Combinatorics (Image)
Electronic components and computer-generated video, 2.63 x 1075 years
2018
Combinatorics (Sound)
Electronic components and computer-generated sound, 7.23 x 102765 years
2018
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Exhibited as part of Permutations at Dominik Mersch Gallery, Sydney, November 2018.
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Combinatorics (Sound) and Combinatorics (Image) are generative artworks that iterate through all possible permutations of a given data format. The works questions the current logic towards acquiring more data towards better predicting and modeling behaviours, instead displaying the full scope of what is possible within a given data format and demonstrating the vastness and incomprehensibility of this range. In Image this is all colour combinations that can be displayed on an 8 x 6 pixel array; while Sound moves through all possible 10 bit, 512 sample audio buffers. The works take an extremely long time to complete this task, Image displays 60 frames per second for 2.63 x 1075 years while Sound plays back samples at 44100 samples per second for 7.23 x 102765 years. The current position in this duration at any given point in time is calculated based on the time since January 1st, 1970, also known as Unix time, a common time stamp for computer calculations.
These works explore the full scope of permutations available for a given data format. Their long durations mean that we will never be able to experience the total range of configurations, even if observed continually. However, the work also taps into the aesthetic dimension of data renderings, asking questions of the way this flow of data becomes sensory. The images flicker rapidly and shift at different speeds, while the sound continually ramps up in intensity, each cycle becoming more complex and rich in tonality. Within these sounds and images much more appears to the senses than an ordering of ones and zeros, presenting a particular intensity to the algorithmic processes of reordering and presenting data.
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Combinatorics (Image)
Combinatorics (Sound)