art meets technology and science at #MFR2022
Maker Faire Rome surprises again with projects where art meets technology and science: between electronic naturalism and kinetic art, through robotic sculptures, light installations and aesthetics of waste.
Art is a universal language that knows no boundaries of discipline, sector and competence, synonymous of creativity but also ingenuity and innovation.
It is a constantly changing universe that, in recent decades, has been influenced by digital technologies, which led to the birth of new and unprecedented forms of art.
Here are 5 projects that will take part at Maker Faire Rome 2022, an opportunity to rediscover art in a different key, as you have never seen it before.
Electronic Naturalism: art meets electrical engineering
A unique combination proposed by the interdisciplinary artist Kelly Heaton with hes project “Electronic Naturalism”. Art meets analog electrical engineering giving life to wonderful circuits, that generate energy waveforms.
Quoting the artist himself “The universe is made of energy, frequency and vibration and Electronic Naturalism intends to explore the Qi of life flowing through people, birds and machines“.
The artist believes in fact that electricity is the most important creative medium of our time and uses it to explore biological and artificial lifeforms.
With her art Kelly Heaton equips electronic devices with a more human dimension, so that people can relate to them. Creating functional and artistic circuits, imitating songbirds and insects, aims to humanize the technological culture and improve the relationship between man and nature, stimulating reflections on the concept of universal circuit in which we are all interconnected.
Spectoda – pushing boundaries of what can be created with light
Spectoda is a new wireless system that allows you to control the light through your voice or your body, creating real works of art.
All lighting elements can be controlled and synchronized wirelessly. The network can be configured via Bluetooth and the lights communicate with each other within the network through ESP-NOW.
Spectoda’s creators strongly believe in a “decentralized” future and for this reason they replaced the core of the network, usually composed of central computers and servers, with simple microcontrollers. These are part of the lights and share the computing power among themself, making sure that the control of the lights no longer depends on a connection to a computer.
Spectoda will present to Maker Faire Rome interactive installations with which all visitors can have fun and experience all the features of this innovative system.
Riscarti: the aesthetic of waste
A project that redesigns and reproposes the idea of useless and leftover: obsolete materials are transformed, sometimes preserving their characteristics, and take on a new artistic form. Art becomes a means to show not only the past and the present of objects but also the future that we encounter.
The project was created by Riscarti, a container of artists and experiences on creative recycling, which represents the fifth R of sustainability: after Reduction, Recovery, Recycling and Reuse, the R that embraces beauty and uses the language of art.
The aesthetics of waste is the proposal of Riscarti to promote a cultural change. A community of artists, artisans and small brands, where you can confront and approach environmental issues.
Medit-table: kinetic art for meditation
A kinetic sculpture that invites meditation: a small table, where a metal ball rolls silently through the sand, creating and erasing endless beautiful drawings.
In the contemplation of drawings the visitor is focused on the moment, in the present, and this is exactly what happens when you practice a meditation session. You will be mesmerized watching the perpetually changing patterns drawn: perhaps for the amazing movement of the sphere that seems to magically move, or perhaps because you are aware what are you looking at is unique and will soon disappear forever.
Alessandro Giacomel, the Maker who realized this project, is an electronic engineer with a passion for art who decided to exploit his skills and his inventive spirit to build robots capable of making art: robots that draw, paint and write poems or, as in this case, inspire meditation.
Fluidum: the art of robotic sculpture
Fluidum is a robotic sculpture composed of 85 robotic mirrors that represent a vertical water surface. Arranged in a strictly geometric pattern, these mirrors ripple hypnotically and transform, changing the viewer’s reflection and creating a surprising experience.
Fluidum takes the image of reality and disintegrates it into individual fragments that are mixed, transformed and transposed into new and unexpected contexts. A sculpture that is inspired by the experience of a prehistoric man who observes, with wonder, his reflection on the water for the first time.
The mirror thus offers a parallel between a technology-laden present in which it is increasingly difficult to stop, reflect deeply and ask: “Who are we? Where are we going?”
The work is created by Petr Vacek, architect, designer and artist, passionate about advanced technology. In his creations Petr synergistically combines a creative artistic approach with programming, robotics, digital fabrication and traditional craftsmanship.
Maker Faire Rome – The European Edition has been committed since its very first editions to make innovation accessible and usable to all, with the aim of not leaving anyone behind. Its blog is always updated and full of opportunities and inspiration for makers, makers, startups, SMEs and all the curious ones who wish to enrich their knowledge and expand their business, in Italy and abroad.
From October 7 to 9 come and visit Maker Faire Rome at Gazometro Ostiense. Info and Tickets: https://makerfairerome.eu/it/biglietti/
