ARTISTS TALKING

# 1 [1 August 2009]

Artist talk, Lighthouse, 3pm Saturday, 1st of August.

The Lighthouse residency for prototype 08 is about to begin. The Chameleon project is built over ten prototypes (2008-2010) with a cross disciplinary group of myself, social neuroscientist Chris Frith, emotion neuroscientist Hugo Critchley, Bruno Averbeck affective computer scientists Ros Picard and Rana El Kaliouby from the MIT medial Lab with help from Youssef Kashef, Abdelrahmen Mahmoud and Marwa Mahmoud from the American University Cairo,  human computer interaction scientists  Nadia Berthouze and her students Matt Iacobini, Kimberly Byers  from the Human Computer Interaction Center, UCL and  curator, Helen Sloan from SCAN.

The project investigates the scientific foundations of emotional contagion, drawing attention to how we innately and continuously synchronize with the facial expressions, voices and postures of others by unconsciously infecting each other with our emotions.  It both follows and critiques the scientific methodology, creating scientific and artistic research, as well as new models to be used in scientific experiments, and new ways to experience art.

The Chameleon project interacts with its audience by displaying videos of emotional expression portraits, shot over the world by the artist. She asked volunteers to be filmed expressing emotions elicitng emotional states using varied psycho analytical techniques. The Audience’s emotions are monitored by facial emotion reading technology developed by the MIT media lab, driving a subtle interactivity of the work. The video engine, embedded with an emotional algorithm developed by neurocientists, pushes the work to empathize with the audience. Over time, it develops mood and temperament.  For audiences, empathy becomes a powerful form of agency, becoming increasingly aware of and sensitive to the consequences of their interactions, becoming implicated into an emotional drama.

The Chameleon Project is funded by the Wellcome Trust Large Art Award, Arts Council England, Australia Arts Council, Lighthouse, in kind support from the Liminal Screen Co-Production at the Banff New Media Institute, Synapse Residency from the Australian Network for Art and Technology, Institute of Neurology at UCL, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, MIT media lab, Dana Center, SCAN and Lighthouse.

At Lighthouse we are investigating prototype 08 which explores a more sculptural iteration of the work. I am working with Natacha Roussel, Michael Roy, (Experientiae-Electricae). They will assist the development of a more sculptural experimentation for prototype 08 by reworking EE's pixy screen to work with the Chameleon Project. 

I am also working with Gordon Brand for the Solent University Rapid prototyping lab, Southampton, testing different projection srufaces, projectors and shapes.

Over the Lighthouse residency I will also be shooting more portraits, extending the video database of the Chameleon Project.

We will be holding evaluation sessions with the human computer interaction team.

# 2 [1 August 2009]

We have a talk scheduled today at 3 pm. Natacha Roussel should have arrived from France, Nadia Berthouze is meeting me at 2pm, so is Hugo Critchley. Gordon Brand just cancelled - he is sick.

We are talking for an hour or so, I will talk about building the project - Hugo will talk about emotional contagion, nadia will talk about the evaluation sessions and natacha will talk about the pixy screen. This is my fourth talk at Lighthouse this year.

I am about to carry all the equipment down to Lighthouse. I am carrying 5 computers, 2 video cameras, 2 cameras tripod, all cords. Its two very heavy back backs and all cabs seem to be booked out.

# 3 [3 August 2009]

EVALUATION SET UP. TINA GONSALVES

Monday morning at Lighthouse. Kim Byers is here from the human computer interaction center at UCL to start an initial evaluation. We have set up studio one as a testing lab. There is a projector - with the portraits projected large on the wall. There are some speakers for sound and also the camera which monitors the facial emotion expression which drives the interaction.

Its been hard to organise placement of camera with the screen so large. The bigger the screen, the more one needs to sit back from it. Meaning, where do you place the camera? We need the face to be rather close to the camera at the moment which makes the face hard to read. The face reader also likes lightness - not darkness. I have bought a very expensive set of infra-red lights - but this morning, I couldn't really notice a difference.

Anyway, its all set up now, and the first of the evaluation sessions has begun. We placed a couch in the middle of the room. Then a chair in front of the couch that holds the camera. We tested the light, and so far , the camera seems to work.

Its strange the i don't see much difference using the infra red.

# 4 [3 August 2009]

ARTIST TALK AUGUST 1st : TINA GONSALVES

We had an artist talk on Saturday. We had Hugo Critchley speaking about emotional contagion. Nadia Berthouse about the Human Computer Interaction and Natacha Roussel about the Pixy screen that is being built at Lighthouse. I talked about the building of the project. A few interesting comments - but the talk went for too long, leaving not enough time for discussion. I find the most interesting part of talks is the discussion part - so it was ashame to have run over time. Its always an interesting process holding a talk - especially with this ever-growing project. The challenge is keeping it focused on one dimension of the project rather than the many - I think on Saturday there were too many dimensions - but the feedback about the talk was good.

# 5 [3 August 2009]

Its 5pm - busy day - we had some young helpers in all day - glueing the screens, painting wood, helping set up a shoot. Kim spent the day in the evaluation room - will be interesting to see the results. While she wasn't in there I tried to set up for tonight's shoot.

Natacha got pretty far with the screen. She thinks it might be up tomorrow. That would be fantastic. The earlier we have it running the better. Getting the position right has taken a lot of dialogue. The screen like a big space - the more the distance, the more the image reveals itself. We are building four times as many pixels into the screen than we did at le cube. Natacha seems to have it all under control. A lot of work to build it - its beautiful. The screen is very hand made - very craft like. its so nice to see technology like this. Felt, handled.

I am thinking I may need to shoot specifically for the screen. The screen likes gesture. I would like to shoot from the waste up. Someone who likes to move.

I have a two people in for a shoot tonight. The first at 7pm and the second at 8.30pm. A late night. We only have one light, and I am shooting against a black backdrop. The one light is hard to deal with - because the side lighting causes some not nice shadows. I need a filler light, but we don't have one. I have had to position the light further to the back of the room with a diffuser. The light is a bit harsh, especially for the people in front of the camera. Its definitely not sounds proof so we will have a few sound issues.

I talked to Gordon Brand from Solent University who is developing screens - we are going to have a day together here on Thursday - trying different projections - different techniques. It will be interesting to see what we come up with. We are hoping to embed cameras into the sort of frame - who knows if we can. Potentially this screen could be used for amsterdam. I might try out another projector? I am testing the smaller portable ones bu am yet to find one that suits.

I tried to download the new version of the mind reading technology that is working a bit better with happiness. Still in the midst of it. I am working on pc's because the mindreader works on xp, but its really foreign to me - so I find myself getting stuck on the simplest of tasks. it is frustrating

# 6 [4 August 2009]

was at Lighthouse till 10 pm last night - two shoots - one with a man who is 86 and another - a third shoot for a woman who was 61. It was an interesting night. The man, who initially seemed reticent to be involved, enjoyed it in the end. We conversed a lot - just to get to know each other and relaxed. It was interesting - he said he didn't really like to display emotions. Emotions were something felt, but not displayed. emotions where something he thought about later - long after the emotional stimulus. Again, anger was something felt mostly between family and friends, sadness involved death and family. Happiness involved early family memories. A beautiful simple memory of holding his father's hand. his father's hand strong and big. It was a great hour and a half. i will look at the footage today. As he mentioned, the hour and a half felt like a privilege. A rare experience, where he got to talk, I got to listen and ask questions and with the camera in front of me, I got to ask questions that probed deeper than what I would usually ask. 

I then started on the third shoot with a participant. It was amazing to see her face in front of the camera again. After hours of editing her face, i felt like I knew her well. But she was tired- we started the shoot at 8.30 at night - We tried to get the lighting right - to match the last shoot. We tired to get a hair right for continuity, but the month in between her hair had grown an inch or two. she had been in london for the day. She had also spent half an hour waiting outside the building of Lighthouse. It was amazing to look through the lense and see her face again. She looked tired, and the tiredness revealed a completely different face. Or, it could have been that it was our third shoot, and the familiarity revealed a different face. It was incredibly interesting to see. I will look at the footage today to see if it can be used, but I felt like I was shooting a completely different person. Amazing how the time of the day affects the reading of the face, the display of the face.

We have a team of people in at Lighthouse this morning - Hayley and Connor - young students who are helping Natacha and Michael build the screen. We have Andy, a graduate of photography and media studies, and we have Karl, from informatics and Brighton and sussex, whose background is anthropology. They are all huddled around at table building the screen. Michael has arrived from paris with more suitcases of gear and got charged a fortune on Ryan air for extra luggage.

# 7 [4 August 2009]

the hammers have started. lots of banging, lots of people. lots of noise. we have been told to quieten down. I have a feeling the screen will be hanging tomorrow. I am starting to digitize last nights shoot. I have installed the new Pixy patch to work with the Chameleon Project. 

# 8 [4 August 2009]

A very interesting energy, buzzing, chatting and the odd "bang bang" ... infact as I type the bang bang has become BANG BANG..

Tina Gonsalves - The screen is starting to take shape now - hayley and connor have left for the day - Karl has gone back to London. I have set up the studio next door for tonights shoot. I am getting a bit tired but also know its rare that you have access to such space, help and technology - I need to make the most use of it we can. Gen and Jamie from Lighthouse have been great as always. - helpful. nothing is a problem. Natacha and Michael have been given keys to Lighthouse now - I have a feeling Michael will be here all night - working away - he seems a bit panicked - he is building the 'guts' behind the pixy screen - he is an amazing artist/thinker/technologist who makes pretty hi-tech stuff with lo-tech. 

We had some great talks today - about space - as in gaps, about stillness, about interventions, about connectedness, sharing. karl's back ground as an anthropologist is incredibly interesting. He discussed a lot of books and philosophers. Its been great to have him about. I discussed a few future ideas I am trying to get off the ground. Jane has an interest in 'Liminal spaces' - she is doing her MA at Brighton and is here to help out for a few weeks. She wants to know more about the project/process and is thinking about writing about it for her dissertation. Natacha talked about a project natacha talked about an artist working with hexagram that embeds the screen into the mirror. 

These thoughts are interesting - Michael mentioned a french company that makes video screens that are mirrors. Then  It would be nice to explore all of this further. Gordon Brand is here on Thursday, so it will be interesting to discuss things further. I want to see this project shift into something beautiful - more aesthetic, more seductive. More realized than past iterations of the work.

Natacha has found my process of work interesting. She says that the way that I work is very built into the concept of Chameleon. She says I should discuss it more - but its hard to be objective about it when you are in it, and its part of your everyday. I have asked everyone who is taking part in the next two weeks to write about their experience, and hopefully post it to this blog. I hope they do. I want to know what they get out of it. Natacha calls it an iterative process. I am not sure what I call it.

# 9 [4 August 2009]

Jane McGrath - MA DIGITAL MEDIA ARTS

Arrived today feeling a little unsure of what to expect, came down the stairs turned the corner and arrived.... a room full of activity, a large green tarpaulin laid out on the floor, painted white diagonal stripes from a previous incarnation. Now a collection of  fresh  batons lay horizontally and three people sit and work. 

Connor and Hayley make up two thirds of this team. Both are working as part of a placement scheme for a project called "Loops" that aims to give young people interested in working in the arts some hands on experience. They seemed very capable - as they utilise the glue gun, coiled plastic and batons with great ease. They were really involved in building a project that seems so complex but as with anything in life - small simple steps make up the most complicated of designs.. .

Natasha is at the other end applying some small plastic looking squares (which I am sure are actually more than this) to even more batons....Michael is setting up a series of what he calls 'pixy boards' which are like to my inexperienced eye a collection of more complicated multi storey mother boards. It looks like a miniature suburban office building structure  - prior to the cladding being put on.

Tina runs in and starts getting things organised to set up the screens and computers for the software. She needs to digitise and transcibe and its all hands on deck.

How do I feel? Nervous, a little shy ..but welcomed, also a little unsure of how to make my self useful. Carl, who is also assisting helps me to relax as we chat about his current project relating to shyness.

I think as i write that maybe this blog will be more helpful if its subjective rather than simply reporting what happens . Im an MA student and my back ground is fashion public relations, working for 5 years for Jean Paul Gaultier, teaching at London College of Fashion and film-making... I say this to qualify the following... i came to the course  with a bare minimum of technical skills outside of film making and event organising and have been grasping and flailing around trying to catch up with my peers ever since. But in my defence I can now program..

So its an understanding of the technical that fascinates me about this project as well as an exploration of liminal spaces . I guess then that this blog will be an account of what I see, learn and think, which may be as surprising to me as it is to readers of this blog..

# 10 [4 August 2009]

Tina Gonsalves -

I digitized all of last nights footage. I edited helen's in and out points - making them longer. I feel I am going to have ot deal with it another way - meaning - less talking - longer edit points.  - edits driven by changes in emotional expression and not edit points...? The problem is is that if we don't have key in and out points - it could just corrupt everything. As in - sort of become quite flippant.  I need Jeff to start working on the next version of this. jeff Mann is building the video engine. He is still in Berlin, but I have a feeling things will be able to work with out him being here.

Kim Byers, from UCL interaction Center who was doing todays evaluation mentioned that the 'best ' response were the portraits that didn't talk much at all. the ambiguity gave a lot more room for interpretation. Editing, shooting wise, obviously someone who doesn't talk is easier to deal with. Again, more space, more quietness, potentially more reflectiveness. 

On the other hand, to elicit different emotional states, I often begin by talking to each of the participants. They mostly talk a lot - its amazing where the conversations lead to. Its such an interesting process.

Kim noticed that the characters got moody. She said by the end of the day - they were unresponsive. This was interesting, as I hadn't quite told her about how the coding of the work has memory and overtime a mood and temperament for each character would build. I need to get the mood /temperament figures for kim to guide her evaluation. I also need to spend some time playing with them myself. I am not sure how to access them, but have asked jeff how we go about it.