Experiments

Synthetic Voice – Tentacular Exploration 3

Following on from some of the inspiration from the exhibitions I visited, this experiment takes the twisted and fleshy intensity of the tentacle further to wrap two of them around the mouth. Forming something that incorporates tension through the tight constriction around the mouth, violence in the invasive positioning and a level of beauty through the final texture applied. Setting up a conflict between each that works to mimic the intensity of the voice, especially in relation to a voice beyond sound.

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Experiments

Synthetic Voice – Tentacular Exploration 2

Further experiments in the formation of the tentacles, exploring the notion of them linking together as a merging of different forms of communication. Shown here are the tentacles twisting together to echo the shape of a tree or of growth from an unknown creation point. Also the linking in the sense of two chains interlocking, as if a fragment from a wider network. This notion of the merging and the proliferation through a network is interesting to consider in relation to the voice, not only in the biological sense of its origin and movement through the body, but of the voice merging with the machine network through devices and technology.

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Experiments

Synthetic Voice – Tentacular Exploration

Further initial experiments using the idea of the tentacle to showcase the intensity of the voice and the process of communication exploring outwards for a sensory input. These evoke the horrific and horror imagery that give an interesting connection to the violence of sound on the body as described by Alan Montrose in his Human chapter from Inhuman Nature (2014), whilst also taking inspiration from how cephalopod’s explore their environment. The connection to the wet, fleshy and viscous descriptions of the mouth from LaBelle’s Lexicon of the Mouth works well and brings to the forefront an encounter with the voice as a substance, as a life form, as a living organism.

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Experiments

Resin Cast Experiment 2

Following on from my initial experiment to make a polyurethane resin cast from the silicone mould of a set of 3D printed teeth, this time I incorporated a polyurethane pigment in order to colour the resin. This followed the same process as previously but once part A and B are mixed for the base resin a small amount of the pigment is added. Here a tiny amount goes a long way and it was surprising how little is needed in order to achieve a vibrant colour. The first experiments tested how much pigment is added as to what colour is produced, this then became a test to create a gradient going from an intense to a softer colour. This worked really well with the more vibrant colours bringing out the synthetic qualities of the object, particularly highlighting the plastic material used to create it.

Next I experimented in using two different shades of resin in the same cast, this was done by mixing up either the lighter or darker colour and pouring this to half way and letting it set for 20 minutes. I then mixed the contrast colour and poured this to fill the rest of the mould, letting the full cast cure for an hour. I also tested creating a marbled effect by not mixing together the resin and pigment fully before pouring into the mould. Both of these gave interesting effects to show the layering of materials and bringing your attention to the materiality of them.

Here is the aftermath of my room after resin casting:

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Experiments

JavaScript – Microphone Frequency

To progress the previous JavaScript experiment further I was able to, with the help of James Field, animate the mouths to the frequencies from a microphone input rather than just a loaded sound file. This creates a more interactive effect whereby the animation reacts spontaneously to the sound in the environment. This also allows people to interact and use their voice in order to alter the animation and see the visual representations of their own voices. More work needs to be done however as after it has run a while the animation begins to lag and the reaction of the mouths slows down, in a live setting this wouldn’t be effective and I will look into a way to get around this.

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Experiments

Synthetic Voice Experiment 1

Following on from my initial concepts of the creation of devices/ prosthetics to extend the voice beyond sound and beyond the body I conducted an experiment of the first visual aspects I had whilst reading Brandon LaBelle’s writing on the mouth. Taking this as a movement from the depths of the body to the surface of the skin in an action of stretching, I transformed this into physical bands that replace the biological structures of the mouth. The bands work to take the voice from inside the body into the outside environment and back again. This on first view has a horrific and invasive effect, working to highlight the intensity of the voice on the body and show those intensities we do not notice. Taking this further I took inspiration from Shaviro’s writing on sentience and the idea that instead of waiting for a stimulus in order to produce action, sentient beings reach out into the environment to probe it with spontaneous actions to then evaluate the sensory feedback. From this I explored how cephalopods use a tentacle device to explore their environment, initially these experiments are spontaneous reactions to these concepts and utilise both a transformed idea of an artery/ biological messaging tool to take the voice through the body and out to the environment and a tentacle device that can reach out and explore. Both these again have a comfortable effect and, when combined with textures you wouldn’t expect, begin to expand the human beyond the limits of the body and in turn expand the voice beyond sound. Texturing here consisted of giving the synthetics a glossy finish with colours grounded in the biological, but subverted through the shiny plasticity of the finish. Further experimentation needs to be done here to move away from the clear biological structuring of the face and the merging of it with the synthetic mouth.

This experiment also allowed me to explore aspects of blender which were new to me, for the tentacles I used an armature that when combined with a bezier curve allowed me to manipulate the shape and positioning of it. This worked to bring in the fleshy, viscous aspects of the synthetics as derived from the mouth.

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Experiments

Resin Cast Experiment

After my experiment to make a silicone mould from a 3D printed version of the teeth I then made a series of casts using polyurethane resin. This was a simple process using two parts mixed in equal measure poured into the mould and then left to cure for an hour, the resin naturally has a pale fleshy colour that gave an interesting effect to the final casts. These appear soft and malleable but in actual fact are hard and sharp. Each one has its own mistakes or differences where the resin has cured slightly differently or went over the edge of the mould, this shows the notion of making copies and each being imperfect to the next. Each time a copy is made a different set of teeth is achieved, in this way they are no longer just a copy of the original 3D print they are originals in themselves.

The next step in this experiment is to test the inclusion of a pigment to alter the colour of the resin, for this I have tangerine orange polyurethane pigment. It will be interesting to test the how the different amounts of pigment affect the colour and if it is possible to achieve a marbled effect.

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Experiments

JavaScript – Audio Frequency Animation

In order to develop my experiments with JavaScript animation in Project 2, I have extended this for the interaction be based not just on an audio input but on the frequency of that audio input. This gives a more nuanced reaction and a greater scope for animation interaction, the frequency can be broken up and elements isolated to only react to a certain range of these. Initially (with the help of James Field) I have been able to set this up to have three mouths reacting by rotating to a degree specified by the low, mid-range and high frequencies of a loaded in audio track.

The next step is to have this react to microphone input, again pulling out the different range of frequencies for the .obj file to react to.

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Experiments

Silicone Mould Experiment

As an experiment into the use of materials I decided to continue with the notion of plasticity I have been exploring to date, not only in the material sense of using actual plastics but also the idea of the plasticity of the body whereby it has the power to both give and receive form. From this one of the plastics that fit was Silicone, a material that has an elasticity and a power to be cured into different shapes whilst retaining the ability to be flexible even when solid. As an initial experiment in testing the limits of this I produced a mould using a set of the 3D printed teeth as the source object that can later have copies cast using various other plastics. The process was relatively straightforward, the teeth were positioned in a plastic container and any areas filled in as necessary with modelling clay. The silicone rubber was then mixed with a catalyst in order to allow it to cure into its solid(ish) state, then it was poured over the teeth and left for 24 hours. The releasing of the teeth was the most difficult part, trying to prise the silicone away from the detail sections between the teeth need some help with a scalpel. This has left a rougher finish than I was hoping for but the impressions of the process to create it may give some interesting effects when a copy is cast.

The next step is to produce the cast copy, for this I have polyurethane resin and an orange pigment.

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Experiments

Synthetic Lattice (2)

I also experimented with first solidifying the mouth object and then applying the wireframe modifier to create a more dense lattice structure. This gives a similar effect to before but there is more of a confrontation with a mass of skin rather than purely one layer of this. This perhaps more effectively communicates the notion of biological skin cells to evoke the layers in which the skin is made up.

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