Deerhoof Infinite Song

Posted on February 12, 2013 by aaronsherwood

I created an infinite Deerhoof song. I took their song Snoopy Waves and chopped it up into it’s respective sections. During the call (917-534-6464 ext. 11) the numbers 1-7 on the phone will each pick one of the sections of the song. That section will keep looping until another section is chosen. Rearrange the song and rock out to your favorite section for as long as you like.

Dusk

Posted on February 7, 2013 by aaronsherwood

I wanted to create a video that was rather abstract, but still played within the confines of time. I wanted multiple frames of the source video to be included on screen in a way where it would be hard to tell what the original movie was. Using openFrameworks I created two different settings. One captures the screen then draws that captured image back to screen in random places over top of the original image. The second draws the video to an FBO that again draws a subsection to random places. Since the FBO is not cleared old frames stay displayed until their alpha values finally get completely overwritten by new frames. The FBO is then added to an ofTexture and is additive blended with a white rectangle. In both settings the mouse controls the alpha value. I improvised between the two settings and with the alpha values. The original video was shot with my iPhone on the Brooklyn Bridge at dusk. I made the music too. Code for the video:

Water Jet Cutting

Posted on February 5, 2013 by aaronsherwood

Water Jet Cutting is an industrial manufacturing technique that uses a very highly pressurized stream of water to cut through just about it anything.

It can cut rubber, foam, plastics, leather, composites, stone, tile, metals, food, paper, aluminum, and more. The water stream is usually mixed with an abrasive powder, but pure water can be used when cutting softer materials. A water cutter does not generate any heat when cutting, as other methods do, and thus can be used with materials sensitive to heat.

Typically water cutters move forward/back, right/left, and up/down. Some newer models also allow multi-axis cutting with angles ranging from 50 to 60, and sometimes even 90 degrees.

Locally you can get things water cut at Z-Studios in Brooklyn. Zach is very friendly and helpful there. Z-Studios prefers CAD files in .bxf and .dwg formats, but can work from other sources (drawings even), though that will cost more. In your CAD file make sure there are no layers and that all the lines are snapped together. Square angles are fine, but acute and oblique angles need to be slightly rounded. Typically it costs about $175-$200/hour. Depending on the thickness and density of the material, a large amount can be cut in an hour. They have a simulator that calculates exactly how long it will take to cut your job based on your CAD file and the material being cut. The maximum size Z-Studios can work with is 6″ thick, and 6′ x 11′ sheets of material.

If you need to cut material thicker than that you can go to Par Systems, a company that fabricates for the aerospace and shipping industries. They can cut material ranging up to 3′ thick.

eMachine Shop is an online vendor that provides water cutting service.

Other Considerations With Water Cutting:

Edges are good but usually not as smooth as milling or punching.
Some spots along the edge, such as where the cut ends, may be less smooth.
The edges of the cut part generally have a dull finish.
Kerf width is typically ~.060″, hence inside corners will be rounded to ~.03″ radius.
There may be some hazing on the surface – especially near the edges.
Thin flimsy structures and shapes where a high proportion of material is removed may present difficulty in meeting dimensional and flatness tolerances.
Edges will be slightly sloped – the bottom side will have slightly more material at the edge than the dimensioned top side.

Redial – Hello World

Posted on February 4, 2013 by aaronsherwood

The first 32 bars of Charlie Parker’s saxophone solo from Kim (no. 2) played with the dial tones of a telephone. The beginning riffs on the first 8 notes of Kim before going into Kim itself. Made using Asterisk.

Firewall

Posted on December 17, 2012 by aaronsherwood

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Firewall is an interactive media installation created with Mike Allison. A stretched sheet of spandex acts as a membrane interface sensitive to depth that people can push into and create fire-like visuals as well as expressively play music.

The original concept stems from a performance piece I’m currently developing as Purring Tiger (with Kiori Kawai) titled Mizalu, which will premiere in June 2013. During one scene in the performance dancers will press into the spandex with the audience facing the opposite side. Mizalu is about death and experience of reality, so this membrane represents a plane that you can experience but never get through. As hard as you try to understand what’s in between life and death, you can never fully know.

The piece was made using Processing, Max/MSP, Arduino and a Kinect. The Kinect measures the average depth of the spandex from the frame it is mounted on. If the spandex is not being pressed into nothing happens. When someone presses into it the visuals react around where the person presses, and the music is triggered. An algorithm created with Max allows the music to speed up and slow down and get louder and softer, based on the depth. This provides a very expressive musical playing experience, even for people who have never played music before. A switch is built into the frame which toggles between two modes. The second mode is a little more aggressive than the first.

User Testing: