Musings from the ITP Spring Show 2009, New York University
I was fortunate enough to have been able to see this year's ITP (Interactive Telecommunications Program) Spring Show at the Tisch School of Arts, New York University. It took a full two days to visit and chat with most of the students about their fascinating projects that encompasses the realms of art, music, science, technology, and new media (and often a fusion of several of these fields).
Below is a small selection of a few of the innovative projects that were presented. You can see the rest of the excellent projects in the full gallery.
1. Water Canary
[Estee Wah, John Dimatos, Sonaar Luthra, Zoe Fraade-Blanar, Mitch Said. Technical Advisor: Eric Rosenthal]
The "Water Canary" is a portable water testing device that is able to be produced at a fraction of the cost (and size) of current devices. This has potentially huge public health benefits especially as the mortality rates from gastroenteritis number up to 6 million deaths a year, most of them affecting children in third world countries, and many of these as a result of drinking contaminated water.
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2. Lumarca
[Matt Parker]
It took me several viewings of this work and a few chats with Matt before I finally grasped the concept behind how he created Lumarca, a mesmerising and beautiful representation of light which dances on strings to create an illusion of a three dimensional form.
3. Kickbee
[Corey Menscher]
Some of the best inventions come from a need to solve a problem. Corey's "Kickbee" helps to solve the common problem of a father's physical disconnectedness from the pregnant mother and foetus (whether the separation is a result of work, study, or travel). Worn by expecting mothers around their waist, it detects each baby's kick and simultaneously sends a message to twitter, thereby notifying the father-to-be (Corey in this case) that the baby has been active.
4. Flittr
[Vikram Tank]
"Flittr" is an innovative iPhone app that allows users to create short narrative pieces using a series of 3 photos accompanied by their own recorded audio, usually based on a theme, the first of which was "food". Some very engaging Flittrs have already been created during the beta testing and it'll be interesting to see what the wider community of iPhone users come up with once Vikram releases it to the App Store.
[Che-Wei Wang]
This is the coolest timepiece you will ever lay your eyes on – a clock that counts down 100 years at which point it self destructs with the large outer arc falling from its track and onto the ground. Che-Wei's clock seems timeless even despite its planned obsolescence, which none of us will be around to witness (and that's a sobering thought).
[Eun Jung(EJ) Park]
It's impossible not to smile when looking at EJ's "The Story of Grouchy Clown" automaton. Its complexity, charm, and layered interactive narrative surpassed any of the automata I saw at the special Mechanics Alive exhibition at Canberra's Questacon Science Museum earlier this year...and that's no small feat as it was by far one of the most popular exhibitions there.
7. Body Beats
[Thomas Chan]
Combine facial recognition, spatial and temporal orchestration, and colourful bouncing circles and you will get a sense of the engaging game that is "Body Beats".
8. S Ring
[Alex Reeder]
Aesthetics + Technology + Pheromones = Love of a "Midsummer Night's Dream" Proportions!
[Kristen Smart]
Kristen's installation piece examines how we relate memories to specific parts of our bodies. I'd never thought about the mapping of our memories in this way, but in reframing the concept, it was interesting how memories that had been relegated to the deep recesses of my brain, suddenly resurfaced, creating both a new synaptic and physical connection.
10. Maximus
[Mooshir Vahanvati]
Anthropomorphawesomification may not be a word, but it's the best way to describe Mooshir's "Maximus" lamp. The expressions on the faces of the father and his daughter in the photo says it all.
Filed under //
3.16 billion cycles
alex reeder
art
body beats
che-wei wang
corey menscher
eric rosenthal
estee wah
eun jung park
everything else is wrapped up in the spine
flittr
innovation
interactive telecommunications program
itp
itp spring show 2009
john dimatos
kickbee
kristen smart
lumarca
matt parker
maximus
Mechanical Storytelling: The Story of Grouchy Clown
mitch said
mooshir vahanvati
music video
new media
new york university
nyu
s ring
science
sonaar luthra
technology
thomas chan
vikram tank
water canary
zoe fraade-blanar
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