Lieberman / Kimura: Drawn

Drawn is a performance collaboration between Japanese “frequency surfer” Pardon Kimura and artist Zach Lieberman, using live painting combined with computer vision as an interface for creating visuals.

A camera films a stack of papers on which Lieberman draws with a brush. The camera’s image is sent through a computer, which analyzes the scene and converts the painted shapes to mathematically described curves. The computer then modifies the image seen by the audience, erasing the original painting and superimposing the new computer-generated shapes. This allows the shapes to be played with as though they weren’t actually painted on paper, and the user can push them around the page using only his hands. The illusion is efficient and feels beautifully organic and lo-tech.

Drawn is a logical progression for Lieberman, whose work often concerns itself with gestural input and performance. As Tmema, Lieberman and Golan Levin created the Manual Input Sessions performance, using overhead projectors and computer vision to create both sound and image. It’s interesting that two people whose abilities are so high-tech are consistently attracted to low-tech gestural input. But then, a seamless organic illusion is one of the hardest things to do with a computer.

Original link from blog.ni9e.com.