List of Monumental sculpture projects 2015

  • 1 http://swannbb.blogspot.fr/2015/02/sunday-robot-play.html
  • 2 http://shuengitswannjie.blogspot.fr/2015/02/interactive-reading-room-tea-house-2015.html
  • 3 http://swannbb.blogspot.fr/2014/06/neo-ming-bed-luxembourg.html
  • 4 http://swannbb.blogspot.fr/2013/02/yuzi-paradise-tell-moon.html
  • 5 http://swannbb.blogspot.com/2011/09/12th-changchun-international-sculpture.html
  • 6 http://www.saatchionline.com/Shuen-git

Friday 24 December 2010

MongKok Carmen, "The Movies" a game by Alex Chan

MongKok Carmen by Wong Kar Wai 1988, **half
As Tears Go By 旺角卡门

I heard about this first film by Wong Kar Wai, and by chance, found a vcd at a shopping center in Mongkok. A HMV special. So I watched this action packed movie with the three young super stars to be.

Jackie Cheung Hok You, Andy Lau Tak Wah and Maggie Cheung Man Yuk. Lau Tak Wah is handsome and Cheung Hok You is quirky and a very good actor. Cheung Man Yuk, she plays a dainty free and natural girl - her gestures are fine girl like (would a shop girl from China/small island be so dainty? If she were, how could she manage to not marry the doctor but went for Lau Tak Wah the mafia guy?

And if she were not afraid to go after the mafia type of bf, she should have some character herself thats more colorful; or she would have had less idealistic expectations of this guy.

I appreciate the complications of the shooting in this movie, the local sets, not a moment of dead air. Andy Lau is really handsome and when he eats dinner with Man Yuk he puts his foot up on the stool first like the thuggish rough guy that he was, then turns to sit properly once it touches the sentimental aspects of his life.

Its a stylised movie of local hk scenario with injected/imported finesse built around a core of mainstream Confucionist "brotherhood", "brotherly love", "family struggles".

The dialogue between the "Uncle" and his two "Big Brother" is interesting. Its a type of local Cantonese and very lively with unspoken assumptions that a non Hong Kong person might find difficult to appreciate.

Same with the opening scene, where Lau Tak Wah receives a phone call from his aunt who spoke in a local village dialect - Lau himself doesnt reply in the local dialect. It implies that these are all new immigrants - but who is not a new immigrant in HK? Everybody ran to HK in the 50s, 60s from Southern China! Older generations either spoke Cantonese with a Shanghai accent or a local dialect accent.

This type of attention to detail and giving on screen time for the use of authentic dialogue puts the film at a more serious authentic level; or at least say, a tiny cut above the regular kick, fight, blood, sex/love/bar/mafia, everybody dies - type of action flick.

Cheung Man Yuk is not yet the stylish high fashion model-like gal we see today. She has a plump face w baby fat, and small almond eye features, her smile is sweet and reminds us of a first girl friend with delicate innocence.

This is no "mongkok Carmen", hardly any trace of a firey iconic Carmen; rather more girl next door disappointed in bad situations of "bad boys".

However, the title is catchy, in keeping with style requirements of HK entertainment. People would watch a "Carmen" like sexy gal rather than "girl next door".

Great combination of the three young actors who each have made a long way to the star position that they now hold today.

"The Movies" a game, by Alex Chan 2006; **half
Alex Chan, made a short machinima film in 4 days, w the “The Movies" Game

interview

This machinima is made with a game package, so the characters, costumes, settings might be v limited. I think the subtitles are fine, some critics say its "awkward" etc but in the overall visual of the film, its not an outstanding issue; its rather in keeping with the roughness of the tool itself. And the film maker had a very strong message to transmit and he did a very good job.

How good a job?
He inspired me to buy a copy of this software to see what tools he had at his disposition.

I have seen a lot of machinima, and this one is very interesting, there is no dead moments, we just want to see whats going to happen next!

===

Thursday 16 December 2010

sl application for design in Architecture, Summer Wars

sl : Kansas+Cairo : Architecture Studio

Japanese animation
"Summer Wars"
(world of sl like story; world of OZ)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WD5QiLi2krk

"How to train your dragon",
trailer 2

Monday 13 December 2010

Bu Hua : "LV Forest", "Sanlitun Village and things that happened there", Tang Ka painting, Greenberg

Very gd animation by Bu Hua
www.buhua.com

「LV森林」卜樺
the video game music with the lyrical flash animation and the message very strong work.

Sanlitun village with a live interactive Habbo Hotel type installation : 李心路,屯裏的那點事兒……

I would have liked to see a short video of the text that was spoken. As is, we see people playing online game together outdoor infront of a giant screen. It is nice, what were the conversation on screen? And would they talk to each other in person beyond the screen back to real life? Its like, if you had all the Secondlife avatars standing together in an open public square all looking at a giant screen with their avatars interacting; would they actually talk to the real person who might just be standing around not far? Would people bother to look up the avatar which interests them in real life? I like to learn more about this project especially.

In general the Chinese participation of their video, animation, digital art work are very strong. Maybe these are professional teams already, not student work. There is clearly a much strong political engagement, personal philosophical point of view as a backbone or repeating theme whereas student works are more concerned with family love, personal experiences. Students world is smaller, and more intimate, youthful more timid and exploration of the world opening infront of them.

===
Greenberg **+half, with Ben Stiller

Through this movie, we see in detail the bland everyday lives of people. Good people, responsible men and women. There is no "bad person" in this movie, only people who started out with ideals and slowly everything wears down day by day; people get by; with or without money, with or without success. The Ben Stiller character said at one point that he only wanted to be with a 40 year old divorced woman with 2 kids - as she would not have high expectations of life with him.

The people whom i saw the movie with all thought this is a depressing movie. I didnt find it depressing, but rather an American version of European (French)movie. French movies are very used to taking everyday situations and making poetry or drama or little moving picture paintings out of these remembered moments. American movies tend to have a much faster, clearer line of action. A typical American movie would have more shots of the party w nice food, and the sex more romantic, not slap dash, awkard - I suspect that there is an agenda to showing "things as they are in reality".

Is a movie to entertain us or to show us reality?

For example the Hong Kong film industry definitely is into entertainment. Most viewers say, for reality? You just look all around you and you get it, why pay to see it again in a cinema?

And the dancer/actress Jing Xing said, you want to see about sex, go home and look at it at home! You know it, whats there to see?

How do I see this? There are all kinds of movies for all kinds of reasons suitable to different viewers.

I think a good movie is one I would want to see again because I did not capture everything in one viewing, I still have curiosity about some aspects of the film.

===

Tibetan religious painting Tang Ka:
西南民族大學民族研究院根秋登子教授現場講解唐卡

===

Sunday 12 December 2010

screenarcadia , Microwave Festival 2010 animation from Taiwan

Film editing, documentation of HuaHui MobileMusic on course.
Film viewing, and criticism writing time.

Films viewed:

The Soliloquist 2009 by Ma Kuang-Pei ***

A poetic interior voice about moments passed being lonely, self ruminations, beautiful graphics with Taiwanese elements, using old books, mail boxes, use of camera and merging of images from scene to scene very clean, powerful effective in lyrical contrast to the soft interior voice; self questioning of who is really Michael? And near the end, the soliloquist finds himself with a new cologne smell from his own body leading us to think, has he transformed himself to another person through these postal inputs - getting out of self enclosure from his heart break (Michael broke up with a boyfriend). Its a very quiet voices telling something important from the speaker. Or was Michael the speaker himself in fact but he is finding himself once more? and want to befriend himself once again? So he says, he said.

Lucky Me 2007 by Chen Wan Ju ***

Sound track is very interesting, are they speaking an aboriginal tongue? Without really knowing the meaning of the dialogue the visual - paper cut out type of hand made technique/style - is very ruggedly beautiful with aboriginal wood house, the red riding pa kicking all the big bad wolves away, the forest; overall very fresh and we feel the swimming mermaid coming up and ploof down, one two three time rhythmically very interesting and humorous charm. Simple story with sincerity and simply good old fashion happiness.

The Edge of Love 2009 by Nai-Wei Liu ***A knife falls in love with an apple and accidentally while bowing - sliced his loved one in half. Finally he finds a walnut to fall in love with. Works very well the story fits, music great. And the knives are typical taiwanese wood handle kitchen knives, everyting works well. Bravo!

Monster Coins 2008, by Vance Yang ***+1/2

3d animation with a fun storyline. The automatic machine pops out a geni who grants the coin payer a wish - the wish might be accomplished in unexpected mischievious ways. Funny and well made. I also appreciate the introduction to the film how the director got his idea for the film from the coin operated egg-gifts from Japan. He said he puts in all these coins and always, he never got the gift he really wanted, but all kinds of other things fell out. This ability to translate our common experience into something comical and true is great.

Monday 6 December 2010

Maria's Aluminum skin gifts 69; Prince of Wales Charities - Qin

Christopher Evans - qin player and sinologist - adopted a cube for the Prince of Wales Charities, why? Because the Prince of Wales is interested in the Guqin! Ha, does he have an avatar? Maybe I should prepare one in his looks just in case he needs one to come to visit?
Maybe the Prince of Wales could come to visit the Digital Guqin Museum, well, I better get the Museum ready for his highness' (avatar) visit!

Maria brought me aluminum skins again, 69! All cut up and ready to be trimmed!
Two big rolls of Austrian beer skins. Very nice design too, light yellow and silver, plus red and silver. And one very special red and beige - communist looking one - now what kind of beer could that be? I must check this out.

Picture coming tomorrow!

Saturday 4 December 2010

Films viewed last wk 1-3rd Dec

films viewed:

"Osmose", dir Raphael Fejto, **half, simple, charming, authentic, shoe string film
Two young guys, the young guy thing they do, short clips showing intimate silliness, fresh

"Mike Tyson", dvd, three documentaries

"Salt", Angelina Jolie, ***
More action packed spy flick. Action is gd, Angelina Jolie deserves every applause for her own stunts. No surprises in the story, but very entertaining.

"The visitor" ***
drama with depth. Watchable a second time.

"VolaVola" machinima, (must be reviewed a second time to give a correct rating)
I always thought 3mn is the limit to machinima films. Here, its 90mn. The story line is quite standard, but there are moments that are v gd specific to the sl world. Like to see it a second time after the first viewing last year at Geode.

Thursday 2 December 2010

Sonic Espaces: Concert immersif Rue de Beauce - les photos ...

Sonic Espaces: Concert immersif Rue de Beauce - les photos ...: "Les préparatifs avaient commencé dès le début du mois. Le mercredi les choses sérieuses se mettent en place. On vérifie tout. Matériel, con..."

Wednesday 1 December 2010

Next HuaHui event, giant mobile phone xo olpc



new giant size mobile phone w xo olpc

Tuesday 30 November 2010

Peter Greenaway Machinima, Ensad bis sl

An interesting feature film in machinima is "Vola Vola, Fly me"
trailer here.

From New World Notes, 25Nov2010

video by Chantal Harvey on vimeo

screenshot of sl talk

Peter Greenaway as Jury for Machinima, Nov25 2010

Peter Greenaway supports Machinima

===
Ensad : visit of Ensad island in sl
Ensad bis
http://ener.ensad.fr/category/ensadbis-sl/
===
Atopic festival 2010 machinima in Paris
===

Monday 22 November 2010

Presences of Taiwan in sl

Visited sl Taiwan presence today, very nice. Retro products, projection screens at schools, exhibition spaces. Met Chihlee Technology Institute sl leader, Professor in real life, Fairy Nomilly Valeska in sl. Interesting meeting. :)



















Sunday 21 November 2010

HuaHui sphere

photo by Miranour, silver HuaHui sphere

Now that the HuaHui mobilemusic is underway, I look at the sphere closely.

Tuesday 16 November 2010

cubes sent from postal service



See left side down middle near edge, these are first cubes sent in via postal services.

Friday 12 November 2010

slactions2010, U of Manchester Business School, Installation; QR code at Taipei Flora Expo 20; Peter O'tooles speech in ratatouille

QR code on a Pepper Display at Taipei International Flora Expo 2010

QR code on panel

QR code closeup : test it with your own mobile phone camera now, take a shot and see what you get?

The same QR codes will be placed on each HuaHui MobileMusic block, linking to each adopters choice of URL.
Details: Adopt-a-cube! Get yourself a private window to the world!

HuaHui MobileMusic installation at Manchester University, slactions2010 conference platform.
http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Manchester%20Business%20School/162/134/21

Manchester University, slaction2010 installation

Manchester University, slaction2010 installation

Manchester University, slaction2010 installation

Manchester University, slaction2010 installation

Posters :: front
Top: Banyan tree on Campus of Zendai University, Tainan, Taiwan
Left: Adopt-a-cube! Open call to all sl rl people
Right: Crossing Boundary sculpture from sl to rl
Bottom: HuaHui serie, Sphere, and MobileMusic, real life cubes in Venice, Italy.

Posters :: back
top: Mabuville, Taiwan; 10% HuaHui MobileMusic in real life, Oct2010
Left: MobileMusic working model real life scale
Right: MobileMusic working model with real life textures
Bottom: Story of the Digital Guqin Museum

======

Peter O'tooles speech in ratatouille
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPfN_zYKxNQ
What a voice.

======

Wednesday 10 November 2010

Very Big Tree in real life Zendai University, Taiwan

Very Big Tree in Virtual World with HuaHui MobileMusic

A very Big Banyan Tree in real life Taiwan!

A Very Big Tree (Banyan) in real life in Taiwan, Tainan, Zendai University -
This tree was planted by the prince of Japan 100 years ago and has been adopted by an insurance company for use as logo. They pamper the tree, make sure no worms, no insects no disease, no lack of nutrient... and on the same grass surface are several other giant trees but this one has shades to cover a small high rise tower building.

Very beautiful tree, the most beautiful living sculpture on the campus.
I even took a nap under the tree.
Many people come to do taichi in the morning, snack during the day, eat breakfast.
What is really nice is that, its never a "crowd" but gently with a few people flow.

Beautiful!











Thursday 4 November 2010

Virtual World games

About Virtual World games:

http://www.ted.com/talks/tom_chatfield_7_ways_games_reward_the_brain.html

Thursday 28 October 2010

"花 魁 : 虚拟世界+现实世界; 橫穿界限當代雕塑" "HuaHui: Crossing Boundaries Virtual world+Real World, a contemporary sculpture" BenQ , Taiwan, Oct.-Nov2010

BenQ symposium talk:"HuaHui: Mabuville, BenQ Symposium, Taiwan 2010", 10% of HuaHui MobileMusic sculpture; talk:
"花 魁 : 虚拟世界+现实世界; 橫穿界限當代雕塑"
"HuaHui: Crossing Boundaries Virtual world+Real World, a contemporary sculpture"
BenQ Mabuville, Taiwan, 1Oct.2010 – 30Oct.2010
 
http://swannbb.blogspot.com/2010/10/huahui-mobilemusic-10-huahui.html



「花魁:移動音樂小館 10%」Oct 2010     
周旋捷 Shuen-git Chow; sl Swann Jie 造形藝術博士
http://swannbb.blogspot.com/2010/10/huahui-mobilemusic-10-huahui.html

花魁 移動音樂小館的構思起源於數碼古琴藝術館的研究創作。
我想創造一個跨領域,同時在虛擬世界及真實世界橫穿界限的移動地標雕塑作為流動數碼古琴藝術館的一個嘗試。
花魁流動數碼古琴藝術館是個微形小建築或一個中形地標雕塑。這個地標雕塑可以用小汽車帶到野外環境作非定期展覽和觀賞。

花魁小館的牆壁用的是從全世界各地收集來的鋁罐合成。
用張拉結構為建築物的基礎。
鋁罐先組合成小立方,製成小方磚。
小方磚每個都不同有表兩面可以選用,彩面或鋁銀面。

建築物先在虛擬世界設計好模型,邀請虛擬世界裏的朋友來拜訪及試試感覺。
經過虛擬世界的實驗模形嘗試後,他們都很喜歡想見到這個建築雕塑在現實世界裏出現。於是我便成立了「領養花魁小立方」方案 ,邀請虛擬世界及現實世界參觀者參與。

詳情:
到目前為止約已有200人領養了私人小立方。正好和在BenQ麻布山林試驗的10%花魁真實世界雕塑差不多。所以我便也先試試造出來給在真實世界和虛擬世界裏支持「花魁移動音樂小館」的朋友們看看初步成果。
「花魁移動小館」的領養計畫裏有運用到「快碼」科技 ,由於移動電話的普及通用上網功能,科技師父們已早幾年前發明了「快碼」上網。QRcodes。
人們可以用手機對著快碼拍一個照,便可免鍵入網址而直通網頁,令2維的傳統圖畫變成互動的電子頁圖畫。在剛開幕的台灣國際花博裏,我便看到植物說明牌上也有用到快碼 。
花魁移動音樂小館上的每一個花魁小方塊都預備好冠上一個快碼。這容許每一個花魁小立方都連結到一個領養人提供的網頁。有些人連結到自己公司的網頁,朋友的藝文博客,自己選的Youtube,美麗圖片,也可以不注名,不連結,也可以當留言板,全部開放,自由發揮。
BenQ麻布山林的漂亮綠化環境提供了一個良好的藝術實驗場地 。可以實現了花魁色彩繽紛的國際性圖案;也造就了虛擬世界輸出到現實世界的雕塑。不單把世界各地信息、媒體、個人表達的空間互連在一起組成固定的美麗立體藝術,更重要的是麻布山林是第一個在亞洲實現了的跨領域、跨國界橫穿界限從虛擬世界到現實世界裏的三維多媒體雕塑作品的初步藝術空間 。

我盡量表現圖案本身的併合動感而不展示商業性的商標。當人們看到自己認得出的無注名的家鄉產品圖案時就有如一個從遠處來秘密地和自己招手的信息;也方便我們介紹和認識別人從哪裡來的機會。花魁提供了聯手友好美好時光的回憶。

花魁上的快碼連結都由領養者自己主導內容及更新。我們今年查看花魁上的快碼內容和明年再查看都可能已經不一樣了。

花魁就像一個活的個體,巨大的移動,固定的多媒體雕塑。

靜觀或互動性的動觀都好。它既可永久性地長駐在某個特定空間;也可以遊走把內容及外觀帶給各地不同場合的觀眾。有點像流動圖書館:一個人流聚集點,帶給人們多媒體的信息;同時又像珍貴的(慢)跑車:給人驚豔觀賞的藝術品。

花魁既可在山林裏出現一點閃亮的人文彩光,也可以在大城市中從容自處表現當代的華美境雕;室內、外都好。

命名「花魁」的雕塑就有「花魁」的特性。

多樣化的豐富內涵,由多樣化的人們來支持;正是「花魁」的本質。

See here for English text; scroll down below

http://swannbb.blogspot.com/2010/10/huahui-mobilemusic-10-huahui.html

Wednesday 27 October 2010

Digital Hollywood University with Professor In Yan, HuaHui visiting Tokyo, micro lego blocks!

sl/rl friends at Digital Hollywood University w Huahui

In Yan in real life is the famous sl expert, Prof Keiji Mitsubuchi from Digital Hollywood University of Tokyo. :)

HuaHui with Swann in Tokyo, at Maria's home in the courtyard

small HuaHui in Tokyo

micro lego blocks ! Its so cute and just the thing to have next to the giant handmade "HuaHui pixel cubes", same playful spirits!

Sunday 17 October 2010

HuaHui MobileMusic 10%, barcodes (Oct 2010), QR codes; BenQ Sculpture symposium talk 2010

HuaHui MobileMusic 10%

« HuaHui: MobileMusic 10% », Mabuville, Taiwan; Oct 2010

(Current location of HuaHui MobileMusic : Paris, France)
« HuaHui : MobileMusic 100% », in Virtual World Second Life


Visit the HuaHui MobileMusic 100% in the Virtual World. Here

HuaHui MobileMusic 10%

HuaHui MobileMusic 10%

100% Conceptual Image
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_e-OWu9iW-Nw/S9ak90-SzFI/AAAAAAAACzk/gM_bbPJ8yRo/s1600/4+HH+mh+w+mini+taxi+car.JPG



Barcodes: Barcodes are very common, you could print out the codes yourself, tattoo them on your body as personal id cool tag, or use it as an interactive device turning a 2D page into a live page.

Bar codes found on plane tickets from Eva Air inflight Magazine, Sept 2010

QR code (Quick Response Code) used in a general public daily newspaper, published in Canada

I will use a code that is most commonly used by everybody - thats seems to be the square QR code that we see here on the newspaper.
Even though I really like the round ShotCode barcode for esthetic reasons.
===

Mobile Music
HuaHui


流 動 小 屋 花 魁

花 魁 HuaHui Mobile Music 10%, Mabuville, Taiwan. Oct 2010

===


「花魁:移動音樂小館 10%」Oct 2010     
周旋捷 Shuen-git Chow; sl Swann Jie 造形藝術博士
http://swannbb.blogspot.com/2010/10/huahui-mobilemusic-10-huahui.html

花魁 移動音樂小館的構思起源於數碼古琴藝術館的研究創作。
我想創造一個跨領域,同時在虛擬世界及真實世界橫穿界限的移動地標雕塑作為流動數碼古琴藝術館的一個嘗試。
花魁流動數碼古琴藝術館是個微形小建築或一個中形地標雕塑。這個地標雕塑可以用小汽車帶到野外環境作非定期展覽和觀賞。

花魁小館的牆壁用的是從全世界各地收集來的鋁罐合成。
用張拉結構為建築物的基礎。
鋁罐先組合成小立方,製成小方磚。
小方磚每個都不同有表兩面可以選用,彩面或鋁銀面。

建築物先在虛擬世界設計好模型,邀請虛擬世界裏的朋友來拜訪及試試感覺。
經過虛擬世界的實驗模形嘗試後,他們都很喜歡想見到這個建築雕塑在現實世界裏出現。於是我便成立了「領養花魁小立方」方案 ,邀請虛擬世界及現實世界參觀者參與。

詳情:
到目前為止約已有200人領養了私人小立方。正好和在BenQ麻布山林試驗的10%花魁真實世界雕塑差不多。所以我便也先試試造出來給在真實世界和虛擬世界裏支持「花魁移動音樂小館」的朋友們看看初步成果。
「花魁移動小館」的領養計畫裏有運用到「快碼」科技 ,由於移動電話的普及通用上網功能,科技師父們已早幾年前發明了「快碼」上網。QRcodes。
人們可以用手機對著快碼拍一個照,便可免鍵入網址而直通網頁,令2維的傳統圖畫變成互動的電子頁圖畫。在剛開幕的台灣國際花博裏,我便看到植物說明牌上也有用到快碼 。
花魁移動音樂小館上的每一個花魁小方塊都預備好冠上一個快碼。這容許每一個花魁小立方都連結到一個領養人提供的網頁。有些人連結到自己公司的網頁,朋友的藝文博客,自己選的Youtube,美麗圖片,也可以不注名,不連結,也可以當留言板,全部開放,自由發揮。
BenQ麻布山林的漂亮綠化環境提供了一個良好的藝術實驗場地 。可以實現了花魁色彩繽紛的國際性圖案;也造就了虛擬世界輸出到現實世界的雕塑。不單把世界各地信息、媒體、個人表達的空間互連在一起組成固定的美麗立體藝術,更重要的是麻布山林是第一個在亞洲實現了的跨領域、跨國界橫穿界限從虛擬世界到現實世界裏的三維多媒體雕塑作品的初步藝術空間 。

我盡量表現圖案本身的併合動感而不展示商業性的商標。當人們看到自己認得出的無注名的家鄉產品圖案時就有如一個從遠處來秘密地和自己招手的信息;也方便我們介紹和認識別人從哪裡來的機會。花魁提供了聯手友好美好時光的回憶。

花魁上的快碼連結都由領養者自己主導內容及更新。我們今年查看花魁上的快碼內容和明年再查看都可能已經不一樣了。

花魁就像一個活的個體,巨大的移動,固定的多媒體雕塑。

靜觀或互動性的動觀都好。它既可永久性地長駐在某個特定空間;也可以遊走把內容及外觀帶給各地不同場合的觀眾。有點像流動圖書館:一個人流聚集點,帶給人們多媒體的信息;同時又像珍貴的(慢)跑車:給人驚豔觀賞的藝術品。

花魁既可在山林裏出現一點閃亮的人文彩光,也可以在大城市中從容自處表現當代的華美境雕;室內、外都好。

命名「花魁」的雕塑就有「花魁」的特性。

多樣化的豐富內涵,由多樣化的人們來支持;正是「花魁」的本質。


===

« HuaHui: MobileMusic 10% », Mabuville, Taiwan
« HuaHui : MobileMusic 100% », in Virtual World Second Life


Visit the HuaHui MobileMusic 100% in the Virtual World. Here

by Shuen-git Chow (sl Swann Jie)
15Nov2010, Taipei, Taiwan

Artist : Story Telling, Sculpture, Virtual world/Real world, Painting, MicroTotalArt
Doctor of Arts and Sciences of Arts; specialty:Visual Arts

Introduction:

HuaHui MobileMusic is a detail development of a larger overall project entitled “Digital Guqin Museum from Virtual World to the Real World”.
I thought of creating a cross disciplinary sculptural/architectural/painting/music/interactive media/social interaction art project and the idea of creating a contemporary presentation of ancient Chinese culture in the Virtual World seem to be a challenge too interesting to not do and also - much needed.

I have previously developed two interactive graphics to music work deploying the then, little known guqin instrument from year 2004. Guqin is now slightly more “popular” and much video filmed now due to the widely available personal video cameras. So, my next step was to create an environment for presenting an ancient music. The design of the sim includes ambiance, instrument, music, architecture, clothing, speech, and manner of elegant living for visitors.

Some of the questions explored were, people often present the guqin under issues of “historical 3000 year old with proper protocol in presentation and musical authenticity”. These very specialised musical issues, I leave master guqin players to deal with, as I am only a beginner in guqin music playing. However, even as a beginner I enjoy a lot of the visual arts, architectural spaces that this art for the literati often requires. Though there have always been exceptions – players that are professional fisherman, modern day postman etc, but we usually don’t hear much about them.

So, I began with testing the idea with making of the instrument first in the Virtual World using the platform of Secondlife. The process and story has been presented in a previous research paper to Master guqin specialists and scholars, here.

After having presented at the specialists Guqin Conference – presenting reasons why I choose to do such a project. I must also see what the Virtual World specialists think. Therefore, the next phase, the designing of the cultural sim was presented at Slactions2009, specialists conference of virtual world. The Digital Guqin Museum project paper has won Best Paper Award, and the full paper is here.

The third phase is the aspect of working in the virtual world deploying real world expertise and re-exporting the output into the real world.
This birds eye view vision of the overall project I have named “MicroTotalArt” which is ongoing, and the illustrations and footnotes are here.

The HuaHui MobileMusic 10%, at Mabuville is a partial model of the real MobileMusic. MobileMusic is a detail development of a small branch of the overall Digital Guqin Museum Project.

It was conceived as a Mobile Museum component in real life which travels around the world presenting Guqin arts and music content to a general public – somewhat like a mobile library bringing books to a general public. Except here, it is a moving sculptural landmark; and the information could be housed in the numerous QR code tags in each of the HuaHui cubes.

The architectural sculpture presents its special interactive skin design and it could be inspected up close like a stationary precious object – somewhat like a fancy vehicle.

Small informal concerts are to be held at each place where the HuaHui MobileMusic settles – in a forest like park , or a city square , countryside , all places where a car could bring the HuaHui MobileMusic to easily.

Now we will take a look at the architectural sculpture itself.


HuaHui Cubes in the MobileMusic

The walls of the HuaHui MobileMusic uses aluminium skins taken from drink/beer cans from around the world. I choose a tensegrity structure for the overall build. A wire structure will be designed according the specific final shape of the sculpture.

The aluminium skins are assembled into small cubes. There are two sides to the skins, a color patterned side and a neutral silver gray aluminium color side.

The architectural sculpture was first designed and built in the virtual world.

I invited many friends to come visit and see how they might enjoy the spaces inside or outside. The response was almost 100% positive except for one young person who was afraid of little cubes!

Almost all of them were enthusiastic and wanted to see it in real life, because I said its designed to be built in real life. They also wanted to see this come true. So I began inviting them to send me the cubes via postal service – but this method is too slow and a lot of the “home made” cubes needed re-work, so in the end I decided the best way for people to participate is to create a system of patronage – so I created the “Adopt-a-Cube!” program, and to ensure standards, I would be the one making the cubes.

Up to now, after an initial round of sending out messages; there are approximately 200 patrons from the Virtual World and the Real World combined. This number is roughly the 10% of the full size HuaHui MobileMusic. I sincerely thank Mr.Chiu TaiYang for inviting me to come to Mabuville to have a look at the Sculpture Symposium and to give a talk about the HuaHui MobileMusic. I am very happy to have the chance to see the HuaHui MobileMusic taking shape in a real nature park.

HuaHui MobileMusic 10% is the first one exported in Asia at Mabuville, Taiwan from the virtual world to the real world.

The “Adopt-a-cube” uses QR codes.

People uses mobile phones to go online easily and QR codes are designed by barcode specialists as a 2D barcode. When viewers see a tag, they just take a snapshot of the tag and the phone scans the tag and links to further information via the embedded url. This no-typing method transforms a static picture into an active page. I see at the International Flora Expo in Taipei which just opened a week ago (Nov 2010) that there are QR codes on labels for plants. QR codes are now common.

On each HuaHui cube will be a place for a QR code tag. The tags are linked to each adopters chosen link. For example, a professional webpage, a friend’s blog, a favorite YouTube, cool pictures. The tag could also be anonymous, no tag; or it could be a message board. The final destination is open and changing. Its up to the adopters to decide the use they want for their private window to the world. When the HuaHui MobileMusic travels, it brings everybody along.

BenQ’s Mabuville is a wonderful park and provided a beautiful setting for the HuaHui MobileMusic laboratory – I was able to assemble the colourful pre-existing patterns of the aluminium skins which came from around the world to give a new life for these beautiful skins with pre-history. The international origins of the skins embody signs from everywhere.

I try to combine the patterns with movement and not show the original logo. When people from around the world see these no-name skins but they still recognise the origins from their home countries, it is as if a secret message is waving at them from afar.

The HuaHui cubes also provide chances of presenting ourselves and meeting others through the anonymous memories of happy moments.

The content and its maintenance, renewals of the urls linked through the QR tags are entirely determined by the adopters. So when we read the tags today and next year, something might have already changed.

HuaHui MobileMusic is like a living entity, a mobile/static multimedia sculpture. Whether you look at it as a simple sculpture or a live sculpture – its all visually exciting. The sculpture could hold a permanent location at a specific space, and it could also travel – bringing content and beauty to different audiences.

HuaHui MobileMusic could appear in a wilderness like park setting, bringing shiny colourful flashes of humanity and culture to the site; or it could be stationary in a public city center, displaying contemporary live styles and design.

Interior or exterior, the sculpture remains the same – beautiful!

HuaHui means the most-excellent-one in Chinese.

HuaHui’s built in multicultural content is supported by multi-cultural people from 3000 years ago and around the world, crossing boundaries from the Virtual World to the Real World – that is in essence, de facto, a quality of HuaHui.

--- end ---

Thank you BenQ for inviting me to present the HuaHui MobileMusic project at the Symposium : talk and real life sample presentation!

===
On QR codes : Adopt-a-Cube
List
Video
===

More information: CBC and DIY QR codes

http://socialmediadiyworkshop.com/2010/02/what-are-qr-codes-and-why-should-i-care/

http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/11/03/f-qr-code-2d-barcode-matrix.html

Saturday 16 October 2010

HuaHui House 10%, work in progress

HuaHui MobileMusic House 10%, Taiwan (work in progress)

slactions 2010 poster of HuaHui MobileMusic sl-rl : Taiwan; Italy.

HuaHui House 10%, front panel

HuaHui House 10%, Assembled inside

HuaHui House testing in fountain, 10%