"Blink" is a software generated animation that consists of a matrix of eyes that open and close by taking stock of their neighbors’ actions. The process goes back and forth between states of stability where all eyes try to be like their neighbors, and states of transition where the eyes know their neighbors’ state but cant decide if they should be like them or not. A certain degree of deviance is programmed so that some of the eyes resist or differ from the general status quo of the collection of eyes. Every 5 minutes all the eyes go into a brief state of frenzy. The status of the overall image is dynamically determined computationally in real-time and therefore guarantees a continuous stream of behavior based on the interaction of the cells.
A mathematical model by the physicist Ernst Ising (1924 thesis) provides the behavior of each cell for the animation. This model explains how magnetic particles set their polarization according to their neighbors’ under temperature changes. At low temperatures, particles want to have the same polarity has their surrounding neighbors. As the temperature increases, the magnetic property becomes erratic, destabilized, flipping back and forth its polarity between positive and negative. This mathematical theory is here used to create movement and between two states of stability and erratic disorder. It also provides a perspective of how individuals in culture groups adjust their behavior based on social norms and pressures.
Exhibition History”
“Art as Math”, Center for Contemporary Art (2018), Nevada Museum of Art, Reno (2009); Edward Cella Gallery, Los Angeles (2009); Foundation Ahlers, Hanover, Germany (2009); Santa Barbara Museum of Art (2007), ARCO Art Fair, Madrid, Spain (2007), Pari Nadimi Gallery, Toronto (Sept 2006), Artissimo Art Fair Turin (2006). Created for the 2006 International Media Festival, Beijing
Collections:
DE Shaw Group, NYC (edition 1/3); Foundation Ahlers Pro Arte, Hanover, Germany (2/3).
