Artificial Natures undertakes work in a variety of art and design contexts. Our medium is computation: both software and hardware. Our projects are collaborative: we work to realize our own and others' creative visions by inventing new technologies. Below is a selection of some of our recent work.
Works
Projects by Artificial Natures
Form is a Verb
2016
Form is a Verb
A workshop by Blair Satterfield and Luke Bulman
at the University of Minnesota School of Architecture
March 2016
Aaron created a custom motion capture application for this workshop taught as part of the Architecture as Catalyst series. During the workshop, we took advantage of the VRDL's large-scale optical tracking system. Students donned motion capture suits covered with tracking markers and recorded their movements through space and time using the app. The output was a variety of three dimensional forms that students explored through a series of digital and analog processes.
People Pixels
2015
People Pixels
by Aaron Westre and J Wynia
Northern Spark 2015
People Pixels is an interactive, participatory art event created for Northern Spark, an all night art festival which takes place each summer. It's part game, part collaborative drawing tool. Portraits are taken of each participant, processed to increase contrast and then fed into a custom software application. The software stipples the portrait and sorts the stipples into a sequence. When the participants are ready the app displays each stipple in order, challenging the participants to keep up as they race to complete the portrait before time is up.
People Pixels was also exhibited as part of the Science Museum of Minnesota's Superhero Science event.
Builders of the Universe
2014
Builders of the Universe
by Aaron Marx
Art(its) on the Verge 5
Soap Factory
March 2014
Aaron Westre worked with Aaron Marx to create a sensor and microcontroller system to control the lighting for Builders of the Universe. Ultrasonic range finders measure the proximity of viewers, changing the brightness of integrated lighting in response.
City Fight!
2012
City Fight!
by Aaron Westre
Art(ists) on the Verge 3
Soap Factory
March 2012
[Video]
City Fight is an art game built as part of the Art(ists) on the Verge fellowship program run by Northern Lights.mn.
MAW
2009 - 2014
MAW
MAW (aka Minneapolis Art on Wheels) is an art collective started at the University of Minnesota by Ali Momeni. MAW artists work with large-scale, urban projection and sound to create engaging public events. Aaron has worked with MAW since 2009 making creative software prototypes and interactive art. Most recently, Aaron was part of the Resident Artist Research Program at the Bell Museum of Natural History, along with Andrea Steudel and Ashley Monk. The residency culminated in an exhibition of two pieces: Borrowed Sound, Borrowed Ears and Chimera. Chimera was also exhibited at the Northern Spark festival in 2014.
"A" Mill
2010
Complexity Machine 1
2008
Complexity Machine 1
Masters Thesis by Aaron Westre
University of Minnesota School of Architecture
2008
[Book]
Complexity Machine 1 was Aaron's thesis project for the Master of Architecture program at UMN. It is an application for creating 3D form using flocking and swarming behavior.