The Book of Ruins and Desire
Symposium:
Session Title:
- Evolution 2.0
Presentation Title:
- The Book of Ruins and Desire
Presenter(s):
Abstract:
The Book of Ruins and Desire is an interactive, mixed-media sculpture that explores failed synapses and unknown possibilities between desire and communication. An ‘open work, where the ambiguities of life, the fuzzy edges of what we perceive and experience creates a web of complex yet universal information. From its wooden case a barely audible voice murmurs ‘touch me.’ As its metal pages are turned, spoken text juxtaposing philosophical and emotional attributes of desire crescendo and decrescendo. When a page is completely opened video interpretations of Ned Rorem’s song cycle, ‘Poems of Love and the Rain’ are viewable.
Its pages are photo etched printing plates. Its base is crafted in wood. The degree of a turned page as well as it’s velocity are calculated via the fuzzy logic inference engine. Through an Opcode MAX interface the data from the inference engine is manipulated to control the qualitative dynamics of the media and algorithmically produced MIDI compositions.
