smith, Charles Broskoski, Jon Cates, Aleksandra Domanovic, Doubble Happiness, Constant Dullaart, JODI, JK Keller, Greg Leuch, Olia Lialina & Dragan Espenschied, Duncan Malashock, Eva & Franco Mattes aka 0100101110101101.ORG, Aaron Meyers, Mark Napier, Katja Novitskova, Paper Rad, Jon Rafman, Ariel Rebel, Ryder Ripps, Evan Roth, Brad Troemel, Marius Watz

It’s an honor to be showing in such excellent company…

I’m working on a new series of three drawings titled “Arc Drawings”, made using a plotter technique that I’ve never tried before. The machine is not technically a plotter, it’s actually Studio Mode’s CNC cutting machine which they typically use for completely different purposes. But it can be fitted with a pen instead of a knife, and so doing some plotter drawings seemed like an opportunity too good to pass up.

I’m excited by the chance to continue exploring machine-assisted line drawing, which for me started with the Grid Distortion series. Just as the laser comes with its own material effects, the CNC cutter add some nice qualities to the drawn lines. In order to produce smooth motion the machine accelerates and decelerates at the start and end of every path, which causes a slight ink pooling at the extremes of the line. The drawings will be made on styrene sheets rather than paper, so the ink does not diffuse into the drawing surface.

My thanks to Studio Mode for letting me play with their machine and helping with fabrication. We’re planning to team up and do a workshop together later this year, as part of the great series of ModeLab workshops they’ve been doing dealing with issues in digital fabrication. I look forward to working with them and maybe hook Processing up to Rhino and Grasshopper for some parametric mayhem.