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Inspiration

Besides thinking and processing the concept of ‘eating’ and ‘dinner’ and all that’s related, I looked up some video’s where dinner was an important part. These are the video’s I found:

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Research part 02

Before we made our final decission on what we were going to film and why (we filmed yesterday) I kept thinking about what food and having dinner together means to me. Just because I can’t relate to our current concept myself, doesn’t mean I can’t explore my own vision and ideas on this subject, right?

I like to ask myself the question ‘why’, multiple times. It usually annoys and frustrates me because I can’t always come up with an answer. But it keeps me thinking, both consciously and unconsciously. Unfortunatily I can’t always time the answer. I wish I would have had the answer to some questions before we started filming, so I had given a bit more input. But the least thing I can do now is document my thoughts and vision.

For me, having dinner together is about connection, sharing stories and sititng still for a moment to process the day (or the past few days). Back home I live in a student dorm and I don’t like the dinner moments there, because most of the time I have to eat alone, in my 12m² room, at my desk with my pc in front of me. There is no connection whatsoever and I usually end up rushing it. Most of my weekends I spend at my parents place, where we eat together. I love that moment. It’s a moment where we have time for eachother, where we share stories, opinions, emotions and more. 

I am currently reading a book called ‘The Art of Asking’ by Amanda Palmer. It is a great book to read, because it got me thinking. Amanda talks about her experience of being a living statue and what it has brought her / taught her about life. She talks about the connection she has with people, the little moment she shares, the contact and I realised that it is exactly what I appreciate about having dinner together.

So I thought, if I had to do this project alone I probably would have become a living statue that tells a story about dinner and about sharing that moment. Because having dinner can be more then just eating food. 

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Research part 01

Aphrodisiac - An aphrodisiac or love drug is a substance that increases libido when consumed. Aphrodisiacs are distinct from substances that address fertility issues or secondary sexual (dys)function such as erectile dysfunction.The name comes from the Greek ἀφροδισιακόν, aphrodisiakon, i.e. "sexual, aphrodisiac", from aphrodisios, i.e. "pertaining to Aphrodite",[1][2] the Greek goddess of love. The opposite substance is an anaphrodisiac.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aphrodisiac

As it is right now, our concept is about how food symbolizes sexuality in our culture. (I have to think about a better way of saying this, but right now it’s time for research and not time to overthink things). To give more depth/meaning to our concept, I did some desk research (mostly in Dutch) to see what food is somehow related to sexuality and why.  This gave me some interesting results and helped me make a shopping list. During my research I came across the following:

Food eroticism or sitophilia is the enjoyment of erotic actions with food and / or drinks. This form of eroticism is about the enjoyment of the stimulation and sensation of goods on the skin and in or with the mouth. Combining food with eroticism is usually a run-up to more sexual needs. This, to me, is very shocking and new since I don’t experience food like that and I am not interested in trying such things out, just saying. I also think (and mostly hope) we won’t go that far with this project but maybe we wanna point at it or somehow touch that boundary. 

Food can positively influence your sex life. Wahoo! That’s great, right?! Isn’t that what we all want? Anyway... This is where I stumbled upon the term ‘Afrodisiaca’. Food can stimulate libido and that makes for better sex. The more you know... And this phenomenon goes years and years back. I’m talking about the Egyptians, the Romans, the Greek and so on. Interesting, right? 

After looking this up, I have to admit that I can only hope no one will look into my search history because that will make me look so weird ;-). It’s interesting to read about this view on food, especially because I have never thought about it myself. The only thing I know is that people feel awkward eating a banana in front of someone else because they feel it’s a sexual thing but other then that I have never heard much about this. 

Resources:

https://mens-en-gezondheid.infonu.nl/seksualiteit/5373-betere-sex-top-10-lustopwekkend-voedsel-afrodisiaca.html

https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afrodisiacum

https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voedselerotiek

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Technisch Gevormd ||  Art  statement [English]

'Technisch Gevormd’ bridges the gap between programming and physical art. With this artwork I let this dividing line disappear and I show that the combination of code and physical materials can lead to an aesthetic and surprising result.

‘Technisch Gevormd’ is a wall ornament generated by means of code, executed in ‘Processing’ and translated into the physical world. By using physical materials I have been able to bring more depth into the artwork and I have managed to create a more interesting, aesthetic whole.

When we talk about making art, we immediately get a slap on our wrist as soon as we get out our laptops first. Art seems only to be allowed to arise through physical actions and actions related to paper. Laptops, computers and other digital devices supposedly limit us and keep us from being creative. With ‘Technisch Gevormd’ I prove the opposite and I show that starting to create on digital devices can provide new insights and can positively surprise us.  

What you’re looking at is the result of a process in which I searched for the meaning of collaboration. A process of trial and error. In this process I first zoomed in on the meaning of ‘collaboration’ and started the discussion with the people around me, to then zoom out completely and let go of the word ‘collaboration’. I have explored the network of programming, have been inspired by my environment, including my digital environment, and have exchanged knowledge.

During the design and creation of ‘Technisch Gevormd’ I was mainly inspired by Saskia Freeke1, a Dutch artist, creative coder, interaction designer and visual designer. Since 2015 she daily has been making an interesting visual image by the means of coding. Looking at her work made my fingers tingle to go to work and I wanted to master this skill myself. She too had a challenge for herself. The challenge for her was to publicly share her work and her goal was to discover, play and relax. Her goal and mine are partly in line, because for me this was all a journey of discovery and I started to experiencing coding as something relaxing as well. The difference is that I consciously want to prove that computers and other digital devices are not a limitation of our creativity but rather a tool that we need to learn to use in the right way.

In addition to trying to make a point with this artwork, it has above all a personal value. I started a fight with myself where I learned not to have to meet expectations and rules and I have learned not to take concepts like ‘collaboration’ too literally. I have developed a skill that I have wanted to develop for a long time, but which I have never given myself the time for, because I thought that other skills and activities were more important. This was a life learning in addition to a learning process. AS an artist, it is not about doing things ‘right’, but about self-satisfaction and expressing your own will and perspective.

Two years of making daily art, Saskia Freeke (31 january 2017), webpage: https://medium.com/@sasj_nl/two-years-making-daily-art-244be8438db5

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A 2D picture generated by means of code, translated into the physical world

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The proces of making my 2D generative art into a 3D ornament. 

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Technisch Gevormd || Teaser

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Source of inspiration

During this project there was one dutch artist that greatly inspired me. Her name is Saskia Freeke and she makes daily generative art. It’s beautiful to follow her and her development. When I look at her art, my fingers tingle and I want to do it myself. Not only does she make generative art, she also does alot with lasercutting. 

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Combining programming with frame-by-frame animation

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Creations made with processing

Thinking about using this as a way of ‘sketching’ and then, somehow, make the processing creations in real life with different material(s)

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Been working in Processing alot lately to learn how to make generative art. Made this with the help of Barton Poulson via Lynda.com

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Today’s result of Art made through Code

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Instead of overthinking ‘collaboration’, I am going to start making stuff. I thought about what material of program have I always wanted to work with? The answer is: Generative art!

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I asked a couple of friends what they think ‘collaboration’ is. Damn son, they are useless! Okay, no, I shouldn’t be this hard on them! But they all gave me this politically correct answer?! Even though I told them they could also send a voice message or video or make a poem. It’s almost like they thought they were going to be judged? And so I got pretty much the same answer Wikipedia could have given me. Funny thing is, this is what I did in the beginning. This could have been my answer, when I first started thinking about collaboration. But as soon as I ask why, and if that’s their own experience, their answers changed completely! 

I added their thoughts in my thought-document and then realised my document is politically correct aswell. Time to spice things up, be playful, going back to how I started! Just play around! Turn my thoughts, and my friends’ thoughts, into something beautiful to look at! 

Everyday, a little bit.