art

Submitted by Boaz Super

Syyn Labs, a company that builds installations combining art and technology, has demonstrated the Cloud Mirror at Sundance. It's an augmented reality installation that combines a person's mirror image with photos and text from that person's online existence in sites such as Twitter and Facebook. Computer vision identifies a distinctive badge worn by each user and composites the photos and text in real time with the user's image. A video of Cloud Mirror can be viewed at the link above.

Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research IGD have developed an augmented-reality system for use as a virtual museum guide. Visitors can hold their touch screen consoles in front of an art piece and the relevant customized information would appear on the screens. Software has been written to recognize images captured by a camera on the console.

New media artist Mary Franck will hold a workshop for artists and programmers. The workshop will cover programming the MAX/MSP/Jitter graphical programming environment for interactivity, with an emphasis on computer vision. The event will be held in San Francisco on October 13 and October 15. See the workshop site for more details.

Computer vision enters the nightlife arena in Los Angeles at the Aura Nightclub on May 14, 2009. An interdisciplinary group including technologist Eric Gradman is starting a monthly interactive nightclub event called Velvet Interactive Playground (VIP), which will use computer vision sensing and interactive video projection on the dance floor.

Event information is available at http://velvetinteractiveplayground.eventbrite.com/.

Mutsugoto is a performance art installation. A computer vision and projection system enables couples separated by long distances to communicate. Each member of the couple wears a ring that is tracked by a camera. The projection system over each person's bed draws lines of light on the person and his or her bed according to the movements of the rings. The intent is to allow couples to communicate via strokes of light as a substitute for physical caresses.