james rouvelle | james rouvelle

through continuo

this is a collaborative project with lili maya, our website is here.

composed of electronics and paper, through continuo is a work for the Brooklyn Zen Center’s No-Eyes Viewing Wall, and part of the Silence and Noise exhibit (April 13, 2012-Through winter ’13), co-curated by Noah Fischer and Terence Caulkins.

through continuo is installed on the walls and ceiling of the gallery. the dimensions of the work on the wall are approximately 9’x16′, there are five small piezo speakers coupled with glass mueller tubes suspended from the high ceiling in front of the work by approximately 3′ – one needs to look up to see them. the speakers/mueller tubes occupy roughly the same space as the wall installation. shadows from the components installed in the ceiling (including wiring) form changing compositions with the circuitry, wiring and paper mounted on the wall. the gallery has large windows so the lighting conditions change throughout the day. the piece is lit with a mix of electric and natural light. the work emits very quiet sounds from its piezo speakers. the amplitude of the audio is intentionally on the threshold of hearing, and the placement of the speakers creates a spacialized listening experience. small, white LEDs with varying brightness and frequency (described below) and white wires are integrated into the paper mounted on the wall. the paper has been embossed by hand.

through continuo is a constellation of events. some are random: gamma-ray detection and the presence and behaviors of visitors, and some are composed: the sonification of the gamma-rays (the very quiet pops and clicks one hears around the work, emanating from piezo speakers mounted in the ceiling), the look of the installation, and the changing frequencies of the LEDs. “frequencies” of the LEDs refers not to the brightening and dimming, but to the changing rates of pulsation. this feature of the work is very difficult to document. a short video is here.

gamma radiation detected by our sensors are transposed into sound and light. the relationship between the gamma-ray detection and the pops and clicks of sound is linear, 1:1. the relationship between the soft pops and clicks to changes in the frequencies of the LEDs is statistical, non linear. each led has its own pattern of brightening, dimming, and pulsating, and those behaviors are influenced by a statistical analysis of gamma-ray detection in real time.

essentially, the work has linear and logarithmic relationships based on random events. for the viewer, this creates an experience that oscillates between one’s impulse to understand events as sequential/temporal and a work that is inherently spectral, i.e., based on persistent, shifting frequencies.

in the context of binary title of this show, Silence and Noise, we’re thinking about time and frequency, and how one’s experience is persistently both, but how from an increasing number of perspectives time is an illusion unique to the human mind. the universe, it seems, is not sequence, it is waves – but we are wired so that to us its always both. in through continuo the linear relationship between the gamma-ray events and the audible clicks is a noise element in that it evokes the temporal mind, and the silence is the silence of the visible change in LED frequency.

the Silence and Noise effect is that the work itself is an oscillation, a wavelet and an interval between the two.

for more images go here.

120/108

this is a collaborative project with lili maya, our website is here.

120/108 is a sound and movement work Lili and i did with Terence Caulkins. it was realized as part of the opening performance for Silence and Noise at the Brooklyn Zen Center (April 13, 2012), co-curated by Noah Fischer and Terence Caulkins. Silence and Noise, for which we also have a sculptural work, (we’ll post images/video soon…) will run through September 29, 2012.

120/108 began as a study on the acoustical properties of a large, singing bell that resides in the zendo (meditation space) of the Brooklyn Zen Center and has a primary role in services at the center.

the analysis of the bell extended to an analysis of how its sounds propagated through the zendo, and how different acoustical properties of the bell, its frequencies, and those of the zendo were revealed at different locations within the space.

the work we composed utilizes various acoustical phenomena evoked by striking and rubbing the bell, as well as resonating it with sine waves. we developed an interface to synchronize contact with the bell with software and permit real time communication between the two.

the piece was experienced by walking slowly through the space as practiced with kinhin (walking meditation). visitors followed a pre-determined path intended to slowly reveal each element of the composition. additional performances over summer ’12 are being planned.

the title refers to the primary frequency of the bell, and the number of interactions with it during the performance.

more images.

we’ll be posting a recording soon.

ritornello

this is a collaborative project with lili maya, our website is here.

composed of paper, wood, and electronics, ritornello exists as documentation of an ephemeral situation.

the work is programmed and the program alternates between repeated and varying elements. the code controls a fragile assemblage of various materials, and as it loops the assemblage decays.

while the work has no subject, its contents include the illusion of time’s control and the humility and wonder of making things in an atmosphere of change.

diaphanes, nos. 1-8

this is a collaborative project with lili maya, our website is here.

the 8 diaphanes are individual assemblage/drawings of casting paper embedded with electronics, each measuring approximately 9″x11″. featured in our august, 2011 solo exhibit, of light like intervals, each diaphane was made specifically for installation in the porch windows of the virginia weston besse gallery on martha’s vineyard.

inspired by the slowly changing, ambient natural light of the westward facing space, the architecturally transitional nature of the porch, and the color and textures of its wooden interior, we developed this project with the combining of indirect sunlight and electric light (LEDs), and the qualities of transition, in mind.

the electronics consist of a small micro-controller, modulating a single, tiny LED.

each micro-controller is programmed individually to persistently and slowly change the brightness of its LED in a process analogous the gentle shifts in ambient light of the space as sunlight is filtered through the lush foliage of a garden in front of it.

looking at a diaphane, one is aware of change occurring on its surface, resulting in different views of the work’s subtle and complex topography, but the specifics of what in fact has changed are not always clear. the paper composition of each diaphane varies in thickness, from the opaque to the see-through, permitting views of the outside to be integrated into each work.

we began making site visits to prepare for our show in early may, prior to the bloom of spring, and were captivated by the island’s natural light, and the intricate, twisting branches, and horizontality of its trees and brush. in subsequent visits we noted the forms created by the lines of branches interlaced with increasing foliage. while we never intended to portray these forms in our work the affinity between the island’s landscape and our compositions and mark marking is clear, and in the context of these works in this location, formative.

to see the entire flickr set, please go here.

for additional projects and videos, please visit our site: www.mayarouvelle.com

7744

this is a collaborative project with lili maya, our website is here.

a wall-mounted assemblage of casting paper embedded with electronics measuring approximately 3’x4′, 7744 is one of three works from our recent solo exhibit, of light like intervals, made specifically for installation on the porch of the virginia weston besse gallery on martha’s vineyard.

the electronics consist of multiple small micro-controllers each controlling a single tiny LED, each embedded and interconnected by thin, white wire.

the network of micro-controllers are programmed individually to persistently and slowly change the brightness of their LEDs in a process analogous the gentle shifts in ambient light of the space as sunlight is filtered through the lush foliage of a garden in front of it.

looking at 7744, one is aware of change occurring on the surface of the piece, resulting in different views of the works subtle and complex topography, but the specifics of what in fact has changed are not always clear.

to view the entire flickr set, go here.

for additional projects and videos, please visit our site: www.mayarouvelle.com

charge-shift, nos. 1 and 2

this is a collaborative project with lili maya, our website is here.

charge-shift nos. 1 and 2, are two sculptures made of micro-controllers, custom software, electrical components, and monofilament wire, measuring approximately 4’x2’x10″, and suspended inside of two display areas on the porch of the virginia weston besse gallery on martha’s vineyard. they were included in our recent solo exhibit entitled ‘of light like intervals’.

inspired by the slowly changing, ambient natural light of the westward facing space, the architecturally transitional nature of the porch, and the color and textures of its wooden interior. charge-shift, along with 7744, and 8 diaphanes, was developed with the combining of indirect sunlight and electric light (LEDs), and the qualities of transition, in mind.

the electronics consist of multiple small micro-controllers each controlling a single tiny LED, each interconnected and suspended/positioned within the work by thin, white conductive wire.

looking at charge-shift, one is aware of change occurring on the surfaces of the piece, resulting in different views of the composition, but the specifics of what in fact has changed are not always clear.

to view the entire flickr set, go here.

for additional projects and videos, please visit our site: www.mayarouvelle.com

transient, still

from of light like intervals, lili and my recent solo exhibit on martha’s vineyard, august 2011.

suspended from the ceiling, in the middle of the gallery, transient, still uses custom software to analyze live input from an iSight, and attempts to recreate what it sees using a limited palette of mono-chromatic ellipses. when the software concludes that is has created a reasonable facsimile of what it has registered through its camera, the program pauses to present the composition rendered by the software through an LED projector that shines its images through a construction of small motors, and copper/monofilament wire onto a piece of mylar.

the shade of the ellipses indicate the relative brightness of the objects in the scene.

the background color shifts between orange, yellow, blue, and green.

the computer running the software sat on the floor above the gallery. the piece was connected to that computer through the visible opening in the ceiling.

one theme of this exhibit was the transformation of kinetics into electro-luminescence and back. this work, situated in the middle of the exhibit, was composed of aspects of all of the works around it – from materials to variants on code, and was based on a feedback loop where, in real time, light becomes motion and motion becomes light.

for still images, please visit our flickr gallery

sustained contemplation offset

from of light like intervals, lili and my recent solo exhibit on martha’s vineyard, august 2011.

sustained contemplation offset is a floor piece made of two LCD monitors [one mounted vertically, and one mounted horizontally – the horizontal monitor was rescued and brought back to use by us for the show], a PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom) security camera, two mac minis, and custom software.

in this work, the vertical monitor is displaying a screen saver called flurry, which we made some subtle changes to. a PTZ security camera is positioned in front of the vertical LCD monitor and programed to track the movement of flurry on the screen. the PTZ is focused tightly on the screen saver. the live feed from the camera is fed into custom software that filters the incoming stream and shows the images that it selects in a varying rhythm on the recycled/specially adapted horizontal lcd.

for still images please visit our flickr gallery.

robot radio/transient, set

lili and i have two new projects, robot radio/transient, set that are for lea bertucci and ed bear’s ExiTrip project, more documentation on this work and others can be found on their site.

ExiTrips are functional, salvaged, obsolete iTrips (low range fm transmitters for ipods), fitted with a stereo mini-plug and battery pack. the theme of lea and ed’s project is creative re-purposing of obsolete consumer electronics. we found out about the project from free103point9 and submitted a proposal.

after noticing that walking around the Exitrips seemed to affect their transmission we decided to use the 5 ExiTrips lea and ed sent us as sensors. we were able to read each ExiTrip’s signal strength with an fm tuner chip from Silicon Industries. we used the variations to create a live audio work entitled robot radio, that was premiered within another new project entitled transient, set – both of which you can see and hear above.

each of robot radio’s ExiTrips was outfitted with a new, longer antenna sized to its selected broadcast frequency and encased in acrylic. in addition to contributing audio, the ExiTrips became a sculptural element of transient, set. in transient, set, software processed live video from a resurrected, yet glitchy iSight camera and projected the resulting two dimensional, black and white imagery through an assemblage of materials that reflected and refracted the light, providing bits of color. the long, thick, bare copper antenna’s or robot radio, the monofilament used to suspend them, and their acrylic encasements were a part of that assemblage.

the software for both works, developed in different programming languages (max/msp w/arduino for robot radio, processing for transient, set), used similar logic, that involved processing input data and developing patterns in response to it. the programmatic consistencies between the works created shifting perspectives on their relationship from those of alignment (one work) to separation/individuation as qualities of the works changed in response to environmental conditions, including the movements and location of visitors on site.

**this may be obvious but “robot radio” will sound quite differently depending on what you’re listening to it through.

we posted some images on our flickr pages. for more info about this and other ExiTrip projects please visit the exitrip homepage. for our detailed project description go here.

cast-on

we showed this robotic art project in bushwick, brooklyn @ stanhope cellar studios, -‘a light in the basement’- curated by nicholas chatfield-taylor via todd p.

we filmed lili knitting the monofilament mesh at the center of the work, and tracked the needles’ movement. we mounted blue lasers on linear actuators and servos, and programmed the motors with the needles’ position data. the table top is the shape of the room.

a separate robot toggled a low wattage light bulb to present different lighting conditions.

for still images on our flickr account

for more info and still photos: http://www.mayarouvelle.com

some short, detail excerpts, not in the video above, are here >>