Glitch-O-Rama is an interactive sculpture that generates glitch images in real time.
Through a joystick, speed and direction of the motor can be controlled, intervening the result displayed on a screen, generating short circuits that affect the video image. Using this semi-randomized control system, the device creates different visual configurations and infinite unpredictable patterns.
The installation consists of a bundle of cables attached to a motor, the ends of those cables touch the pcb board -especially designed for this work- which is soldered to a video source electronic board.
Through a joystick, speed and direction of the motor can be controlled, intervening the result displayed on a screen, generating short circuits that affect the video image. Using this semi-randomized control system, the device creates different visual configurations and infinite unpredictable patterns.
Through the interaction with the sculpture the user manipulates the generative digital video in real time.
A range of possible short circuits was selected according to their aesthetic potentials and then connected to the electronic board. This mixture of different electronic interventions and their mechanisms of activation affect the results of what we see on the screen.
Captures:
"My First Sony" was a series of smaller-scale electronics made by Sony in the mid-late 1980s made for children.
They were made of brightly colored plastic, usually red, and large colorful buttons with simple controls.
My First Sony products included a Walkman, amplified microphone with tape deck, recording tape deck, Boom box, alarm clock, headset walkie talkies and the video source of Glitch-O-Rama, a toy called “Electronic Sketch Pad” that allows you to make digital draws using the digital pen and connecting the device with your TV.
An example of the device working as intended by Sony “properly".
The commercial Jingle said: "I like to sing, to ride a pony, but I prefer My First Sony””.
The commercial Jingle said: "I like to sing, to ride a pony, but I prefer My First Sony””.
The source of the video signal was interfered electronically using circuit bending techniques.
I chose fourteen possibilities of intervention on the main board. Each of these interventions was able to generate a different visual glitch effect.
Researching on these visual options, I discovered the possibility of not only triggering images, but also mixing them with each other in order to obtain unexpected results from different combinations.
With the objective of mixing the fourteen previously selected contact points, I designed a PCB (Printed Circuit Board) where the small metal balls that are attached to the stepper motor could move freely and affect the video signal by shorting the board randomly.
The user can use a joystick to control the movement and speed of the motor. The “aircraft” type joystick is connected to an Arduino which in turn is connected to the stepper motor and programmed to use the X axis for the speed of the cycles and the Y axis for the direction (clockwise and counterclockwise). Thus have the possibility of modify the behavior of the video results.
The notion of randomness is a fundamental part of this piece. A fine balance between the user control with a joystick and the system's ability to generate random results allows a glitch aesthetic that is based on desired unpredictability.
