the White Spots map shows the borders between the online and the offline world. Dark areas are connected, white areas are not.

Part of the White Spots project.

Studio for Data Art


 
The Case for a Small Language Model
e
Prototype for a Nondestructive Generative AI

2024
installation
2024

When a language model produces a sentence it presents us a statistical probability based on countless texts it has analysed. Before it is able to predict the next character in a sentence it has to cut the writings of millions of authors into fragments to analyse the sequence of characters. They are stripped of meaning and structure and repurposed as a statistical resource. While the system needs the author's work as input, the results can never be traced back. But what would happen when a language model creates new texts while leaving the original work intact? What if generative AI can be traced back to and understood in the context of the original text?
read more

When a language model produces a sentence it presents us a statistical probability based on countless texts it has analysed. Before it is able to predict the next character in a sentence it has to cut the writings of millions of authors into fragments to analyse the sequence of characters. They are stripped of meaning and structure and repurposed as a statistical resource. While the system needs the author's work as input, the results can never be traced back. But what would happen when a language model creates new texts while leaving the original work intact? What if generative AI can be traced back to and understood in the context of the original text?

The Case For a Small Language Network is a speculative AI based on the work of Dutch composer and poet Rozalie Hirs. Her 2021 poetry book Oneindige Zin (which can be read as Infinite Sense or Infinite Phrase in Dutch) can be read as one never ending phrase. The installation shows the entire book printed on five 30 meter long strips of labelprinter paper that scroll in both directions. As the five lines move back and forth, a vertical reading allows for new combinations to emerge. $Meanwhile a neural network based on Andrej Karpathy’s Char-RNN analyses a digital copy of Hirs’ original text and tries to create new sentences based on her work. Initially the combinations seem random and nonsensical but as the training of the neural network (running on a low power Raspberry Pi) progresses, more interesting combinations emerge. Rather than appropriating the the authors work as mere statistical data and cutting it into fragments, the system leaves the original text intact. It's output can only be read and understood in the context of the input, as the only way to display it is to move the entire manuscript text left or right.

The Case for a Small Language Network reflects on the role of authorship in generative AI and questions the practice of reducing the written expressions of millions of authors, (mostly without their permission) into a statistical resource.

In collaboration with Rozalie Hirs and Jelle Reith, supported by The Creative Industries Fund NL and the Netherlands Foundation for Literature.

When a language model produces a sentence it presents us a statistical probability based on countless texts it has analysed. Before it is able to predict the next character in a sentence it has to cut the writings of millions of authors into fragments to analyse the sequence of characters. They are stripped of meaning and structure and repurposed as a statistical resource. While the system needs the author's work as input, the results can never be traced back. But what would happen when a language model creates new texts while leaving the original work intact? What if generative AI can be traced back to and understood in the context of the original text?

The Case For a Small Language Network is a speculative AI based on the work of Dutch composer and poet Rozalie Hirs. Her 2021 poetry book Oneindige Zin (which can be read as Infinite Sense or Infinite Phrase in Dutch) can be read as one never ending phrase. The installation shows the entire book printed on five 30 meter long strips of labelprinter paper that scroll in both directions. As the five lines move back and forth, a vertical reading allows for new combinations to emerge. $Meanwhile a neural network based on Andrej Karpathy’s Char-RNN analyses a digital copy of Hirs’ original text and tries to create new sentences based on her work. Initially the combinations seem random and nonsensical but as the training of the neural network (running on a low power Raspberry Pi) progresses, more interesting combinations emerge. Rather than appropriating the the authors work as mere statistical data and cutting it into fragments, the system leaves the original text intact. It's output can only be read and understood in the context of the input, as the only way to display it is to move the entire manuscript text left or right.

The Case for a Small Language Network reflects on the role of authorship in generative AI and questions the practice of reducing the written expressions of millions of authors, (mostly without their permission) into a statistical resource.

In collaboration with Rozalie Hirs and Jelle Reith, supported by The Creative Industries Fund NL and the Netherlands Foundation for Literature.

 
Cosmic Wind Chime
e
data acoustics

2023
instrument
2023

Cosmic Wind Chime is an instrument that translates the real time data measured by the DSCOVR Observatory into a small magnetic field that sets in motion a series of metal tubes. As the spacecraft measures an increase in solar activity, the temperature, particle density and direction are transmitted to earth and translated by the chime into a dynamic magnetic field. As the tubes are pushed and pulled by the surrounding magnets and start to move ever stronger and touch each other the data is translated into an acoustic performance. As the solar wind takes between 15 to 60 minutes to reach earth and there is a delay of about 10 minutes between the measurement on board of the spacecraft and the activation of the chime, it performs the signal between 5 and 50 minutes before it reaches earth.
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1.5 million kilometers from earth where the gravitational force from the earth and our sun are in perfect balance lives a man-made object. An instrument that measures bursts of energy ejected from the surface of our star, heading towards us. These solar winds define the space weather that surrounds our Spaceship Earth.
While solar winds can be perceived as polar lights at high latitudes, they can have global consequences. As the streams of charged particles hit electronic equipment, they can disrupt communication and navigation systems and even cause power blackouts. The frequency and intensity of solar winds follow the sun cycle that rotates the sun’s magnetic field every 11 years. As we are entering a period of increased solar activity in the next few years, space weather may become of increased significance to all. The DSCOVR Deep Space Climate Observatory is a spacecraft that measures solar wind and provides a 15-to-60-minute advanced warning before a storm of particles and magnetic field reaches earth.

Cosmic Wind Chime is an instrument that translates the real time data measured by the DSCOVR Observatory into a small magnetic field that sets in motion a series of metal tubes. $As the spacecraft measures an increase in solar activity, the temperature, particle density and direction are transmitted to earth and translated by the chime into a dynamic magnetic field. While the tubes are pushed and pulled by the surrounding magnets they start to swing ever stronger and touch each other as the data is translated into an acoustic performance. A ring of digits displays the raw sensor data. Solar winds take between 15 to 60 minutes to reach earth and with a delay of about 10 minutes between the measurement on board of the spacecraft and the activation of the chime, the chime performs the signal between 5 and 50 minutes before it reaches earth.

The instrument translates real time space weather into a dynamic electromagnetic performance. By visualizing and sonifying fluctuations on a scale from seconds to hours and months the work proposes a new perspective on our collective cosmic condition, the impact of our sun and its magnetic storms on our technology and a sense of connectedness in the tradition of Spaceship Earth and the Blue Marble.

1.5 million kilometers from earth where the gravitational force from the earth and our sun are in perfect balance lives a man-made object. An instrument that measures bursts of energy ejected from the surface of our star, heading towards us. These solar winds define the space weather that surrounds our Spaceship Earth.
While solar winds can be perceived as polar lights at high latitudes, they can have global consequences. As the streams of charged particles hit electronic equipment, they can disrupt communication and navigation systems and even cause power blackouts. The frequency and intensity of solar winds follow the sun cycle that rotates the sun’s magnetic field every 11 years. As we are entering a period of increased solar activity in the next few years, space weather may become of increased significance to all. The DSCOVR Deep Space Climate Observatory is a spacecraft that measures solar wind and provides a 15-to-60-minute advanced warning before a storm of particles and magnetic field reaches earth.

Cosmic Wind Chime is an instrument that translates the real time data measured by the DSCOVR Observatory into a small magnetic field that sets in motion a series of metal tubes. $As the spacecraft measures an increase in solar activity, the temperature, particle density and direction are transmitted to earth and translated by the chime into a dynamic magnetic field. While the tubes are pushed and pulled by the surrounding magnets they start to swing ever stronger and touch each other as the data is translated into an acoustic performance. A ring of digits displays the raw sensor data. Solar winds take between 15 to 60 minutes to reach earth and with a delay of about 10 minutes between the measurement on board of the spacecraft and the activation of the chime, the chime performs the signal between 5 and 50 minutes before it reaches earth.

The instrument translates real time space weather into a dynamic electromagnetic performance. By visualizing and sonifying fluctuations on a scale from seconds to hours and months the work proposes a new perspective on our collective cosmic condition, the impact of our sun and its magnetic storms on our technology and a sense of connectedness in the tradition of Spaceship Earth and the Blue Marble.

 
View Beneath Delft
e
data panorama

2024
public led screen
2024

commissioned by Highlight Delft
As you descend the stairs into the central hall of the Delft train station, a panoramic screen shows a subterranean view of Delft. It portrays a subset of around 30.000 sample analyses from Terraindex’s enormous collection of soil data. The result is a view of Delft from below where each line represents a soil sample that matches the viewers perspective. Moving through the data landscape you encounter clusters of soil findings.
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As you descend the stairs into the central hall of the Delft train station, a panoramic screen shows a subterranean view of Delft. It portrays a subset of around 30.000 sample analyses from Terraindex’s enormous collection of soil data. The result is a view of Delft from below where each line represents a soil sample that matches the viewers perspective. Moving through the data landscape you encounter clusters of soil findings. $Some are natural such as sand or shells, others are man made such as asphalt, plastic or brick. The visualisation cycles trough a series of routes that connect these clusters. By following these routes you are presented with an ever changing View Beneath Delft.

In collaboration with TerraIndex

As you descend the stairs into the central hall of the Delft train station, a panoramic screen shows a subterranean view of Delft. It portrays a subset of around 30.000 sample analyses from Terraindex’s enormous collection of soil data. The result is a view of Delft from below where each line represents a soil sample that matches the viewers perspective. Moving through the data landscape you encounter clusters of soil findings. $Some are natural such as sand or shells, others are man made such as asphalt, plastic or brick. The visualisation cycles trough a series of routes that connect these clusters. By following these routes you are presented with an ever changing View Beneath Delft.

In collaboration with TerraIndex

 
Through Artificial Eyes
e
A.I. datavisualization

2022
interactive installation
2022

When a computer looks at the world, what does it “see”? This installation lets the audience look at 558 episodes of VPRO Tegenlicht (Dutch Future Affairs Documentary series) through the eyes of a computer vision Neural Network. The installation employs an object detection algorithm that has been trained on Imagenet data across three categories; people, artefacts and natural objects. These categories are the "eyes" through which the algorithm observes the archive.
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When a computer looks at the world, what does it “see”? This installation lets the audience look at 558 episodes of VPRO Tegenlicht (Dutch Future Affairs Documentary series) through the eyes of a computer vision Neural Network. The installation employs an object detection algorithm that has been trained on Imagenet data across three categories; people, artefacts and natural objects. These categories are the "eyes" through which the algorithm observes the archive.
By choosing an eye, the user chooses a narrow perspective; The eye trained on people can only see people. With these eyes, the algorithm can identify between 30 and 60 different classes; men, women, children, but also politicians, economists and "bad people". These classes follow the structure of the imagenet dataset and range from obvious and utilitarian to absurd and problematic. As such they highlight the inevitable cultural perspectives embedded in the process of computer vision; from data collection to annotation and categorization. After choosing an eye and browsing through its different classes the user can set the confidence threshold, a value that sets how "confident" the algorithm needs to be for a result to appear. By playing with this value, the audience can explore the limits of the algorithm; where does it draw the line between a man and a woman? By exposing these choices; the eye, the class and the confidence, the installation allows for a more intuitive relation to A.I.$One that does not present A.I. as an outcome or an answer, but as a dialog between man and machine. Sometimes powerful and revealing, but also fallible and coloured.

After training the algorithm it has observed over 400 hours of video and detected more than 1 million objects. These objects are stored in a database as short clips of bounding boxes of ever changing scale and position. The installation presents these objects both in a linear way, where the bounding boxes are shown within the frame of the film as well as a non linear way, where the objects exist as autonomous entities, isolated from the original frame.

From February 20th to June 26th 2022 at Het Nieuwe Instituut Rotterdam

Installation Design and Production: Richard Vijgen | Curatorial Team: Het Nieuwe Instituut, VPRO Tegenlicht (Bregtje Van Der Haak), Richard Vijgen, Koehorst in ’t Veld | Exhibition Design: Koehorst in 't Veld | Programme Manager: Olle Lundin | Production: Floor Berkhout, Babette Zijlstra | Sound Design: Eusebi Jucglà | Supported by Het Nieuwe Instituut, VPRO, Mondriaan Fonds, Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid

When a computer looks at the world, what does it “see”? This installation lets the audience look at 558 episodes of VPRO Tegenlicht (Dutch Future Affairs Documentary series) through the eyes of a computer vision Neural Network. The installation employs an object detection algorithm that has been trained on Imagenet data across three categories; people, artefacts and natural objects. These categories are the "eyes" through which the algorithm observes the archive.
By choosing an eye, the user chooses a narrow perspective; The eye trained on people can only see people. With these eyes, the algorithm can identify between 30 and 60 different classes; men, women, children, but also politicians, economists and "bad people". These classes follow the structure of the imagenet dataset and range from obvious and utilitarian to absurd and problematic. As such they highlight the inevitable cultural perspectives embedded in the process of computer vision; from data collection to annotation and categorization. After choosing an eye and browsing through its different classes the user can set the confidence threshold, a value that sets how "confident" the algorithm needs to be for a result to appear. By playing with this value, the audience can explore the limits of the algorithm; where does it draw the line between a man and a woman? By exposing these choices; the eye, the class and the confidence, the installation allows for a more intuitive relation to A.I.$One that does not present A.I. as an outcome or an answer, but as a dialog between man and machine. Sometimes powerful and revealing, but also fallible and coloured.

After training the algorithm it has observed over 400 hours of video and detected more than 1 million objects. These objects are stored in a database as short clips of bounding boxes of ever changing scale and position. The installation presents these objects both in a linear way, where the bounding boxes are shown within the frame of the film as well as a non linear way, where the objects exist as autonomous entities, isolated from the original frame.

From February 20th to June 26th 2022 at Het Nieuwe Instituut Rotterdam

Installation Design and Production: Richard Vijgen | Curatorial Team: Het Nieuwe Instituut, VPRO Tegenlicht (Bregtje Van Der Haak), Richard Vijgen, Koehorst in ’t Veld | Exhibition Design: Koehorst in 't Veld | Programme Manager: Olle Lundin | Production: Floor Berkhout, Babette Zijlstra | Sound Design: Eusebi Jucglà | Supported by Het Nieuwe Instituut, VPRO, Mondriaan Fonds, Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid

 
Eternal Blue
e
realtime visualisation

2022
installation
2022

commissioned by Maastricht University (NL)
On Christmas Eve 2019 the University of Maastricht (NL) was hit by a severe cyberattack. Eternal Blue is a monument to the events of 2019 as well as a window into an invisible dimension of reality. Each day the University’s firewall intercepts tens of thousands of malicious packets. Over the course of 24 hours these packets reveal the patterns of a global digital tide with attacks originating from different parts of the world in correlation with day and night rhythms. Each intercepted package is logged and visualised as a coloured pixel. Together they form a slowly rotating sphere that represents 24 hours from top to bottom where the color represents the country of origin. A period of continued attacks from a specific country appears as a coloured band that starts at the top slowly moving down. Every day reveals a new pattern based on the origin and intensity of the attacks.
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On Christmas Eve 2019 the University of Maastricht (NL) was hit by a severe cyberattack. A few weeks before, an employee of the university had accidentally clicked a link in a phishing mail that linked to an excel file called schedule.xls. This file installed the SDBBot malware on the employee’s laptop. Within a few days the attacker was able to access and spread across the University’s local network. Using a so called EternalBlue exploit on an outdated server the attacker was able to get full access to the central system. On december 23rd 2019 at 18:52 the attacker had installed ransomware that encrypted all files on 267 of the University’s servers containing everything from student affairs, to payroll to researchers and phd’s project data. A ransom letter was left in a .txt file demanding € 200.000 in bitcoin.
Unable to function, the University decided to pay and take the whole process public by publishing the digital forensic report and hosting a symposium to educate the public about the course of events.While the attack has had a profound impact on the University, the staff and the students, there is little that remains of the event other than a sealed off laptop with a sticker on it that reads “Patient zero. Do not connect to the network”. $ Eternal Blue is a monument to the events of 2019 as well as a window into an invisible dimension of reality. Each day the University’s firewall intercepts tens of thousands of malicious packets. Over the course of 24 hours these packets reveal the patterns of a global digital tide with attacks originating from different parts of the world in correlation with day and night rhythms. Each intercepted package is logged and visualised as a coloured pixel. Together they form a slowly rotating sphere that represents 24 hours from top to bottom where the color represents the country of origin. A period of continued attacks from a specific country appears as a coloured band that starts at the top slowly moving down. Every day reveals a new pattern based on the origin and intensity of the attacks.
While one day the sphere may be predominantly blue with a few bands of color, the next day it may be mostly green with a few specks of yellow and red. As such it resembles a contemporary clock that measures the passing of time by the intensity of digital attacks. It is a the invisible but very real background against which the University functions as an open and international institution.

On Christmas Eve 2019 the University of Maastricht (NL) was hit by a severe cyberattack. A few weeks before, an employee of the university had accidentally clicked a link in a phishing mail that linked to an excel file called schedule.xls. This file installed the SDBBot malware on the employee’s laptop. Within a few days the attacker was able to access and spread across the University’s local network. Using a so called EternalBlue exploit on an outdated server the attacker was able to get full access to the central system. On december 23rd 2019 at 18:52 the attacker had installed ransomware that encrypted all files on 267 of the University’s servers containing everything from student affairs, to payroll to researchers and phd’s project data. A ransom letter was left in a .txt file demanding € 200.000 in bitcoin.
Unable to function, the University decided to pay and take the whole process public by publishing the digital forensic report and hosting a symposium to educate the public about the course of events.While the attack has had a profound impact on the University, the staff and the students, there is little that remains of the event other than a sealed off laptop with a sticker on it that reads “Patient zero. Do not connect to the network”. $ Eternal Blue is a monument to the events of 2019 as well as a window into an invisible dimension of reality. Each day the University’s firewall intercepts tens of thousands of malicious packets. Over the course of 24 hours these packets reveal the patterns of a global digital tide with attacks originating from different parts of the world in correlation with day and night rhythms. Each intercepted package is logged and visualised as a coloured pixel. Together they form a slowly rotating sphere that represents 24 hours from top to bottom where the color represents the country of origin. A period of continued attacks from a specific country appears as a coloured band that starts at the top slowly moving down. Every day reveals a new pattern based on the origin and intensity of the attacks.
While one day the sphere may be predominantly blue with a few bands of color, the next day it may be mostly green with a few specks of yellow and red. As such it resembles a contemporary clock that measures the passing of time by the intensity of digital attacks. It is a the invisible but very real background against which the University functions as an open and international institution.

 
Atmospheric Lighthouse
e
realtime datavisualization

2023
media architecture
2023

Mirador Torre Glòries
Atmospheric Lighthouse is a visual interface between the city and it’s environment, a visualization of the interaction between the atmosphere and the city. As the wind blows fresh air into the streets, it carries dust and sand from the desert, moisture from the sea or cool air from the mountains, linking the city with places hundreds of kilometers away. The flow or air creates an Urban Canyon Effect as it bounces off and around high buildings. It absorbs the particles created by burning fossil fuels and carries them out of the city.$This complex interaction between air flow and the built environment is largely invisible but fundamental to urban life.
read more

Atmospheric Lighthouse is a visual interface between the city and it’s environment, a visualization of the interaction between the atmosphere and the city. As the wind blows fresh air into the streets it carries dust and sand from the desert, moisture from the sea or cool air from the mountains, linking the city with places hundreds of kilometers away. The flow or air creates an Urban Canyon Effect as it bounces off and around high buildings. It absorbs the particles created by burning fossil fuels and carries them out of the city.$This complex interaction between air flow and the built environment is largely invisible but fundamental to urban life. Atmospheric Lighthouse captures and analyses realtime atmospheric data to visualize the flow of air around the skin of Torre Glòries using a 43 x 120 pixel grid. Wind speed and direction result in ever changing patterns while measurements of CO2, small particles (PM10, PM2.5) and NOx affect the color of the air flows.

Coding: Richard Vijgen and Eusebi Jucglà

Atmospheric Lighthouse is a visual interface between the city and it’s environment, a visualization of the interaction between the atmosphere and the city. As the wind blows fresh air into the streets it carries dust and sand from the desert, moisture from the sea or cool air from the mountains, linking the city with places hundreds of kilometers away. The flow or air creates an Urban Canyon Effect as it bounces off and around high buildings. It absorbs the particles created by burning fossil fuels and carries them out of the city.$This complex interaction between air flow and the built environment is largely invisible but fundamental to urban life. Atmospheric Lighthouse captures and analyses realtime atmospheric data to visualize the flow of air around the skin of Torre Glòries using a 43 x 120 pixel grid. Wind speed and direction result in ever changing patterns while measurements of CO2, small particles (PM10, PM2.5) and NOx affect the color of the air flows.

Coding: Richard Vijgen and Eusebi Jucglà

 
Hyperview Barcelona
e
data driven narrative

2022
holographic installation
2022

commissioned by Mediapro Exhibitions
A data-driven portrait of Barcelona that visualises the city as an interconnected flow system of human and non-human actors. Hyperview Barcelona is one part of Mirador Torre Glories, a permanent two part exhibition that connects the basement of the landmark Torre Glories with the 144 meters high observation deck. Each part gives a different perspective on the city. While the observation deck focusses on the visible, combining a spectacular view with an immersive installation by Tomás Saraceno, the basement is dedicated to the invisible; the city as a network of people, materials, energy and biology.
read more

A data-driven portrait of Barcelona that visualises the city as an interconnected flow system of human and non-human actors. Hyperview Barcelona is one part of Mirador Torre Glories, a permanent two part exhibition that connects the basement of the landmark Torre Glories with the 144 meters high observation deck. Each part gives a different perspective on the city. While the observation deck focusses on the visible, combining a spectacular view with an immersive installation by Tomás Saraceno, the basement is dedicated to the invisible; the city as a network of people, materials, energy and biology. Rhythms is a holographic installation that visualises a realtime perspective on the city by combining 10 different live data sources ranging from from weather stations, air quality and traffic sensors to electromagnetic signals and lidar data into a highly dynamic story narrated by an A.I. voice.
The story consists of three chapters; flow, pulse and vibrations. Chapter one focusses on the interaction between air flow and the city grid$by using realtime wind data to simulate the urban canyon effect (how air flows through a city) and its effects on trees. Chapter two uses realtime traffic data to visualise the pulse of the city through movement of people and goods. Chapter tree looks at the flow of information through the city as electromagnetic vibrations. It uses a SDR receiver to scan the electromagnetic spectrum in real time and uses cell tower data to transform a high resolution Lidar map as well as various API’s to monitor recent usage of social media in the city. Combined with a data driven musical score by John Talabot, the result is a 7:30 minute volumetric composition that changes with the rhythm of the city.

Design and Production: Richard Vijgen
Coding: Richard Vijgen and Eusebi Jucglà
Music: John Talabot
Commissioned by: Mediapro Exhibitions

Permanent exhibtion from May 2022

A data-driven portrait of Barcelona that visualises the city as an interconnected flow system of human and non-human actors. Hyperview Barcelona is one part of Mirador Torre Glories, a permanent two part exhibition that connects the basement of the landmark Torre Glories with the 144 meters high observation deck. Each part gives a different perspective on the city. While the observation deck focusses on the visible, combining a spectacular view with an immersive installation by Tomás Saraceno, the basement is dedicated to the invisible; the city as a network of people, materials, energy and biology. Rhythms is a holographic installation that visualises a realtime perspective on the city by combining 10 different live data sources ranging from from weather stations, air quality and traffic sensors to electromagnetic signals and lidar data into a highly dynamic story narrated by an A.I. voice.
The story consists of three chapters; flow, pulse and vibrations. Chapter one focusses on the interaction between air flow and the city grid$by using realtime wind data to simulate the urban canyon effect (how air flows through a city) and its effects on trees. Chapter two uses realtime traffic data to visualise the pulse of the city through movement of people and goods. Chapter tree looks at the flow of information through the city as electromagnetic vibrations. It uses a SDR receiver to scan the electromagnetic spectrum in real time and uses cell tower data to transform a high resolution Lidar map as well as various API’s to monitor recent usage of social media in the city. Combined with a data driven musical score by John Talabot, the result is a 7:30 minute volumetric composition that changes with the rhythm of the city.

Design and Production: Richard Vijgen
Coding: Richard Vijgen and Eusebi Jucglà
Music: John Talabot
Commissioned by: Mediapro Exhibitions

Permanent exhibtion from May 2022

 
Hertzian Landscapes
e
data landscape

2019
interactive installation
2019

commissioned by Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision
Lumen Prize
2020
Hertzian Landscapes is a live visualization of the radio spectrum. Unlike visible light, waves in the radio spectrum cannot be perceived by us directly yet this space is teeming with human activity. Hertzian Landscapes employs a digital receiver to scan large swaths of radio spectrum in near real-time and visualizes thousands of signals into a panoramic electromagnetic landscape.
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Hertzian Landscapes is a live visualization of the radio spectrum. Unlike visible light, waves in the radio spectrum cannot be perceived by us directly yet this space is teeming with human activity. Hertzian Landscapes employs a digital receiver to scan large swaths of radio spectrum in near real-time and visualizes thousands of signals into a panoramic electromagnetic landscape. Users can zoom in to specific frequencies by positioning themselves in front of the panorama as if controlling a radio tuner with their body, giving them a sense of walking through the spectrum. From radio broadcasts to weather satellites and from medical implants to aeronautical navigation,$the radio spectrum is divided into hundreds of designated slices each tied to a specific application. Based on a localized frequency database that describes these slices, signals are annotated to provide information about their theoretical type and application.

Hertzian Landscapes is supported by the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision and the Netherlands Creative Industries Fund.

2020 Lumen Prize 3D and Interactive 2021 S+T+ARTS STS Award

Hertzian Landscapes is a live visualization of the radio spectrum. Unlike visible light, waves in the radio spectrum cannot be perceived by us directly yet this space is teeming with human activity. Hertzian Landscapes employs a digital receiver to scan large swaths of radio spectrum in near real-time and visualizes thousands of signals into a panoramic electromagnetic landscape. Users can zoom in to specific frequencies by positioning themselves in front of the panorama as if controlling a radio tuner with their body, giving them a sense of walking through the spectrum. From radio broadcasts to weather satellites and from medical implants to aeronautical navigation,$the radio spectrum is divided into hundreds of designated slices each tied to a specific application. Based on a localized frequency database that describes these slices, signals are annotated to provide information about their theoretical type and application.

Hertzian Landscapes is supported by the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision and the Netherlands Creative Industries Fund.

2020 Lumen Prize 3D and Interactive 2021 S+T+ARTS STS Award

 
How Forests Think
e
installation

2023
audio
2023

in collaboration with Elmo Vermijs
How Forests Think is an installation for the Oerol Cultural Festival on the Island of Terschelling. The work proposes a reversed perspective on our natural surroundings by exploring how they perceive us. A series of geophones, an acoustic detector that responds to ground vibrations generated by seismic waves, were installed on a forest plot on the island. Each geophone was connected to a custom digital amplifier that made soil vibrations audible and emphasised a specific part of the spectrum. Each amplifier was then connected to 4 listening posts with headphones.
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How Forests Think is an installation for the Oerol Cultural Festival on the Island of Terschelling.

The work proposes a reversed perspective on our natural surroundings by exploring how they perceive us. A series of geophones, an acoustic detector that responds to ground vibrations generated by seismic waves, were installed on a forest plot on the island. Each geophone was connected to a custom digital amplifier that made soil vibrations audible and emphasised a specific part of the spectrum. Each amplifier was then connected to 4 listening posts with headphones. Due to the sensitivity of the geophones this resulted in a series of real time soundscapes that included the footsteps of people up to 50 meters away, $the sound of insects near the sensor and the vibrations of the the wind passed on from the treetops via the trunks to the roots and the soil. Waves hitting the nearby shore would add a low frequency humming.

In addition to the audio installation the work consists of a series of observation points with microscopic videos of soil samples and a circular contemplation space.

The work is part of the second instalment of a 4 year project by artist Elmo Vermijs that focusses on different stages of the forest’s life cycle.

How Forests Think is an installation for the Oerol Cultural Festival on the Island of Terschelling.

The work proposes a reversed perspective on our natural surroundings by exploring how they perceive us. A series of geophones, an acoustic detector that responds to ground vibrations generated by seismic waves, were installed on a forest plot on the island. Each geophone was connected to a custom digital amplifier that made soil vibrations audible and emphasised a specific part of the spectrum. Each amplifier was then connected to 4 listening posts with headphones. Due to the sensitivity of the geophones this resulted in a series of real time soundscapes that included the footsteps of people up to 50 meters away, $the sound of insects near the sensor and the vibrations of the the wind passed on from the treetops via the trunks to the roots and the soil. Waves hitting the nearby shore would add a low frequency humming.

In addition to the audio installation the work consists of a series of observation points with microscopic videos of soil samples and a circular contemplation space.

The work is part of the second instalment of a 4 year project by artist Elmo Vermijs that focusses on different stages of the forest’s life cycle.

 
WiFi Impressionist
e
data landscape

2019
installation
2019

self initiated
WiFi Impressionist is a field installation that draws electromagnetic landscapes inspired by the cityscapes of William Turner. The work consists of a directional antenna on a pan-tilt mechanism that listens for WiFi signals and builds a three dimensional model of the signals around it. From this model a viewport is selected that defines the perspective and the frame. Signals that are picked up within the frame are visualised as waves emitted from a specific origin and drawn using a mobile plotter.
read more

WiFi Impressionist is a field installation that draws electromagnetic landscapes inspired by the cityscapes of William Turner. The work consists of a directional antenna on a pan-tilt mechanism that listens for WiFi signals and builds a three dimensional model of the signals around it. From this model a viewport is selected that defines the perspective and the frame. Signals that are picked up within the frame are visualised as waves emitted from a specific origin and drawn using a mobile plotter.$The antenna and the plotter are both mounted on a tripod and can be placed in the field much like a painter would set up his easel. Once positioned and oriented a drawing becomes denser over time depending on the density of networks around it. Wherever there is a WiFi signal, the drawing will eventually fill the frame.

YouFab Global
2019 Finalist

WiFi Impressionist is a field installation that draws electromagnetic landscapes inspired by the cityscapes of William Turner. The work consists of a directional antenna on a pan-tilt mechanism that listens for WiFi signals and builds a three dimensional model of the signals around it. From this model a viewport is selected that defines the perspective and the frame. Signals that are picked up within the frame are visualised as waves emitted from a specific origin and drawn using a mobile plotter.$The antenna and the plotter are both mounted on a tripod and can be placed in the field much like a painter would set up his easel. Once positioned and oriented a drawing becomes denser over time depending on the density of networks around it. Wherever there is a WiFi signal, the drawing will eventually fill the frame.

YouFab Global
2019 Finalist

 
Connected by Air
e
real-time datavisualization

2018
installation
2018

commissioned by Manifesta 12 Palermo
Throughout Palermo you can see the sky not only from the streets but also through the illusionistic ceiling paintings in the city's many palaces. These paintings typically use the perspective techniques di sotto in su (paintings seen from below) and quadratura (a highly realistic perspective that extends the architectural space). Inspired by these painting techniques, Connected by Air creates a data visualisation of the sky, di sotto in su.
read more

Throughout Palermo you can see the sky not only from the streets but also through the illusionistic ceiling paintings in the city's many palaces. These paintings typically use the perspective techniques di sotto in su (paintings seen from below) and quadratura (a highly realistic perspective that extends the architectural space). Inspired by these painting techniques, Connected by Air creates a data visualisation of the sky, di sotto in su.

The projection of Palermo’s sky on the room’s ceiling in Palazzo Ajutamicristo recreates a window that provides a comprehensive overview of all the data and objects that fill the sky. It includes wireless signals (2G, 3G, 4G coverage), satellites, air traffic (flight patterns), air conditions (particles, dust), and air flow (wind patterns).$In addition, it visualises the wireless activity caused by visitor’s devices as they try to connect to the cloud through the “opening in the ceiling”. The visualisation changes colour throughout the day to match light conditions outside which adds to the effect of Quadratura.

Connected by Air projects a contemporary sky’s image as a carrier of people, matter and information.

Developed with the support of Creative Industries Fund NL and Dutch Culture

Throughout Palermo you can see the sky not only from the streets but also through the illusionistic ceiling paintings in the city's many palaces. These paintings typically use the perspective techniques di sotto in su (paintings seen from below) and quadratura (a highly realistic perspective that extends the architectural space). Inspired by these painting techniques, Connected by Air creates a data visualisation of the sky, di sotto in su.

The projection of Palermo’s sky on the room’s ceiling in Palazzo Ajutamicristo recreates a window that provides a comprehensive overview of all the data and objects that fill the sky. It includes wireless signals (2G, 3G, 4G coverage), satellites, air traffic (flight patterns), air conditions (particles, dust), and air flow (wind patterns).$In addition, it visualises the wireless activity caused by visitor’s devices as they try to connect to the cloud through the “opening in the ceiling”. The visualisation changes colour throughout the day to match light conditions outside which adds to the effect of Quadratura.

Connected by Air projects a contemporary sky’s image as a carrier of people, matter and information.

Developed with the support of Creative Industries Fund NL and Dutch Culture

 
Architecture of Radio
e
datavisualization

2016
iOS, Android application
2016

self initiated
Prix Ars
Electronica
The infosphere* relies on an intricate network of signals, wired and wireless, that support it. We are completely surrounded by an invisible system of data cables and radio signals from access points, cell towers and overhead satellites. Our digital lives depend on these very physical systems for communication, observation and navigation. The Architecture of Radio is a site-specific iPad application that visualizes this network of networks by reversing the ambient nature of the infosphere; hiding the visible while revealing the invisible technological landscape we interact with through our devices.
read more

The infosphere[1] relies on an intricate network of signals, wired and wireless, that support it. We are completely surrounded by an invisible system of data cables and radio signals from access points, cell towers and overhead satellites. Our digital lives depend on these very physical systems for communication, observation and navigation. The Architecture of Radio is a site-specific iPad application that visualizes this network of networks by reversing the ambient nature of the infosphere; hiding the visible while revealing the invisible technological landscape we interact with through our devices. The architecture of radio app is a realtime, location based visualization of cell towers, wifi routers, communication, navigation and observation satellites and their signals.$A site specific version of the app includes wired communication infrastructure embedded in the exhibition space. It's aim is to provide a comprehensive window into the infosphere.

[1]The infosphere refers to an interdependent environment, like a biosphere, that is populated by informational entities. While an example of the sphere of information is cyberspace, infospheres are not limited to purely online environments.

The infosphere[1] relies on an intricate network of signals, wired and wireless, that support it. We are completely surrounded by an invisible system of data cables and radio signals from access points, cell towers and overhead satellites. Our digital lives depend on these very physical systems for communication, observation and navigation. The Architecture of Radio is a site-specific iPad application that visualizes this network of networks by reversing the ambient nature of the infosphere; hiding the visible while revealing the invisible technological landscape we interact with through our devices. The architecture of radio app is a realtime, location based visualization of cell towers, wifi routers, communication, navigation and observation satellites and their signals.$A site specific version of the app includes wired communication infrastructure embedded in the exhibition space. It's aim is to provide a comprehensive window into the infosphere.

[1]The infosphere refers to an interdependent environment, like a biosphere, that is populated by informational entities. While an example of the sphere of information is cyberspace, infospheres are not limited to purely online environments.

 
White Spots
e
A journey to the end of the internet

2016
iOS, Android application
2016

a collaboration with Bregtje van der Haak and Jacqueline Hassink
Dutch Design
Awards 2017
Digital networks are forever expanding. Places without cell phone reception or Wi-Fi connection are increasingly hard to find. The remaining White Spots on the digital map will soon disappear, leaving no place on earth unconnected. But what is happening off the grid?
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Digital networks are forever expanding. Places without cell phone reception or Wi-Fi connection are increasingly hard to find. The remaining White Spots on the digital map will soon disappear, leaving no place on earth unconnected. But what is happening off the grid?

White Spots is a collaborative multimedia project by information designer Richard Vijgen, documentary filmmaker Bregtje van der Haak, and visual artist Jacqueline Hassink. Working in various media, they travel beyond the frontiers of the networked world to explore unwired landscapes, communities, and lifestyles, questioning the need to be always connected in one seamless, planetary Tech-Topia. While scarcely populated areas experience low connectivity for obvious economic reasons, the journey brings surprising stories of an often deliberate lack of connectivity, even inside the world's most intensely networked digital hubs. $In VR mode, the network scanner shows the invisible digital signals around you in real time and takes you on a journey to the end of the Internet in immersive 360° stories. In Map mode, the White Spots world map shows the global divide between the connected and unconnected worlds. Browse the map to explore video stories about life off the grid or use the route planner to venture into uncharted territory yourself. The route planner finds a route to a White Spot near you and invites you to add new stories to the map.

The White Spots App features a world map, a network scanner, a GPS based route planner, short documentary clips and a series of virtual reality experiences.

Digital networks are forever expanding. Places without cell phone reception or Wi-Fi connection are increasingly hard to find. The remaining White Spots on the digital map will soon disappear, leaving no place on earth unconnected. But what is happening off the grid?

White Spots is a collaborative multimedia project by information designer Richard Vijgen, documentary filmmaker Bregtje van der Haak, and visual artist Jacqueline Hassink. Working in various media, they travel beyond the frontiers of the networked world to explore unwired landscapes, communities, and lifestyles, questioning the need to be always connected in one seamless, planetary Tech-Topia. While scarcely populated areas experience low connectivity for obvious economic reasons, the journey brings surprising stories of an often deliberate lack of connectivity, even inside the world's most intensely networked digital hubs. $In VR mode, the network scanner shows the invisible digital signals around you in real time and takes you on a journey to the end of the Internet in immersive 360° stories. In Map mode, the White Spots world map shows the global divide between the connected and unconnected worlds. Browse the map to explore video stories about life off the grid or use the route planner to venture into uncharted territory yourself. The route planner finds a route to a White Spot near you and invites you to add new stories to the map.

The White Spots App features a world map, a network scanner, a GPS based route planner, short documentary clips and a series of virtual reality experiences.

 
Embassy of Data
e
Smart City Panorama

2017
Installation
2017

commissioned by Het Nieuwe Instituut
During the Dutch Design Week 2017, Het Nieuwe Instituut organised the Embassy of Data, an exhibition about the role of public and private data in the city. For this exhibition I developed a data panorama that visualizes all smart-city infrastructure in a 400 meter radius around the exhibition space in the city center of Eindhoven [NL] (Eindhoven is the leading Smart City in the Netherlands).
read more

During the Dutch Design Week 2017, Het Nieuwe Instituut organised the Embassy of Data, an exhibition about the role of public and private data in the city. For this exhibition I developed a data panorama that visualizes all smart-city infrastructure in a 400 meter radius around the exhibition space in the city center of Eindhoven [NL] (Eindhoven is the leading Smart City in the Netherlands). The panorama features data from OpenStreetMap, municipal camera's, cell towers, water-level sensors, directional microphones, air quality sensors, motion, traffic and crowd detection, "City Beacons", citizen classification data and more than a 100.000 geolocated public notifications. All data is presented light sources in a 360 degree panorama in a way that lights up area's of the city that are more heavily monitored than others.$By adding the physical sensors that are used in the city to the installation, it becomes a kind of diorama, helping the audience to recognise the sensors in the city and understand their function. The installation aims to translate the hidden abstraction of these technologies into a readable experience for a broad audience, providing a sense of ownership necessary for a nuanced discussion about the future of smart cities.

In collaboration with Linda Vlassenrood
Exhibition Design: Koehorst in 't Veld

During the Dutch Design Week 2017, Het Nieuwe Instituut organised the Embassy of Data, an exhibition about the role of public and private data in the city. For this exhibition I developed a data panorama that visualizes all smart-city infrastructure in a 400 meter radius around the exhibition space in the city center of Eindhoven [NL] (Eindhoven is the leading Smart City in the Netherlands). The panorama features data from OpenStreetMap, municipal camera's, cell towers, water-level sensors, directional microphones, air quality sensors, motion, traffic and crowd detection, "City Beacons", citizen classification data and more than a 100.000 geolocated public notifications. All data is presented light sources in a 360 degree panorama in a way that lights up area's of the city that are more heavily monitored than others.$By adding the physical sensors that are used in the city to the installation, it becomes a kind of diorama, helping the audience to recognise the sensors in the city and understand their function. The installation aims to translate the hidden abstraction of these technologies into a readable experience for a broad audience, providing a sense of ownership necessary for a nuanced discussion about the future of smart cities.

In collaboration with Linda Vlassenrood
Exhibition Design: Koehorst in 't Veld

 
STRP Biennale
e
Datavisualization

2017
Installation
2017

commissioned by STRP Biennale
A large scale 360 degree projection of Architecture of Radio for STRP Biënnale 2017, 10 meters in diameter displaying a wireless landscape that extends the visualisation in the iPad app. Where the app visualises all cell towers within range of the device (most within one kilometre distance), the 360º panorama visualises the wireless landcape beyond that (up to 100 km's).
read more

The infosphere* relies on an intricate network of signals, wired and wireless, that support it. We are completely surrounded by an invisible system of data cables and radio signals from access points, cell towers and overhead satellites. Our digital lives depend on these very physical systems for communication, observation and navigation. The Architecture of Radio is a site-specific iPad application that visualizes this network of networks by reversing the ambient nature of the infosphere; hiding the visible while revealing the invisible technological landscape we interact with through our devices.

The architecture of radio app is a realtime, location based visualization of cell towers, wifi routers, communication, navigation and observation satellites and their signals. A site specific version of the app includes wired communication infrastructure embedded in the exhibition space. It's aim is to provide a comprehensive window into the infosphere. $I created a large scale 360 degree projection of Architecture of Radio for STRP Biënnale 2017. A circular projection, 10 meters in diameter displays a wireless landscape that extends the visualisation in the iPad app. Where the app visualises all cell towers within range of the device (most within one kilometre distance), the 360º panorama visualises the wireless landcape beyond that (up to 100 km's).

Photo credit: Ruud Balk
*The infosphere refers to an interdependent environment, like a biosphere, that is populated by informational entities. While an example of the sphere of information is cyberspace, infospheres are not limited to purely online environments.

The infosphere* relies on an intricate network of signals, wired and wireless, that support it. We are completely surrounded by an invisible system of data cables and radio signals from access points, cell towers and overhead satellites. Our digital lives depend on these very physical systems for communication, observation and navigation. The Architecture of Radio is a site-specific iPad application that visualizes this network of networks by reversing the ambient nature of the infosphere; hiding the visible while revealing the invisible technological landscape we interact with through our devices.

The architecture of radio app is a realtime, location based visualization of cell towers, wifi routers, communication, navigation and observation satellites and their signals. A site specific version of the app includes wired communication infrastructure embedded in the exhibition space. It's aim is to provide a comprehensive window into the infosphere. $I created a large scale 360 degree projection of Architecture of Radio for STRP Biënnale 2017. A circular projection, 10 meters in diameter displays a wireless landscape that extends the visualisation in the iPad app. Where the app visualises all cell towers within range of the device (most within one kilometre distance), the 360º panorama visualises the wireless landcape beyond that (up to 100 km's).

Photo credit: Ruud Balk
*The infosphere refers to an interdependent environment, like a biosphere, that is populated by informational entities. While an example of the sphere of information is cyberspace, infospheres are not limited to purely online environments.

 
WiFi Tapestry
e
dynamic wall hanging

2017
textile
2017

self initiated
WifiTapestry is a dynamic wall hanging that visualises the wireless activity of a space. The tapestry visualises the ever changing "landscape" of radio frequencies around us. The invisible signals from Cellphones, printers and all kinds of smart devices leave an imprint as they try to negotiate available wireless channels.
read more

WifiTapestry is a dynamic wall hanging that visualises the wireless activity of a space. The tapestry visualises the ever changing "landscape" of radio frequencies around us. The invisible signals from Cellphones, printers and all kinds of smart devices leave an imprint as they try to negotiate available wireless channels. A controller listens to all traffic across 13 channels of the 2.4GHz WiFi Spectrum. $Whenever data is transmitted on a channel, the controller sends a current to an array of thermal elements embedded in the tapestry, converting data into heat and activating a thermochromic yarn woven into the tapestry. Like a Shroud of Turin, streams of data transmitted through a space appear as visual traces from an invisible dimension that gradually form and dissolve.

Exhibited at Centre Pompidou 2022

WifiTapestry is a dynamic wall hanging that visualises the wireless activity of a space. The tapestry visualises the ever changing "landscape" of radio frequencies around us. The invisible signals from Cellphones, printers and all kinds of smart devices leave an imprint as they try to negotiate available wireless channels. A controller listens to all traffic across 13 channels of the 2.4GHz WiFi Spectrum. $Whenever data is transmitted on a channel, the controller sends a current to an array of thermal elements embedded in the tapestry, converting data into heat and activating a thermochromic yarn woven into the tapestry. Like a Shroud of Turin, streams of data transmitted through a space appear as visual traces from an invisible dimension that gradually form and dissolve.

Exhibited at Centre Pompidou 2022

 
The Deleted City 3.0
e
Digital Archaeology

2017
Installation
2017

projection commissioned by MU
The Deleted City is a digital archaeology of the world wide web as it exploded into the 21st century. At that time the web was often described as an enormous digital library that you could visit or contribute to by building a homepage. The early citizens of the net (or netizens) took their netizenship serious, and built homepages about themselves and subjects they were experts in.
read more

The Deleted City is a digital archaeology of the world wide web as it exploded into the 21st century. At that time the web was often described as an enormous digital library that you could visit or contribute to by building a homepage. The early citizens of the net (or netizens) took their netizenship serious, and built homepages about themselves and subjects they were experts in. These pioneers found their brave new world at Geocities, a free webhosting provider that was modelled after a city and where you could get a free "piece of land" to build your digital home in a certain neighbourhood based on the subject of your homepage. Heartland was – as a neigbourhood for all things rural – by far the largest, but there were neighbourhoods for fashion, arts and far east related topics to name just a few.$Around the turn of the century, Geocities had tens of millions of "homesteaders" as the digital tennants were called and was bought by Yahoo for three and a half billion dollars. Ten years later in 2009, as other metaphores of the internet (such as the social network) had taken over, and the homesteaders had left their properties vacant after migrating to Facebook, Geocities was shut down and deleted. In an heroic effort to preserve 10 years of collaborative work by 35 million people, the Archive Team made a backup of the site just before it shut down. The resulting 650 Gigabyte bittorrent file is the digital Pompeii that is the subject of an interactive excavation that allows you to wander through an episode of recent online history.                                        

The Deleted City is a digital archaeology of the world wide web as it exploded into the 21st century. At that time the web was often described as an enormous digital library that you could visit or contribute to by building a homepage. The early citizens of the net (or netizens) took their netizenship serious, and built homepages about themselves and subjects they were experts in. These pioneers found their brave new world at Geocities, a free webhosting provider that was modelled after a city and where you could get a free "piece of land" to build your digital home in a certain neighbourhood based on the subject of your homepage. Heartland was – as a neigbourhood for all things rural – by far the largest, but there were neighbourhoods for fashion, arts and far east related topics to name just a few.$Around the turn of the century, Geocities had tens of millions of "homesteaders" as the digital tennants were called and was bought by Yahoo for three and a half billion dollars. Ten years later in 2009, as other metaphores of the internet (such as the social network) had taken over, and the homesteaders had left their properties vacant after migrating to Facebook, Geocities was shut down and deleted. In an heroic effort to preserve 10 years of collaborative work by 35 million people, the Archive Team made a backup of the site just before it shut down. The resulting 650 Gigabyte bittorrent file is the digital Pompeii that is the subject of an interactive excavation that allows you to wander through an episode of recent online history.                                        

 
Roden Crater, James Turrell
e
Roden Crater Skymap

2013
web application
2013

commissioned by P. Weil
Interactive visualization for American artist James Turrell. Deep inside Arizona's painted desert, lies Roden Crater, an extinct volcanic cinder cone. It is the site of a monumental artwork by James Turrell. Over the last 30 years, Turrell, famous for his installations concerning the perception of light, transformed the crater's eye into a naked-eye observatory that will eventually consist of 20 spaces each constructed to allow the observation of a specific portion of the sky or celestial event.
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Interactive visualization for American artist James Turrell.

Deep inside Arizona's painted desert, lies Roden Crater, an extinct volcanic cinder cone. It is the site of a monumental artwork by James Turrell. Over the last 30 years, Turrell, famous for his installations concerning the perception of light, transformed the crater's eye into a naked-eye observatory that will eventually consist of 20 spaces each constructed to allow the observation of a specific portion of the sky or celestial event. The Interactive Celestial Map I made is part of the artists website and visualizes the relation between the sky above Roden Crater and the alignment of the skyspaces created by the artist. The interactive module shows the sky and the arrangement of the sun, the moon and the stars above Roden Crater at the current time displayed over a map of the crater.$Dragging a circular slider around the visualization allows you to go back and forth in time and observe how the celestial bodies align with the observation spaces in the crater at different points in time. The sun and moon rise and set, stars and planets move across the night sky and the summer an winter solstices mark the moments where the sun aligns with an opening in a space and projects it's image on a precisely positioned surface.

An auto-play button animates the sky in fast forward while a calendar allows you to see the sky at a specific date in the past or future.

The website was launched together with the opening of James Turrell: A Retrospective at the Los Angeles County Museum of Modern art.

Interactive visualization for American artist James Turrell.

Deep inside Arizona's painted desert, lies Roden Crater, an extinct volcanic cinder cone. It is the site of a monumental artwork by James Turrell. Over the last 30 years, Turrell, famous for his installations concerning the perception of light, transformed the crater's eye into a naked-eye observatory that will eventually consist of 20 spaces each constructed to allow the observation of a specific portion of the sky or celestial event. The Interactive Celestial Map I made is part of the artists website and visualizes the relation between the sky above Roden Crater and the alignment of the skyspaces created by the artist. The interactive module shows the sky and the arrangement of the sun, the moon and the stars above Roden Crater at the current time displayed over a map of the crater.$Dragging a circular slider around the visualization allows you to go back and forth in time and observe how the celestial bodies align with the observation spaces in the crater at different points in time. The sun and moon rise and set, stars and planets move across the night sky and the summer an winter solstices mark the moments where the sun aligns with an opening in a space and projects it's image on a precisely positioned surface.

An auto-play button animates the sky in fast forward while a calendar allows you to see the sky at a specific date in the past or future.

The website was launched together with the opening of James Turrell: A Retrospective at the Los Angeles County Museum of Modern art.

 
Seasonal and Longterm Groundwater Levels
e
Datavisualization in Times Square, New York

2012
Digital Facade
2012

commissioned by P.Weil
visualizing.org
First Prize
An interactive datavisualization on 19.000 square feet of digital signboard on Times Square. In March of 2002 NASA launched the GRACE mis­sion. It con­sists of two satel­lites, de­signed to mea­sure and map the Earth's grav­ity fields. Each month the two satel­lites com­plete a full scan of the earth, al­low­ing sci­en­tists to study how vari­a­tions in the earth's grav­ity fields — from which changes in ground­wa­ter lev­els can be de­rived — are de­vel­op­ing over time.
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An interactive datavisualization on 19.000 square feet of digital signboard on Times Square.

In March of 2002 NASA launched the GRACE mission. It consists of two satellites, designed to measure and map the Earth's gravity fields. Each month the two satellites complete a full scan of the earth, allowing scientists to study how variations in the earth's gravity fields — from which changes in groundwater levels can be derived — are developing over time. This 30 second data visualization uses the mea­sure­ments col­lected by the GRACE satel­lites over a pe­riod of 10 years to show sea­sonal and longterm changes in ground­wa­ter lev­els. The Nas­daq screen shows a map of the world through the eyes of GRACE, a topog­ra­phy made of mea­sure­ment data. It shows the yearly cycle of ground­wa­ter de­ple­tion and re­plen­ish­ment, the rainy sea­sons in the Ama­zon and parts of the world suf­fer­ing from yearly droughts. These mea­sure­ments allow us to see this nat­ural spec­ta­cle on a global scale for the first time. How­ever, they also re­veal that some areas show a steady de­cline in ground­wa­ter lev­els. These longterm changes in ground­wa­ter lev­els are in­di­cated$both on the map and on the nar­row but very high screen of the Reuters build­ing, where ground­wa­ter lev­els in sev­eral key areas are vi­su­al­ized as a vir­tual gaug­ing rod. It shows that while some areas have been able to re­verse the trend of de­clin­ing ground­wa­ter lev­els, oth­ers show a sharp de­cline start­ing from the 1960's.

The aim of this visualization is to show on one hand the beauty and overwhelming complexity of the natural cycle of wet and dry seasons, and on the other hand highlight the challenge of carefully managing our use of groundwater.

An interactive feature allows the audience to engage with the visualization by adding their own city to a srcrolling ticker of historic groundwater levels across the world using a mobile application. The website headsup2012.com keeps an archive of all submitted cities.

 

The project was covered by The New York Times, Forbes, Fast Company, Infosthetics, NASA and National Geographic among others.

An interview about this project has been published by The Smithsonian

An interactive datavisualization on 19.000 square feet of digital signboard on Times Square.

In March of 2002 NASA launched the GRACE mission. It consists of two satellites, designed to measure and map the Earth's gravity fields. Each month the two satellites complete a full scan of the earth, allowing scientists to study how variations in the earth's gravity fields — from which changes in groundwater levels can be derived — are developing over time. This 30 second data visualization uses the mea­sure­ments col­lected by the GRACE satel­lites over a pe­riod of 10 years to show sea­sonal and longterm changes in ground­wa­ter lev­els. The Nas­daq screen shows a map of the world through the eyes of GRACE, a topog­ra­phy made of mea­sure­ment data. It shows the yearly cycle of ground­wa­ter de­ple­tion and re­plen­ish­ment, the rainy sea­sons in the Ama­zon and parts of the world suf­fer­ing from yearly droughts. These mea­sure­ments allow us to see this nat­ural spec­ta­cle on a global scale for the first time. How­ever, they also re­veal that some areas show a steady de­cline in ground­wa­ter lev­els. These longterm changes in ground­wa­ter lev­els are in­di­cated$both on the map and on the nar­row but very high screen of the Reuters build­ing, where ground­wa­ter lev­els in sev­eral key areas are vi­su­al­ized as a vir­tual gaug­ing rod. It shows that while some areas have been able to re­verse the trend of de­clin­ing ground­wa­ter lev­els, oth­ers show a sharp de­cline start­ing from the 1960's.

The aim of this visualization is to show on one hand the beauty and overwhelming complexity of the natural cycle of wet and dry seasons, and on the other hand highlight the challenge of carefully managing our use of groundwater.

An interactive feature allows the audience to engage with the visualization by adding their own city to a srcrolling ticker of historic groundwater levels across the world using a mobile application. The website headsup2012.com keeps an archive of all submitted cities.

 

The project was covered by The New York Times, Forbes, Fast Company, Infosthetics, NASA and National Geographic among others.

An interview about this project has been published by The Smithsonian

 
The Deleted City
e
Digital Archaeology

2012
web application / installation
2012

self initiated
Dutch Design Awards
2012 Finalist
The Deleted City is a digital archaeology of the world wide web as it exploded into the 21st century. At that time the web was often described as an enormous digital library that you could visit or contribute to by building a homepage. The early citizens of the net (or netizens) took their netizenship serious, and built homepages about themselves and subjects they were experts in.
read more

The Deleted City is a digital archaeology of the world wide web as it exploded into the 21st century. At that time the web was often described as an enormous digital library that you could visit or contribute to by building a homepage. The early citizens of the net (or netizens) took their netizenship serious, and built homepages about themselves and subjects they were experts in.

These pioneers found their brave new world at Geocities, a free webhosting provider that was modelled after a city and where you could get a free "piece of land" to build your digital home in a certain neighbourhood based on the subject of your homepage. Heartland was – as a neigbourhood for all things rural – by far the largest, but there were neighbourhoods for fashion, arts and far east related topics to name just a few.$Around the turn of the century, Geocities had tens of millions of "homesteaders" as the digital tennants were called and was bought by Yahoo for three and a half billion dollars. Ten years later in 2009, as other metaphores of the internet (such as the social network) had taken over, and the homesteaders had left their properties vacant after migrating to Facebook, Geocities was shut down and deleted.

In an heroic effort to preserve 10 years of collaborative work by 35 million people, the Archive Team made a backup of the site just before it shut down. The resulting 650 Gigabyte bittorrent file is the digital Pompeii that is the subject of an interactive excavation that allows you to wander through an episode of recent online history.                                        

The Deleted City is a digital archaeology of the world wide web as it exploded into the 21st century. At that time the web was often described as an enormous digital library that you could visit or contribute to by building a homepage. The early citizens of the net (or netizens) took their netizenship serious, and built homepages about themselves and subjects they were experts in.

These pioneers found their brave new world at Geocities, a free webhosting provider that was modelled after a city and where you could get a free "piece of land" to build your digital home in a certain neighbourhood based on the subject of your homepage. Heartland was – as a neigbourhood for all things rural – by far the largest, but there were neighbourhoods for fashion, arts and far east related topics to name just a few.$Around the turn of the century, Geocities had tens of millions of "homesteaders" as the digital tennants were called and was bought by Yahoo for three and a half billion dollars. Ten years later in 2009, as other metaphores of the internet (such as the social network) had taken over, and the homesteaders had left their properties vacant after migrating to Facebook, Geocities was shut down and deleted.

In an heroic effort to preserve 10 years of collaborative work by 35 million people, the Archive Team made a backup of the site just before it shut down. The resulting 650 Gigabyte bittorrent file is the digital Pompeii that is the subject of an interactive excavation that allows you to wander through an episode of recent online history.                                        

 
Data Volume Explorer
e
Virtual Reality Archive Interface

2015
Virtual Reality / Oculus
2015

commissioned by Het Nieuwe Instituut
Het Nieuwe Instituut’s archive is an extensive collection of objects, drawings and documentation related to the history of architecture in the Netherlands. Packed in boxes and sorted on shelves, the objects offer us a glimpse behind the scenes of architecture and the evolution of the Dutch urban landscape. Hidden in all these boxes lies a world of ideas: about forms, materials, people and the environment, a world of possibilities, successes and failures. A world that doesn’t reveal itself just like that. For anyone familiar with the structure of this archive it is a well-organised database of shelves and volumes. For the layperson it is an endless series of boxes.
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Het Nieuwe Instituut’s archive is an extensive collection of objects, drawings and documentation related to the history of architecture in the Netherlands. Packed in boxes and sorted on shelves, the objects offer us a glimpse behind the scenes of architecture and the evolution of the Dutch urban landscape. Hidden in all these boxes lies a world of ideas: about forms, materials, people and the environment, a world of possibilities, successes and failures. A world that doesn’t reveal itself just like that. For anyone familiar with the structure of this archive it is a well-organised database of shelves and volumes. For the layperson it is an endless series of boxes.

The link between the boxes and the information they contain comes in the form of a digital file. You enter a search term in to the computer and the programme directs you to the right box. That’s assuming that you know what you’re looking for. For anyone with no knowledge whatsoever of architectural history there’s not much the computer can do to help you.

Data Volume Explorer is a proposal for a spatial, interactive search machine for anyone who doesn’t know what they’re looking for. The installation allows the user to play with the archive. Instead of boxes in endless rows of archive cupboards, the boxes can be arranged in endless configurations; chronologically, by architect, by format, or materials used.$A gigantic construction of boxes with drawings, or a seemingly never-ending landscape of boxes full of architectural models.

The space in which this experiment takes place is a virtual one. With Virtual Reality glasses the visitor can step out of the physical environment and enter the virtual archive. To make the transition clear the installation takes the form of a small space built from real archive boxes. As soon as you put the glasses on you see a virtual version of the same space.

Enter a search term and the space transforms in to a new environment based on a new configuration. You search using a (virtual) keyboard. As soon as you type a letter a list appears with possible search terms. By combining search terms you can filter the results, from the very broad to the very specific. The result could be a landscape of boxes with pencil drawings that reaches as far as the eye can see, or that one box full of sketches of Rotterdam’s Blaaktoren (The Pencil). If you linger at a certain box, it can be opened, and then the contents appear in the image. If you look away you return to the spatial environment. The starting point for the installation is the discovery of the archive. From very broad and almost random, to very specific. You can sort very specifically, with the box next to you full of drawings by the same architectural office, in the same city, or a model of the same material.

Het Nieuwe Instituut’s archive is an extensive collection of objects, drawings and documentation related to the history of architecture in the Netherlands. Packed in boxes and sorted on shelves, the objects offer us a glimpse behind the scenes of architecture and the evolution of the Dutch urban landscape. Hidden in all these boxes lies a world of ideas: about forms, materials, people and the environment, a world of possibilities, successes and failures. A world that doesn’t reveal itself just like that. For anyone familiar with the structure of this archive it is a well-organised database of shelves and volumes. For the layperson it is an endless series of boxes.

The link between the boxes and the information they contain comes in the form of a digital file. You enter a search term in to the computer and the programme directs you to the right box. That’s assuming that you know what you’re looking for. For anyone with no knowledge whatsoever of architectural history there’s not much the computer can do to help you.

Data Volume Explorer is a proposal for a spatial, interactive search machine for anyone who doesn’t know what they’re looking for. The installation allows the user to play with the archive. Instead of boxes in endless rows of archive cupboards, the boxes can be arranged in endless configurations; chronologically, by architect, by format, or materials used.$A gigantic construction of boxes with drawings, or a seemingly never-ending landscape of boxes full of architectural models.

The space in which this experiment takes place is a virtual one. With Virtual Reality glasses the visitor can step out of the physical environment and enter the virtual archive. To make the transition clear the installation takes the form of a small space built from real archive boxes. As soon as you put the glasses on you see a virtual version of the same space.

Enter a search term and the space transforms in to a new environment based on a new configuration. You search using a (virtual) keyboard. As soon as you type a letter a list appears with possible search terms. By combining search terms you can filter the results, from the very broad to the very specific. The result could be a landscape of boxes with pencil drawings that reaches as far as the eye can see, or that one box full of sketches of Rotterdam’s Blaaktoren (The Pencil). If you linger at a certain box, it can be opened, and then the contents appear in the image. If you look away you return to the spatial environment. The starting point for the installation is the discovery of the archive. From very broad and almost random, to very specific. You can sort very specifically, with the box next to you full of drawings by the same architectural office, in the same city, or a model of the same material.

 
Beijing Media Art Biennale
e
datavisualization

2016
web application
2016

Beijing Media Art Biennale
Datavisualization for the Beijing Media Art Biennale 2016. The interactive visualization shows the curatorial framework and provides a theoretical and scientific context for the artworks on display. Embedded in the program as both a web-app and an installation, the visualization functions as integral part of the exhibition.
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Datavisualization for the Beijing Media Art Biennale 2016. The interactive visualization shows the curatorial framework and provides a theoretical and scientific context for the artworks on display.$Embedded in the program as both a web-app and an installation, the visualization functions as integral part of the exhibition.

Datavisualization for the Beijing Media Art Biennale 2016. The interactive visualization shows the curatorial framework and provides a theoretical and scientific context for the artworks on display.$Embedded in the program as both a web-app and an installation, the visualization functions as integral part of the exhibition.

 
Pen Plotter
e
Data Drawing

2010
paper, ink
2010

experiment
Research for a data visualization. Taking six hours to complete, this four color fine liner plot is the tactile outcome of a processing sketch that aims to visualize various international broadcasting networks.
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Research for a data visualization. Taking six hours to complete, this four color fine liner plot$is the tactile outcome of a processing sketch that aims to visualize various international broadcasting networks.

Research for a data visualization. Taking six hours to complete, this four color fine liner plot$is the tactile outcome of a processing sketch that aims to visualize various international broadcasting networks.

 
Atlas of Pentecostalism
e
Data Journalism

2014
web platform, print on demand
2014

in collaboration with Bregtje van der Haak
Atlas of Pentecostalism is a dynamic online database, which visually maps the growth of global Pentecostalism as a diverse and networked religion. The database uses global crowdsourcing, big data, cinematography, interviews and academic collaborations to provide an independent perspective on Pentecostalism as it evolves. The database expands with time and can also be ordered as an eBook or print-on-demand book, which freezes the dynamic data at that moment.
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Atlas of Pentecostalism is a dynamic online database, which visually maps the growth of global Pentecostalism as a diverse and networked religion. The database uses global crowdsourcing, big data, cinematography, interviews and academic collaborations to provide an independent perspective on Pentecostalism as it evolves. The database expands with time and can also be ordered as an eBook or print-on-demand book, which freezes the dynamic data at that moment.

Each day, a new version of the atlas is computed by a computer program and uploaded to the website. The book contains a frozen version of the database, including all the maps, transcripts of the interviews and the entire visual database. This unique, real-time and growing book is an expanding record of the fastest growing religion in the world.

While the book provides a global view of Pentecostalism, the film Great Expectations zooms in to one church in Lagos, Nigeria. Rather then telling a story, the split screen documentary allows you to experience the emotional appeal and exuberant nature of Pentecostal worship. The film, which has no beginning and no end loops continuously, and takes you to a new place each time you load the page.

Each scene in the film has been tagged with keywords. Keywords allow for matches between a scene and specific items in the database; images, maps or parts of an interview that relate to that scene.

These links allow you to explore the database and move back and forth between the film and other parts of the website. As the database continues to grow the relations between the film, and the database will change from day to day.

The same principle is applied to the interviews. allowing for links between the interviews and other items in the database and between the interviews themselves.

While the database grows, relations between the various items in the database will continue to change, the book will grow and this website will give new perspectives on the fastest growing religion in world.

The project has been supported by the Pulitzer Center (U.S.A.) and Mediafonds (NL)

Atlas of Pentecostalism is a dynamic online database, which visually maps the growth of global Pentecostalism as a diverse and networked religion. The database uses global crowdsourcing, big data, cinematography, interviews and academic collaborations to provide an independent perspective on Pentecostalism as it evolves. The database expands with time and can also be ordered as an eBook or print-on-demand book, which freezes the dynamic data at that moment.

Each day, a new version of the atlas is computed by a computer program and uploaded to the website. The book contains a frozen version of the database, including all the maps, transcripts of the interviews and the entire visual database. This unique, real-time and growing book is an expanding record of the fastest growing religion in the world.

While the book provides a global view of Pentecostalism, the film Great Expectations zooms in to one church in Lagos, Nigeria. Rather then telling a story, the split screen documentary allows you to experience the emotional appeal and exuberant nature of Pentecostal worship. The film, which has no beginning and no end loops continuously, and takes you to a new place each time you load the page.

Each scene in the film has been tagged with keywords. Keywords allow for matches between a scene and specific items in the database; images, maps or parts of an interview that relate to that scene.

These links allow you to explore the database and move back and forth between the film and other parts of the website. As the database continues to grow the relations between the film, and the database will change from day to day.

The same principle is applied to the interviews. allowing for links between the interviews and other items in the database and between the interviews themselves.

While the database grows, relations between the various items in the database will continue to change, the book will grow and this website will give new perspectives on the fastest growing religion in world.

The project has been supported by the Pulitzer Center (U.S.A.) and Mediafonds (NL)

 
Design Notities
e
Design Notities Arnhem (Design Notes) is a hybrid desktop / mobile application that maps a (almost 500 year) history of design and craftsmanship in the city of Arnhem (Netherlands). From historic sign paintings to locally commissioned public benches, street lights and ornaments of all sorts, the app aims to highlight the rich tradition of applied arts and crafts in the city. The application includes filters, an interactive timeline and a 13 kilometer curated typographic city walk.
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Design Notities Arnhem (Design Notes) is a hybrid desktop / mobile application that maps a (almost 500 year) history of design and craftsmanship in the city of Arnhem (Netherlands). From historic sign paintings to locally commissioned public benches, street lights and ornaments of all sorts, the app aims to highlight the rich tradition of applied arts and crafts in the city. The application includes filters, an interactive timeline and a 13 kilometer curated typographic city walk.

Design Notities Arnhem (Design Notes) is a hybrid desktop / mobile application that maps a (almost 500 year) history of design and craftsmanship in the city of Arnhem (Netherlands). From historic sign paintings to locally commissioned public benches, street lights and ornaments of all sorts, the app aims to highlight the rich tradition of applied arts and crafts in the city. The application includes filters, an interactive timeline and a 13 kilometer curated typographic city walk.

 
Re:search-Terms of Art
e

2017
2017

What happens when you enter the same search phrase into two different browsers on two different computers? One is a Mac running safari with all default settings enabled an the other is a stripped down Linux computer running the TOR-browser (a browser that let's you surf the web anonymously). The result is two very different outcomes. The first computer is presenting personalised results based on cookies, ip-tracking and other identifying information. The second produces a more neutral (or less personalised) result.
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What happens when you enter the same search phrase into two different browsers on two different computers? One is a Mac running safari with all default settings enabled an the other is a stripped down Linux computer running the TOR-browser (a browser that let's you surf the web anonymously). The result is two very different outcomes. The first computer is presenting personalised results based on cookies, ip-tracking and other identifying information. The second produces a more neutral (or less personalised) result.

The installation compares the search results of these two computers for a variety of queries and visualizes the differences. The same webpage that tops the list in the personalised browser could be way down on page 12 in the TOR browser, or vice versa. A line connecting each corresponding page between the two searches highlights the difference between them. Collectively all the lines together reveal a kind of fingerprint of the personalisation algorithm, showing which pages it moved upward and which pages downward.

A series of large prints compares different queries, a interactive app allows you to explore a rotating (prayer wheel) visualization and highlight the individual hyperlinks.

What happens when you enter the same search phrase into two different browsers on two different computers? One is a Mac running safari with all default settings enabled an the other is a stripped down Linux computer running the TOR-browser (a browser that let's you surf the web anonymously). The result is two very different outcomes. The first computer is presenting personalised results based on cookies, ip-tracking and other identifying information. The second produces a more neutral (or less personalised) result.

The installation compares the search results of these two computers for a variety of queries and visualizes the differences. The same webpage that tops the list in the personalised browser could be way down on page 12 in the TOR browser, or vice versa. A line connecting each corresponding page between the two searches highlights the difference between them. Collectively all the lines together reveal a kind of fingerprint of the personalisation algorithm, showing which pages it moved upward and which pages downward.

A series of large prints compares different queries, a interactive app allows you to explore a rotating (prayer wheel) visualization and highlight the individual hyperlinks.

 
Typologies of Intellectual Property
e
Realtime Book Concept

2010
Print on Demand
2010

self initiated, discontinued
Research for a real-time book. Typologies of Intellectual Property is a "living" book that graphically represents the world of intellectual property at the precise moment the book is ordered through one of several online retailers or via this website. It shows how a dense network of multi-national corporations, patent brokers and law firms dominates the world of intellectual property.
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Research for a real-time book. Typologies of Intellectual Property is a "living" book that graphically represents the world of intellectual property at the precise moment the book is ordered through one of several online retailers or via this website. It shows how a dense network of multi-national corporations, patent brokers and law firms dominates the world of intellectual property. Whenever someone orders the book online, a newly generated version of the book is printed on demand and sent by mail. Each time someone orders the book, a unique iteration serves as a graphic sample of a hidden world that shapes the future of ideas.

Typologies of Intellectual Property is a printed realtime visualization of the United States Patent and Trademark Office weekly dataset and is based on the website with the same name that I made in 2009.    

Research for a real-time book. Typologies of Intellectual Property is a "living" book that graphically represents the world of intellectual property at the precise moment the book is ordered through one of several online retailers or via this website. It shows how a dense network of multi-national corporations, patent brokers and law firms dominates the world of intellectual property. Whenever someone orders the book online, a newly generated version of the book is printed on demand and sent by mail. Each time someone orders the book, a unique iteration serves as a graphic sample of a hidden world that shapes the future of ideas.

Typologies of Intellectual Property is a printed realtime visualization of the United States Patent and Trademark Office weekly dataset and is based on the website with the same name that I made in 2009.    

 
Typologies of Intellectual Property
e
Interactive Patent Visualization

2009
Web Application
2009

self initiated, discontinued
Typologies of intellectual property is an interactive visualization of patent data issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Every week an xml file with about 3000 new patents is published by the USPTO and made available through data.gov.
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Typologies of intellectual property is an interactive visualization of patent data issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Every week an xml file with about 3000 new patents is published by the USPTO and made available through data.gov. This webapplication provides a way to navigate, explore and discover the complex and interconnected world of ideas, inventions and big business. Patents are categorized by classification (subject of the patent), agents (lawyers), company, inventor and country. Within each category, unique icons are generated based on the values of each instance, and how they relate to other categories. The web application is not meant as a reference utility for patent grants, but as an interactive and graphical insight into the world of intellectual property

Typologies of intellectual property is an interactive visualization of patent data issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Every week an xml file with about 3000 new patents is published by the USPTO and made available through data.gov. This webapplication provides a way to navigate, explore and discover the complex and interconnected world of ideas, inventions and big business. Patents are categorized by classification (subject of the patent), agents (lawyers), company, inventor and country. Within each category, unique icons are generated based on the values of each instance, and how they relate to other categories. The web application is not meant as a reference utility for patent grants, but as an interactive and graphical insight into the world of intellectual property

 
Onder Anderen
e
Social Cartography

2009
Web Application
2009

Huijbers en Agelink
Dutch Design
Award 2009
The Website Onder-anderen is part of an ‘Art in public space’ project by Huijbers en Agelink (Germa Huijbers en Carolina Agelink) in a neighbourhood of Delft. The artwork was developed in close collaboration with the residents with the goal of disclosing their (childhood) memories.
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The Website Onder-anderen is part of an ‘Art in public space’ project by Huijbers en Agelink (Germa Huijbers en Carolina Agelink) in a neighbourhood of Delft. The artwork was developed in close collaboration with the residents with the goal of disclosing their (childhood) memories.

The resulting image archive has been made accessible by developing a website and 30 aluminum photo signs that are permanently displayed in the street and act as a reference to specific themes within the website. The signs are therefor a physical representation of the structure of the online archive, and at the same time, encourage people to visit the website. Apart from the geographic approach, the website provides a chronologic perspective. When switching between these views, a swarm of hundreds of images moves from their geographic position to their chronologic position.


In collaboration with Thomas Kopperschlaeger.

The Website Onder-anderen is part of an ‘Art in public space’ project by Huijbers en Agelink (Germa Huijbers en Carolina Agelink) in a neighbourhood of Delft. The artwork was developed in close collaboration with the residents with the goal of disclosing their (childhood) memories.

The resulting image archive has been made accessible by developing a website and 30 aluminum photo signs that are permanently displayed in the street and act as a reference to specific themes within the website. The signs are therefor a physical representation of the structure of the online archive, and at the same time, encourage people to visit the website. Apart from the geographic approach, the website provides a chronologic perspective. When switching between these views, a swarm of hundreds of images moves from their geographic position to their chronologic position.


In collaboration with Thomas Kopperschlaeger.

 
Rijkswaterstaat
e
Immersive Media

2008
Projections, Audio
2008

Rijkswaterstaat
Dutch Design
Award 2009
Immersive media theatre for Rijkswaterstaat LEF, a research and innovation platform for the Dutch Directorate-General for Public Works and Water Management. The media theatre is a space in which walls and floor consist of projection surfaces.
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Immersive media theatre for Rijkswaterstaat LEF, a research and innovation platform for the Dutch Directorate-General for Public Works and Water Management. The media theatre is a space in which walls and floor consist of projection surfaces.

By running specific interactive and audiovisual applications the entire space can be transformed to fit any occasion. We have been asked to develop a series of audiovisual and interactive applications to be used in the discussion and decisionmaking process. For this we developed a total of nine applications, one of which is a interactive cartographic simulation giving a variety of perspectives on the Netherlands by using the vast amount of cartographic material Rijkswaterstaat keeps. Another example is a ad-hoc social network in which datavisualizations are generated in real-time, based on questions answered by participants with a handheld computer The applications use a projection surface consisting of a total of 15 projectors and 7.1 surround sound.

Immersive media theatre for Rijkswaterstaat LEF, a research and innovation platform for the Dutch Directorate-General for Public Works and Water Management. The media theatre is a space in which walls and floor consist of projection surfaces.

By running specific interactive and audiovisual applications the entire space can be transformed to fit any occasion. We have been asked to develop a series of audiovisual and interactive applications to be used in the discussion and decisionmaking process. For this we developed a total of nine applications, one of which is a interactive cartographic simulation giving a variety of perspectives on the Netherlands by using the vast amount of cartographic material Rijkswaterstaat keeps. Another example is a ad-hoc social network in which datavisualizations are generated in real-time, based on questions answered by participants with a handheld computer The applications use a projection surface consisting of a total of 15 projectors and 7.1 surround sound.

 
Wandering Intelligence
e

2014
2014

Wandering Intelligence is a visual feedback loop based on image recognition, a algorithmic stream of consciousness driven by a perpetual translation between image and language.
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Wandering Intelligence is a visual feedback loop based on image recognition, a algorithmic stream of consciousness driven by a perpetual translation between image and language.

Wandering Intelligence is a visual feedback loop based on image recognition, a algorithmic stream of consciousness driven by a perpetual translation between image and language.

 
Euro Coin
e

2012
2012

A commission by the Dutch Ministry of Finance to design a proposal for a commemorative Euro coin celebrating the 50 year anniversary of the World Wildlife Fund in the Netherlands.
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A commission by the Dutch Ministry of Finance to design a proposal for a commemorative Euro coin celebrating the 50 year anniversary of the World Wildlife Fund in the Netherlands.

My proposal revolves around the notion of a coin as a carrier of scientific data, describing the 30% decline of global biodiversity over the last 50 years. It is thereby both a call for engagement with the cause of the WWF and it provides the actual data that signifies this dramatic decline. The coin's obverse (heads side) shows a graphic structure generated by a computer program known as the game of life: a simple mathematical simulation of "life" on a two dimensional grid. This structure – representing a petri dish at micro level or a planet at marco level – forms a 0.3mm relief of spatial pixels that under a "magnifying glass" reveals the portrait of the queen. The coin's reverse (tails side) shows a visualization of the data (acquired from the Zoological Society of London) as a downwards spiral spanning the last 50 years. Its structure, which is similar to the coin's obverse, starts as a rich diversity that gradually thins out towards the present.      

A commission by the Dutch Ministry of Finance to design a proposal for a commemorative Euro coin celebrating the 50 year anniversary of the World Wildlife Fund in the Netherlands.

My proposal revolves around the notion of a coin as a carrier of scientific data, describing the 30% decline of global biodiversity over the last 50 years. It is thereby both a call for engagement with the cause of the WWF and it provides the actual data that signifies this dramatic decline. The coin's obverse (heads side) shows a graphic structure generated by a computer program known as the game of life: a simple mathematical simulation of "life" on a two dimensional grid. This structure – representing a petri dish at micro level or a planet at marco level – forms a 0.3mm relief of spatial pixels that under a "magnifying glass" reveals the portrait of the queen. The coin's reverse (tails side) shows a visualization of the data (acquired from the Zoological Society of London) as a downwards spiral spanning the last 50 years. Its structure, which is similar to the coin's obverse, starts as a rich diversity that gradually thins out towards the present.      

 
Frans Hals Museum
e

2013
2013

Screen Installation for Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem [NL]. The installation highlights the life and work of seventeenth century painter Frans Hals. The story is told on 50 differently sized screens spanning three walls of the space in a "salon style" arrangement. While the screens can be used to display individual paintings, they can also act as one fragmented cinematic screen showing timelines, maps and datavisualizations.
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Screen Installation for Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem [NL].

The installation highlights the life and work of seventeenth century painter Frans Hals. The story is told on 50 differently sized screens spanning three walls of the space in a "salon style" arrangement. While the screens can be used to display individual paintings, they can also act as one fragmented cinematic screen showing timelines, maps and datavisualizations.

The story contains biographic timelines, super high resolution close-up's and scientific images such as Ultra Violet, X-Ray and microscopic details.

Screen Installation for Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem [NL].

The installation highlights the life and work of seventeenth century painter Frans Hals. The story is told on 50 differently sized screens spanning three walls of the space in a "salon style" arrangement. While the screens can be used to display individual paintings, they can also act as one fragmented cinematic screen showing timelines, maps and datavisualizations.

The story contains biographic timelines, super high resolution close-up's and scientific images such as Ultra Violet, X-Ray and microscopic details.

 
Premsela / Design Networks
e

2009
2009

Design Networks is a map that visualizes the world of international design fairs. The map shows all 7500 companies, artists and designers that participate in the world's 45 biggest / most important design fairs.
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Design Networks is a map that visualizes the world of international design fairs. The map shows all 7500 companies, artists and designers that participate in the world's 45 biggest / most important design fairs. The map shows the fairs and their participants as a new continent of professional design, with the important fairs being attracted to the center of the map, and the smaller fairs circling the periphery. The back of the map provides an index with coordinates for all 7500 companies on the map.

Design Networks is a map that visualizes the world of international design fairs. The map shows all 7500 companies, artists and designers that participate in the world's 45 biggest / most important design fairs. The map shows the fairs and their participants as a new continent of professional design, with the important fairs being attracted to the center of the map, and the smaller fairs circling the periphery. The back of the map provides an index with coordinates for all 7500 companies on the map.

 
Longread
e

2014
2014

Uigeverij Fosfor is a publishing house dedicated to journalism and non-fiction. As part of a series of long reads we've developed a experiment template for cross platform storytelling. The concept behind the template is based on the spine. Traditionally a spine allows you to estimate the volume of a book. The digital spine of the template reveals the volume of text and other media elements that are linked to the text.
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Uigeverij Fosfor is a publishing house dedicated to journalism and non-fiction. As part of a series of long reads we've developed a experiment template for cross platform storytelling. The concept behind the template is based on the spine. Traditionally a spine allows you to estimate the volume of a book. The digital spine of the template reveals the volume of text and other media elements that are linked to the text.

Uigeverij Fosfor is a publishing house dedicated to journalism and non-fiction. As part of a series of long reads we've developed a experiment template for cross platform storytelling. The concept behind the template is based on the spine. Traditionally a spine allows you to estimate the volume of a book. The digital spine of the template reveals the volume of text and other media elements that are linked to the text.

 
Vertex RGB
e

2013
2013

Vertex RGB is a three dimensional illuminated typeface based on the triangular description of a 3D object in a computer. The faces are cut with Frank Kolkman's DIY laser cutter that he brought with him when he joined our studio. Each character has it's own RGB led controller.
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Vertex RGB is a three dimensional illuminated typeface based on the triangular description of a 3D object in a computer. The faces are cut with Frank Kolkman's DIY laser cutter that he brought with him when he joined our studio. Each character has it's own RGB led controller.

Vertex RGB is a three dimensional illuminated typeface based on the triangular description of a 3D object in a computer. The faces are cut with Frank Kolkman's DIY laser cutter that he brought with him when he joined our studio. Each character has it's own RGB led controller.

 
Data materialization
e

2014
2014

Research on the practice of three dimensional data materialization. The fluctuating mass of polar ice is the first in a series of experiments that turn digital data into physical objects by combining parametric design and additive manufacturing.
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Research on the practice of three dimensional data materialization. The fluctuating mass of polar ice is the first in a series of experiments that turn digital data into physical objects by combining parametric design and additive manufacturing.

This object materializes the mass of Antarctica's ice reserves as measured in 2003. Subsequent 3D prints allow you to feel how the ice disappears by holding the object in your hands. This tactile reading of information could provide a more comprehensive understanding of complex spatial datasets by manifesting itself in three dimensions.

 

3D printing research in collaboration with Matthijs Klip (intern) Video of Matthijs printing a bar chart by As We Speak

Research on the practice of three dimensional data materialization. The fluctuating mass of polar ice is the first in a series of experiments that turn digital data into physical objects by combining parametric design and additive manufacturing.

This object materializes the mass of Antarctica's ice reserves as measured in 2003. Subsequent 3D prints allow you to feel how the ice disappears by holding the object in your hands. This tactile reading of information could provide a more comprehensive understanding of complex spatial datasets by manifesting itself in three dimensions.

 

3D printing research in collaboration with Matthijs Klip (intern) Video of Matthijs printing a bar chart by As We Speak

 
JODI: Max Payne Library
e

2009
2009

Max Payne Library is an online generative narrative based on the Max Payne video game. It was developed in close collaboration with art collective JODI. Based on their dissection of the first person shooter I developed an algorithm that associatively reassembles a narrative. Jumping from places to keywords to characters from the game, an endless stream of texts and images is assembled into a new volume in the Max Payne Library.
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Max Payne Library is an online generative narrative based on the Max Payne video game. It was developed in close collaboration with art collective JODI. Based on their dissection of the first person shooter I developed an algorithm that associatively reassembles a narrative. Jumping from places to keywords to characters from the game, an endless stream of texts and images is assembled into a new volume in the Max Payne Library.

A new volume is added by dragging a slider to define the number of pages in the book. Once this is confirmed, the program starts constructing a storyline and searches for images to support it.

When a new book is generated it can be printed on-demand or downloaded as a PDF file.

Max Payne Library is an online generative narrative based on the Max Payne video game. It was developed in close collaboration with art collective JODI. Based on their dissection of the first person shooter I developed an algorithm that associatively reassembles a narrative. Jumping from places to keywords to characters from the game, an endless stream of texts and images is assembled into a new volume in the Max Payne Library.

A new volume is added by dragging a slider to define the number of pages in the book. Once this is confirmed, the program starts constructing a storyline and searches for images to support it.

When a new book is generated it can be printed on-demand or downloaded as a PDF file.

 
Seoul International Biennale of Media Art
e

2010
2010

The website for the Seoul International Biennale of Media Art is both the official communication channel for the Seoul Biennale as well as an autonomous process based application that scrapes various news sources and networks for the meaning of the curatorial theme "trust" in both English and Korean.
read more

The website for the Seoul International Biennale of Media Art is both the official communication channel for the Seoul Biennale as well as an autonomous process based application that scrapes various news sources and networks for the meaning of the curatorial theme "trust" in both English and Korean. The result of this ongoing search for definition is a series of dynamic clusters of (moving) images and texts that form a backdrop for the formal information on the Biennale.

The website for the Seoul International Biennale of Media Art is both the official communication channel for the Seoul Biennale as well as an autonomous process based application that scrapes various news sources and networks for the meaning of the curatorial theme "trust" in both English and Korean. The result of this ongoing search for definition is a series of dynamic clusters of (moving) images and texts that form a backdrop for the formal information on the Biennale.

 
Geologger
e

2009
2009

The Geologger is an installation that visualizes the usage statistics of a website by monitoring ip adresses of people who visit the site. The Ip adresses are geocoded to a latitude and longitude coördinate and the name of a city. The installation consists of a wall mounted barebone industrial display that slowly "scans" the area of the last visitor.
read more

The Geologger is an installation that visualizes the usage statistics of a website by monitoring ip adresses of people who visit the site. The Ip adresses are geocoded to a latitude and longitude coördinate and the name of a city. The installation consists of a wall mounted barebone industrial display that slowly "scans" the area of the last visitor. Once a new visitor is detected, the scan jumps to a new location. The installation provides a more concrete image of the abstract notion of the internet as a "global village".

The Geologger is an installation that visualizes the usage statistics of a website by monitoring ip adresses of people who visit the site. The Ip adresses are geocoded to a latitude and longitude coördinate and the name of a city. The installation consists of a wall mounted barebone industrial display that slowly "scans" the area of the last visitor. Once a new visitor is detected, the scan jumps to a new location. The installation provides a more concrete image of the abstract notion of the internet as a "global village".

Huijbers en Agelink
e

2009
2009

Artist duo Huijbers en Agelink creates autonomous and commissioned artistic interventions in public space. Their work is highly process based and can be seen as a crossing of artistic practice and design methodology. A realistic style and a strong focus on social interaction is characteristic of their work.
read more

Artist duo Huijbers en Agelink creates autonomous and commissioned artistic interventions in public space. Their work is highly process based and can be seen as a crossing of artistic practice and design methodology. A realistic style and a strong focus on social interaction is characteristic of their work. This website features a collection of projects from the last decade. It aims to demonstrate the interconnections between projects, objects, interaction, research and documentation. Projects can be approached through each of these properties.            

Artist duo Huijbers en Agelink creates autonomous and commissioned artistic interventions in public space. Their work is highly process based and can be seen as a crossing of artistic practice and design methodology. A realistic style and a strong focus on social interaction is characteristic of their work. This website features a collection of projects from the last decade. It aims to demonstrate the interconnections between projects, objects, interaction, research and documentation. Projects can be approached through each of these properties.            

 
Witte de With Morality
e

2009
2009

Starting from october 2009, Morality is the yearlong leitmotiv of Witte de With, Center for contemporary art. This web platform is part of a constellation of exhibitions, a film program, a performance cycle, a symposium and a book.
read more

Starting from october 2009, Morality is the yearlong leitmotiv of Witte de With, Center for contemporary art. This web platform is part of a constellation of exhibitions, a film program, a performance cycle, a symposium and a book.

The website aims to level the playing field between curators, artists and the general public by providing them with a tool for engaging in discussions and debate. By "crowd-sourcing" the artistic and theoretical discourse surrounding morality, all those who contribute comply with the web 2.0 concept of the "user".

The platform sets out to harness and visualize different levels of "user"-participation, from the visitor who does not contribute anything – but leaves a trace just by visiting – and the unaware twitter user whose conversations are overheard and integrated in the discussion, to the highly involved participants, guest contributors and curators who's (visual) comments, associations and stories make up a dynamic cloud of images and texts.

Starting from october 2009, Morality is the yearlong leitmotiv of Witte de With, Center for contemporary art. This web platform is part of a constellation of exhibitions, a film program, a performance cycle, a symposium and a book.

The website aims to level the playing field between curators, artists and the general public by providing them with a tool for engaging in discussions and debate. By "crowd-sourcing" the artistic and theoretical discourse surrounding morality, all those who contribute comply with the web 2.0 concept of the "user".

The platform sets out to harness and visualize different levels of "user"-participation, from the visitor who does not contribute anything – but leaves a trace just by visiting – and the unaware twitter user whose conversations are overheard and integrated in the discussion, to the highly involved participants, guest contributors and curators who's (visual) comments, associations and stories make up a dynamic cloud of images and texts.

 
Project Gutenberg / Realtime Bookdesign
e
parametric library

2004
installation
2004

graduation project
Project on the convergence of printed and digital books. Over the last decade several attempts have been made to make the information stored in books available on the internet, – some proprietary some open source. Even though some of these attempts have been very successful, they usually conform to the old idea of the library in digital form. As long as these works are being stored online, and printed for reading, the concept is simply an evolutionary process in production and distribution, most likely to be taken advantage of by the bookmaking industry in the form of ‘print on demand’. My research will focus on the new paradigm of the non-physical book existing in a uniform database environment. The absence of physical limitations and the uniformity of the structure in which the book exists, opens up new ways of thinking about the book.
read more

Project on the convergence of printed and digital books.

Over the last decade several attempts have been made to make the information stored in books available on the internet, – some proprietary some open source. Even though some of these attempts have been very successful, they usually conform to the old idea of the library in digital form. As long as these works are being stored online, and printed for reading, the concept is simply an evolutionary process in production and distribution, most likely to be taken advantage of by the bookmaking industry in the form of ‘print on demand’. My research will focus on the new paradigm of the non-physical book existing in a uniform database environment. The absence of physical limitations and the uniformity of the structure in which the book exists, opens up new ways of thinking about the book. The book no longer starts at the first page, and ends at the last, it can be a collection of quotes, pages or chapters from different books in the library. Like a DJ mixes records, readers or lecturers can recompose text by making connections or by sampling books. The uniform structure allows us to add data to the book, making it more valuable ...

Project on the convergence of printed and digital books.

Over the last decade several attempts have been made to make the information stored in books available on the internet, – some proprietary some open source. Even though some of these attempts have been very successful, they usually conform to the old idea of the library in digital form. As long as these works are being stored online, and printed for reading, the concept is simply an evolutionary process in production and distribution, most likely to be taken advantage of by the bookmaking industry in the form of ‘print on demand’. My research will focus on the new paradigm of the non-physical book existing in a uniform database environment. The absence of physical limitations and the uniformity of the structure in which the book exists, opens up new ways of thinking about the book. The book no longer starts at the first page, and ends at the last, it can be a collection of quotes, pages or chapters from different books in the library. Like a DJ mixes records, readers or lecturers can recompose text by making connections or by sampling books. The uniform structure allows us to add data to the book, making it more valuable ...

 
BRAKIN
e

2005
2005

Book design project while working at the Jan van Eyck Academy on the Tomorrow Book. A group of Jan van Eyck researchers investigated the public spheres of Brazzaville and Kinshasa, two neighbouring capitals separated by the Congo river.
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Book design project while working at the Jan van Eyck Academy on the Tomorrow Book. A group of Jan van Eyck researchers investigated the public spheres of Brazzaville and Kinshasa, two neighbouring capitals separated by the Congo river. The group subscribed to ‘visualizing the visible’ as a research approach and regarded Brazzaville and Kinshasa as one city: Brakin. The researchers studied phenomena such as street children, street trade, land disputes, housing projects, UN presence, diamond trade, roundabouts and public space. These were indicators for ‘reading’ the urban environment.

Published by Lars Müller Publishers

Book design project while working at the Jan van Eyck Academy on the Tomorrow Book. A group of Jan van Eyck researchers investigated the public spheres of Brazzaville and Kinshasa, two neighbouring capitals separated by the Congo river. The group subscribed to ‘visualizing the visible’ as a research approach and regarded Brazzaville and Kinshasa as one city: Brakin. The researchers studied phenomena such as street children, street trade, land disputes, housing projects, UN presence, diamond trade, roundabouts and public space. These were indicators for ‘reading’ the urban environment.

Published by Lars Müller Publishers

 
Transitiekaart
e
Urban Planning

2010
touch screen application
2010

commissioned by DTO
There are many undefined places in the city. Development plans, vacant buildings and public policy leave many buildings and areas in a long-term state of transition. A state that is often prolonged by economic downturn. The disparity between a place's current state and it's planned future often spans many years and many square meters. Time and space the Transitiekaart (Transition Map) aims to visualize and make public in order to facilitate the use of these places for cultural, social and artistic purposes.
read more

There are many undefined places in the city. Development plans, vacant buildings and public policy leave many buildings and areas in a long-term state of transition. A state that is often prolonged by economic downturn. The disparity between a place's current state and it's planned future often spans many years and many square meters. Time and space the Transitiekaart (Transition Map) aims to visualize and make public in order to facilitate the use of these places for cultural, social and artistic purposes. In doing so it's organizers hope to provide a new context for short term research and (urban-) development that contributes to better urban quality and public participation. The Transitiekaart shows places in the city that are in transition and matches them to a database of project proposals. The result is a selection of possible areas and buildings that may be suitable location for a project.

To make sure projects are socially and economically embedded in their environments, historic and statistical cartographic layers provide context for determining the best location for a specific project. Once a project is matched to a location, the Transitiekaart will provide legal templates to speed up the process of realizing a project.

There are many undefined places in the city. Development plans, vacant buildings and public policy leave many buildings and areas in a long-term state of transition. A state that is often prolonged by economic downturn. The disparity between a place's current state and it's planned future often spans many years and many square meters. Time and space the Transitiekaart (Transition Map) aims to visualize and make public in order to facilitate the use of these places for cultural, social and artistic purposes. In doing so it's organizers hope to provide a new context for short term research and (urban-) development that contributes to better urban quality and public participation. The Transitiekaart shows places in the city that are in transition and matches them to a database of project proposals. The result is a selection of possible areas and buildings that may be suitable location for a project.

To make sure projects are socially and economically embedded in their environments, historic and statistical cartographic layers provide context for determining the best location for a specific project. Once a project is matched to a location, the Transitiekaart will provide legal templates to speed up the process of realizing a project.

 
Blue Sky Forever
e

2005
2005

Bluesky Forever is the title of the digital biography of Dutch artist Jan Spit. In 2004 Jan Spit has been awarded with the "Antony Kok Prize" for his complete oeuvre. I was asked to design and produce the CD-ROM containing an overview of the life and work of Jan Spit.
read more

Bluesky Forever is the title of the digital biography of Dutch artist Jan Spit. In 2004 Jan Spit has been awarded with the "Antony Kok Prize" for his complete oeuvre. I was asked to design and produce the CD-ROM containing an overview of the life and work of Jan Spit. After working for a year organizing the thousands of scans, slides, old video tapes and audio interviews with the artist, we created an online database for the parties involved to contribute, edit and sort the material. The interface lies on top of this database and offers two distinct layers of access to the works of the artist; an archive, where stacks of work represent various projects and disciplines, and a narrative that provides context both text and spoken word. Because of the great involvement of the artist in organizing his life's work in this project, and because of the context it creates, it gives a new perspective on the work, and it might be seen as the artists last work.

Bluesky Forever is the title of the digital biography of Dutch artist Jan Spit. In 2004 Jan Spit has been awarded with the "Antony Kok Prize" for his complete oeuvre. I was asked to design and produce the CD-ROM containing an overview of the life and work of Jan Spit. After working for a year organizing the thousands of scans, slides, old video tapes and audio interviews with the artist, we created an online database for the parties involved to contribute, edit and sort the material. The interface lies on top of this database and offers two distinct layers of access to the works of the artist; an archive, where stacks of work represent various projects and disciplines, and a narrative that provides context both text and spoken word. Because of the great involvement of the artist in organizing his life's work in this project, and because of the context it creates, it gives a new perspective on the work, and it might be seen as the artists last work.

 
WATT Rotterdam
e

2008
2008

Realtime environmental systems monitor for the world's first sustainable danceclub. WATT Rotterdam is the world's first sustainable danceclub. This sustainability is accomplished by incorporating a “gray water system (collecting rain water from the roof)”, an efficient climate management system and a “minimal waste policy” a.o.
read more

Realtime environmental systems monitor for the world's first sustainable danceclub. WATT Rotterdam is the world's first sustainable danceclub. This sustainability is accomplished by incorporating a “gray water system (collecting rain water from the roof)”, an efficient climate management system and a “minimal waste policy” a.o. These systems do not only reduce energy consumption, they also generate data that is used by the WATT Systems Monitor to visualize the “activity” of the danceclub. The software shows, that as more people enter the buidling all systems start working harder and the buidling comes to life. A dynamic VJ show is generated based on the club's overall activity and a CNN style bizbar provides live updates on the activity of all the systems. The goal of this dynamic digital installation is to raise awareness among visitors about their ecological impact in a positive way and illustrate the interconnection between human activity and the infrastructure that facilitates this activity.

Realtime environmental systems monitor for the world's first sustainable danceclub. WATT Rotterdam is the world's first sustainable danceclub. This sustainability is accomplished by incorporating a “gray water system (collecting rain water from the roof)”, an efficient climate management system and a “minimal waste policy” a.o. These systems do not only reduce energy consumption, they also generate data that is used by the WATT Systems Monitor to visualize the “activity” of the danceclub. The software shows, that as more people enter the buidling all systems start working harder and the buidling comes to life. A dynamic VJ show is generated based on the club's overall activity and a CNN style bizbar provides live updates on the activity of all the systems. The goal of this dynamic digital installation is to raise awareness among visitors about their ecological impact in a positive way and illustrate the interconnection between human activity and the infrastructure that facilitates this activity.

Older Projects
2017 Re:search-Terms of Art
2014 Atlas of Pentecostalism
2014 Data materialization
2014 Longread
2014 Wandering Intelligence
2013 Vertex RGB
2013 Frans Hals Museum
2013 Design Notities
2012 Euro Coin
2010 Seoul International Biennale of Media Art
2010 Typologies of Intellectual Property
2010 Transitiekaart
2009 Huijbers en Agelink
2009 Witte de With Morality
2009 Geologger
2009 Onder Anderen
2009 Premsela / Design Networks
2009 Typologies of Intellectual Property
2009 JODI: Max Payne Library
2008 Rijkswaterstaat
2008 WATT Rotterdam
2005 BRAKIN
2005 Blue Sky Forever
2004 Project Gutenberg / Realtime Bookdesign
abc

Data Landscapes and the Digital Sublime

Richard Vijgen (1982) is a data artist. He designs instruments, objects and environments that let you experience the invisible dimensions of the highly technological world around us. Through his work, he explores the aesthetic and cultural effects of electromagnetic waves, information networks, microprocessors and algorithms and translates their elusive qualities into intuitive, imaginative and sensory experiences.

Richard Vijgen teaches at the Design Art and Technology Department of the ArtEZ Art School in the Netherlands and frequently serves as a guest lecturer at art schools and universities. His work has been exhibited at Centre Pompidou, the Los Angeles County Museum of Modern Art, The Barbican Gallery, Zentrum für Kunst und Medien, Ars Electronica, Vitra Design Museum, New Media Gallery and Manifesta 12 and has been awarded with several Dutch Design Awards, the Lumen Prize, received honourable mentions from Ars Electronica and a S+T+ARTS residency at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center. $By using site specificity and metaphors such as the data landscape, his work establishes new relations between invisible technological dimensions and the physical, embodied reality of the viewer that invoke experiences of the digital sublime. In collaboration with artists, scientists and technologists, he explores new aesthetic and narrative dimensions of information technology. He has published articles on data visualisation and data culture in The Yale Architectural Journal, Volume Magazine and the Parsons Journal for Information Mapping among others.

Richard Vijgen teaches at the Design Art and Technology Department of the ArtEZ Art School in the Netherlands and frequently serves as a guest lecturer at art schools and universities. His work has been exhibited at Centre Pompidou, the Los Angeles County Museum of Modern Art, The Barbican Gallery, Zentrum für Kunst und Medien, Ars Electronica, Vitra Design Museum, New Media Gallery and Manifesta 12 and has been awarded with several Dutch Design Awards, the Lumen Prize, received honourable mentions from Ars Electronica and a S+T+ARTS residency at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center. $By using site specificity and metaphors such as the data landscape, his work establishes new relations between invisible technological dimensions and the physical, embodied reality of the viewer that invoke experiences of the digital sublime. In collaboration with artists, scientists and technologists, he explores new aesthetic and narrative dimensions of information technology. He has published articles on data visualisation and data culture in The Yale Architectural Journal, Volume Magazine and the Parsons Journal for Information Mapping among others.

exhibitions
2024 View Beneath Delft
Highlight Delft, Delft, The Netherlands

2023 Through Artificial Eyes
Noord-Hollands Archief, Haarlem, the Netherlands

2023 Museum of the Future
Museum of the Future, Enschede, Netherlands

2023 Architecture of Radio
Ming Contemporary Art Museum, Shanghai, China

2023 Hertzian Landscapes
Arti et Amicitiae, Amsterdam, the Netherlands

2022 Extractivism, the Eldorado of Cyberspace
la Sorbonne, Paris, France

2022 Indivisible
New Media Gallery, New Westminster, Vancouver, Canada

2022 Looking at the Future through Artificial Eyes
Het Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam, the Netherlands

2022 Réseaux-Mondes
Centre Pompidou, Paris, France

2022 Welcome to Amchitka
38CC, Delft, The Netherlands

2021 Au-delà du réel ?
Le CENTQUATRE-PARIS, Paris, France

2021 THE_OGRE.NET
Galerie Suzanne Tarasiève, Paris, France

2021 Lanzhou Photo Festival
Chengdu Contemporary Image Museum, Chengdu, China

2020 Gdynia Design Days
Gdansk Design Festival, Gdansk, Poland

2019 Broken Nature
XXII Triennale di Milano, Milano, Italy

2019 Vienna Biennale for Change
MAK, Vienna, Austria

2019 Digital Revolution
Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum, Frankfurt, Germany

2018 Connected by Air, a Data Fresco
Manifesta 12, Palermo, Italy

2018 1,2,3, Data
Espace EDF, Paris, France

2017 Hello Robot
Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, Germany

2017 Architecture of Radio Panorama
STRP Biennale, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2017 The Imagined Future is Not the Future
OCT-LOFT, Shenzen, China

2017 Materialising the Internet | Deleted City 3.0
MU Gallery, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2017 White Spots
Het Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

2017 WiFi Tapestry
Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2017 Embassy of Data
Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2016 Currents
Museo Cultural de Santa Fe, Santa Fe, United States

2016 Internet Archive 20th Anniversary
Internet Archive, San Fransisco, United States

2016 Nervous Systems
Haus der Kulturen der welt, Berlin, Germany

2016 IDFA Doclab White Spots
De Brakke Grond, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

2016 The Deleted City
Computer History Museum, Mountain View, United States

2016 The Shannon Effect
Bell Labs, New Jersey, United States

2016 Datavisualization
Beijing Media Art Biennale, Beijing, China

2016 Prix Ars Electronica
Ars Electronica, Linz, Austria

2015 Infosphere
ZKM, Karlsruhe, Germany

2015 Every (day) ta
MOTI, Breda, The Netherlands

2014 Digital Revolution
The Barbican, London, United Kingdom

2014 The Deleted City
Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Los Angeles, United States

2013 Atlas der Nederlanden
Special Collections, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

2013 Seasonal and Longterm Groundwater Changes
Screen City, Stavanger, Norway

2013 Screengrab
James Cook University, Douglas, Australia

2013 Unmapping the world
Experimenta Biennale, Lison, Portugal

2012 The Deleted City
Silence Vert , Le Vigan, France

2012 The Deleted City
Dutch Design Awards, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2012 Cultura Digital
Cultura Digital, Rio de Jainero, Brazil

2012 The Deleted City
Counterpath, Denver, United States

2011 Munt met een Missie
Centraal Museum, Utrecht, The Netherlands

2009 Dutch Design Awards
Dutch Design House, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2009 Young Guns 7
Art Directors Club New York, New York, United States

2005 Dutch Design Week
Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2024 View Beneath Delft
Highlight Delft, Delft, The Netherlands

2023 Through Artificial Eyes
Noord-Hollands Archief, Haarlem, the Netherlands

2023 Museum of the Future
Museum of the Future, Enschede, Netherlands

2023 Architecture of Radio
Ming Contemporary Art Museum, Shanghai, China

2023 Hertzian Landscapes
Arti et Amicitiae, Amsterdam, the Netherlands

2022 Extractivism, the Eldorado of Cyberspace
la Sorbonne, Paris, France

2022 Indivisible
New Media Gallery, New Westminster, Vancouver, Canada

2022 Looking at the Future through Artificial Eyes
Het Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam, the Netherlands

2022 Réseaux-Mondes
Centre Pompidou, Paris, France

2022 Welcome to Amchitka
38CC, Delft, The Netherlands

2021 Au-delà du réel ?
Le CENTQUATRE-PARIS, Paris, France

2021 THE_OGRE.NET
Galerie Suzanne Tarasiève, Paris, France

2021 Lanzhou Photo Festival
Chengdu Contemporary Image Museum, Chengdu, China

2020 Gdynia Design Days
Gdansk Design Festival, Gdansk, Poland

2019 Broken Nature
XXII Triennale di Milano, Milano, Italy

2019 Vienna Biennale for Change
MAK, Vienna, Austria

2019 Digital Revolution
Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum, Frankfurt, Germany

2018 Connected by Air, a Data Fresco
Manifesta 12, Palermo, Italy

2018 1,2,3, Data
Espace EDF, Paris, France

2017 Hello Robot
Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, Germany

2017 Architecture of Radio Panorama
STRP Biennale, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2017 The Imagined Future is Not the Future
OCT-LOFT, Shenzen, China

2017 Materialising the Internet | Deleted City 3.0
MU Gallery, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2017 White Spots
Het Nieuwe Instituut, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

2017 WiFi Tapestry
Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2017 Embassy of Data
Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2016 Currents
Museo Cultural de Santa Fe, Santa Fe, United States

2016 Internet Archive 20th Anniversary
Internet Archive, San Fransisco, United States

2016 Nervous Systems
Haus der Kulturen der welt, Berlin, Germany

2016 IDFA Doclab White Spots
De Brakke Grond, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

2016 The Deleted City
Computer History Museum, Mountain View, United States

2016 The Shannon Effect
Bell Labs, New Jersey, United States

2016 Datavisualization
Beijing Media Art Biennale, Beijing, China

2016 Prix Ars Electronica
Ars Electronica, Linz, Austria

2015 Infosphere
ZKM, Karlsruhe, Germany

2015 Every (day) ta
MOTI, Breda, The Netherlands

2014 Digital Revolution
The Barbican, London, United Kingdom

2014 The Deleted City
Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Los Angeles, United States

2013 Atlas der Nederlanden
Special Collections, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

2013 Seasonal and Longterm Groundwater Changes
Screen City, Stavanger, Norway

2013 Screengrab
James Cook University, Douglas, Australia

2013 Unmapping the world
Experimenta Biennale, Lison, Portugal

2012 The Deleted City
Silence Vert , Le Vigan, France

2012 The Deleted City
Dutch Design Awards, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2012 Cultura Digital
Cultura Digital, Rio de Jainero, Brazil

2012 The Deleted City
Counterpath, Denver, United States

2011 Munt met een Missie
Centraal Museum, Utrecht, The Netherlands

2009 Dutch Design Awards
Dutch Design House, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

2009 Young Guns 7
Art Directors Club New York, New York, United States

2005 Dutch Design Week
Dutch Design Week, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

publications
Writing
De Toekomst door Kunstmatige Ogen
Boek van de Toekomst, 2022
www.boomfilosofie.nl
isbn: 9789024443109
The Archive of the Future
Network Archives Design and Digital Culture, 2021
nadd.hetnieuweinstituut.nl
Wifi Impressionist
ACM Interactions March-April 2020, 2020
dl.acm.org
Information as a Machine for Living in
Perspecta, The Yale Architectural Journal # 51, 2018
mitpress.mit.edu
isbn: 9780262535922
Life in the Infosphere
Volume Magazine # 50, Total Space insert, 2017
volumeproject.org
isbn: 9789077966600
Big Data, Big Stories
New Challenges for Data Design, 2015
www.springer.com
isbn: 978-1-4471-6596-5
Massive Growth under the radar
Pulitzercenter.org, 2014
pulitzercenter.org
The Deleted City: A Digital Archaeology
Parsons Journal for Information Mapping Volume V, Issue 2, 2012
piim.newschool.edu
Selected talks, Lectures and Podcasts
2023 Arkitektskolen Aarhus Aarhus, Denmark
2022 Het Nieuwe Instituut Rotterdam, The Netherlands
2022 Tegenlicht Meetup Rotterdam, The Netherlands
2022 Royal College of Art London, UK
2021 Oddstream Nijmegen, The Netherlands
2021 Web UX Begins Command Line Heroes Podcast,
2021 Tabula Rasa Podcast Ontwerp Platform Arnhem (Dutch),
2019 Royal College of Art London, U.K.
2018 Manifesta 12 Palermo, IT
2018 Design Academy Eindhoven, NL
2017 Technical University Delft Delft, NL
2017 Dutch Design Talks Eindhoven, NL
2016 Stilvorlagen Hamburg, DE
2016 Computer History Museum Mountain View, U.S.A.
2015 Unseen Amsterdam, NL
2015 Photo Stories Amsterdam, NL
2015 Nieuwe Instituut Lecture Night Rotterdam, NL
2014 University of Southern California Los Angeles, U.S.A.
2014 South by South West Austin, U.S.A.
2014 Royal Academy of Sciences Amsterdam, NL
2014 Los Angeles County Museum of Art Los Angeles, U.S.A.
2013 Counterpath Denver, U.S.A
2012 Cultura Digital Rio de Janeiro, BR
2012 Radboud University Nijmegen, NL
2011 Picnic Amsterdam, NL
2011 Mediamatic Amsterdam, NL
2011 De Unie Rotterdam, NL
2006 Jan van Eyck Academie Maastricht, NL
2006 Institute for the future of the Book Brooklyn, U.S.A.
2006 Piet Zwart Institute Rotterdam, NL
selected press
The Case for a Small Language Model
Creative Applications

Cosmic Wind Chime

Through Artificial Eyes
Leeuwarder Courant
Creative Applications
Rocking Robots
Dutch Digital Design
Boek van de Toekomst

Eternal Blue
Creative Applications
RTV Maastricht

Atmospheric Lighthouse
El Pais
Dutch Design Magazine

Hyperview Barcelona
Economia Digital

Hertzian Landscapes
Creative Applications
Dutch Design Daily
Galleries West
The Tyee
New West Record
Human Biography

WiFi Impressionist
Creative Applications
t3n – digital pioneers
It's nice that
ACM Interactions

Connected by Air
New York Times
Art Pil
Metal Magazine
Monopol Magazine
Berliner Zeitung
Neue Züricher Zeitung
De Witte Raaf
Spike Art Quarterly
Style Magazine
Corriere della Sera
Der Rheinpfalz
New York Times (print)
La Sicilia
Giornale di Sicilia

Architecture of Radio
Leonardo Electronic Almanac
New York Times
Business Insider
PC Magazine
First Monday
Atlas of the Future
Hyper Allergic
Geek Dad
Sueddeutsche Zeitung
Bright TV
Creative Applications
CSI Cyber
About Trust
Hello, Robot
Observatoire Art Contemporain
Vertical Atlas

White Spots
Leonardo Electronic Almanac
De Volkskrant
Hyper Allergic
Life Hacking
Pop Up City
Wired.com
Radio 1
Financieel Dagblad

Embassy of Data

STRP Biennale
Eindhovens Dagblad
Omroep Brabant

WiFi Tapestry
Neural.it
Berlin Fashion Week Magazine
Stijlinstituut Amsterdam
MIX magazine
METATREND
Mundos de redes
Centre Pompidou

The Deleted City 3.0
Citylab.com

Seasonal and Longterm Groundwater Levels
Circle of Blue
Smithsonian Magazine
Infosthetics
Visualizing.org
US Geological Survey
Cause and Effect, Gestalten

The Deleted City
Counter Map Collection
It's Nice That
The Library of Congres
Unlikely Stories
Page Online
Flowing Data
Jeffrey Donenfeld
Documents of Utopia
Informatie Professional
Words in Space
The Awesomer
Bittorrent Blog
Wired.com
Erika de Joode
Web Archive Historians
Elektrische Reporter
Computer History Museum
The Internet Archive

Atlas of Pentecostalism
Pulitzer Center
Tow Center, Columbia Journalism School
University of Southern California

profiles
Tableau Magazine
Dutch Design Magazine

e
e
e
Studio Richard Vijgen
Spijkerstraat 47
6828DB, Arnhem
The Netherlands
+31 6 45312337
mail@richardvijgen.nl
kvk 09201942