History of Computer Art

A large text presents the history of Computer Art. The history of the artistic uses of computers and computing processes is reconstructed from its beginnings in the fifties to its present state. It points out hypertextual, modular and generative modes to use computing processes in Computer Art and features examples of early developments in media like cybernetic sculptures, video tools, computer graphics and animation (including music videos and demos), video and computer games, pervasive games, reactive installations, virtual reality, evolutionary art and net art. The functions of relevant art works are explained more detailed than is usual in such histories. From October 2011 to December 2012 the chapters have been published successively in German (The English translation started in August 2013 and was completed in June 2014)

History of Computer Art

The development of the use of computers and software in art from the Fifties to the present is explained. As general aspects of the history of computer art an interface model and three dominant modes to use computational processes (generative, modular, hypertextual) are presented. The "History of Computer Art" features examples of early developments in media like cybernetic sculptures, computer graphics and animation (including music videos and demos), video and computer games, reactive installations, virtual reality, evolutionary art and net art. The functions of relevant art works are explained more detailed than usual in such histories. The German version was completed in December 2012. The last chapter of the English translation was published in June 2014. First update: September 2015

History of Computer Art

Die Entwicklung von Computer und Software von den fünfziger Jahren bis heute wird vorgestellt. Als Leitkriterien der Geschichte der Computerkunst werden ein Interface-Modell und drei Arten, Rechenprozesse einzusetzen (generativ, modular, hyptertextuell), vorgeschlagen. Die "Geschichte der Computerkunst"/"History of Computer Art" erörtert Beispiele aus frühen Entwicklungsphasen von Kunstformen wie Kybernetische Skulpturen, Computergraphik und -animation (einschließlich Musikvideos und Demos), Videokunst und Computerspielen, reaktive Installationen, Virtuelle Realität, Evolutionäre Kunst und Netzkunst. Die Funktionen der ausgewählten Werke werden detaillierter vorgestellt als dies in vergleichbaren Geschichten üblich ist. Die deutsche Version wurde bis Dezember 2012 kapitelweise in IASLonline Lektionen/Lessons in Net Art publiziert. Das letzte Kapitel der englischen Version wurde Juni 2014 veröffentlicht. Im September 2015 wurde ein erstes Update eingestellt

Desarrollo de un prototipo de entornos virtuales para fines didácticos en empresas

Debido al avance de las tecnologías, el ser humano es capaz de interactuar con un sistema virtual de muchas maneras distintas, ya sea con nuestras propias manos como es el caso del dispositivo Leap Motion, con nuestra voz (Alexa, Echo Dot de Amazon), étc. Incluso podemos visualizar un entorno como si nos encontráramos en él con el casco de realidad virtual Oculus Rift. Ante esto, muchas empresas han aprovechado la oportunidad para integrar sus productos y crear aplicaciones orientadas a enseñanza, simulaciones o prácticas utilizando las tecnologías de manera simultánea y conjunta. Este trabajo pretende profundizar en este tema ya que nuestra intención es crear un prototipo de entorno que integre a todas estas tecnologías y que pueda ser utilizado en un futuro para tareas didácticas en empresas.Due to the growth of technology, human being is capable of interacting with a virtual system in many differents ways, either with our own hands as in the case of the device Leap Motion, with our voice (Alexa, Amazon's Echo Dot), etc. We can even visualize an environment as if we were there with the virtual reality headset Oculus Rift. Therefore, a lot of companies have taken the opportunity to integrate their products and create applications oriented to education, simulations or practice using the technologies simultaneously and together. This work will deepen in this topic because our intention is to create an environment prototype that will integrate all these technologies and that it can be used in the future for didactic tasks in companies.101 páginas. 20,6M

History of Computer Art, Second Edition

The development of the use of computers and software in art from the Fifties to the present is explained. As general aspects of the history of computer art an interface model and three dominant modes to use computational processes (generative, modular, hypertextual) are presented. The "History of Computer Art" features examples of early developments in media like cybernetic sculptures, computer graphics and animation (including music videos and demos), video and computer games, reactive installations, virtual reality, evolutionary art and net art. The functions of relevant art works are explained more detailed than usual in such histories. The second edition for the Book on Demand (Lulu Press, 2020) includes an update of chapter II.1.1 (first edition 2014)

FACING EXPERIENCE: A PAINTER’S CANVAS IN VIRTUAL REALITY

Full version unavailable due to 3rd party copyright restrictions.This research investigates how shifts in perception might be brought about through the development of visual imagery created by the use of virtual environment technology. Through a discussion of historical uses of immersion in art, this thesis will explore how immersion functions and why immersion has been a goal for artists throughout history. It begins with a discussion of ancient cave drawings and the relevance of Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. Next it examines the biological origins of “making special.” The research will discuss how this concept, combined with the ideas of “action” and “reaction,” has reinforced the view that art is fundamentally experiential rather than static. The research emphasizes how present-day virtual environment art, in providing a space that engages visitors in computer graphics, expands on previous immersive artistic practices. The thesis examines the technical context in which the research occurs by briefly describing the use of computer science technologies, the fundamentals of visual arts practices, and the importance of aesthetics in new media and provides a description of my artistic practice. The aim is to investigate how combining these approaches can enhance virtual environments as artworks. The computer science of virtual environments includes both hardware and software programming. The resultant virtual environment experiences are technologically dependent on the types of visual displays being used, including screens and monitors, and their subsequent viewing affordances. Virtual environments fill the field of view and can be experienced with a head mounted display (HMD) or a large screen display. The sense of immersion gained through the experience depends on how tracking devices and related peripheral devices are used to facilitate interaction. The thesis discusses visual arts practices with a focus on how illusions shift our cognition and perception in the visual modalities. This discussion includes how perceptual thinking is the foundation of art experiences, how analogies are the foundation of cognitive experiences and how the two intertwine in art experiences for virtual environments. An examination of the aesthetic strategies used by artists and new media critics are presented to discuss new media art. This thesis investigates the visual elements used in virtual environments and prescribes strategies for creating art for virtual environments. Methods constituting a unique virtual environment practice that focuses on visual analogies are discussed. The artistic practice that is discussed as the basis for this research also concentrates on experiential moments and shifts in perception and cognition and references Douglas Hofstadter, Rudolf Arnheim and John Dewey. iv Virtual environments provide for experiences in which the imagery generated updates in real time. Following an analysis of existing artwork and critical writing relative to the field, the process of inquiry has required the creation of artworks that involve tracking systems, projection displays, sound work, and an understanding of the importance of the visitor. In practice, the research has shown that the visitor should be seen as an interlocutor, interacting from a first-person perspective with virtual environment events, where avatars or other instrumental intermediaries, such as guns, vehicles, or menu systems, do not to occlude the view. The aesthetic outcomes of this research are the result of combining visual analogies, real time interactive animation, and operatic performance in immersive space. The environments designed in this research were informed initially by paintings created with imagery generated in a hypnopompic state or during the moments of transitioning from sleeping to waking. The drawings often emphasize emotional moments as caricatures and/or elements of the face as seen from a number of perspectives simultaneously, in the way of some cartoons, primitive artwork or Cubist imagery. In the imagery, the faces indicate situations, emotions and confrontations which can offer moments of humour and reflective exploration. At times, the faces usurp the space and stand in representation as both face and figure. The power of the placement of the caricatures in the paintings become apparent as the imagery stages the expressive moment. The placement of faces sets the scene, establishes relationships and promotes the honesty and emotions that develop over time as the paintings are scrutinized. The development process of creating virtual environment imagery starts with hand drawn sketches of characters, develops further as paintings on “digital canvas”, are built as animated, three-dimensional models and finally incorporated into a virtual environment. The imagery is generated while drawing, typically with paper and pencil, in a stream of consciousness during the hypnopompic state. This method became an aesthetic strategy for producing a snappy straightforward sketch. The sketches are explored further as they are worked up as paintings. During the painting process, the figures become fleshed out and their placement on the page, in essence brings them to life. These characters inhabit a world that I explore even further by building them into three dimensional models and placing them in computer generated virtual environments. The methodology of developing and placing the faces/figures became an operational strategy for building virtual environments. In order to open up the range of art virtual environments, and develop operational strategies for visitors’ experience, the characters and their facial features are used as navigational strategies, signposts and methods of wayfinding in order to sustain a stream of consciousness type of navigation. Faces and characters were designed to represent those intimate moments of self-reflection and confrontation that occur daily within ourselves and with others. They sought to reflect moments of wonderment, hurt, curiosity and humour that could subsequently be relinquished for more practical or purposeful endeavours. They were intended to create conditions in which visitors might reflect upon their emotional state, v enabling their understanding and trust of their personal space, in which decisions are made and the nature of world is determined. In order to extend the split-second, frozen moment of recognition that a painting affords, the caricatures and their scenes are given new dimensions as they become characters in a performative virtual reality. Emotables, distinct from avatars, are characters confronting visitors in the virtual environment to engage them in an interactive, stream of consciousness, non-linear dialogue. Visitors are also situated with a role in a virtual world, where they were required to adapt to the language of the environment in order to progress through the dynamics of a drama. The research showed that imagery created in a context of whimsy and fantasy could bring ontological meaning and aesthetic experience into the interactive environment, such that emotables or facially expressive computer graphic characters could be seen as another brushstroke in painting a world of virtual reality

Contributions to the Development of Objective Techniques for Presence Measurement in Virtual Environments by means of Brain Activity Analysis

En esta tesis, se propone el uso de la técnica de Doppler transcraneal (DTC) para monitorizar la actividad cerebral durante la exposición a entornos virtuales (EV) y así poder analizar los correlatos cerebrales del sentido de presencia. Las hipótesis de partida son las siguientes: 1) DTC se podrá utilizar fácilmente en combinación con sistemas de realidad virtual. 2) Los datos de velocidad de flujo sanguíneo medidos por DTC se podrán utilizar para analizar cambios de actividad cerebral durante la exposición a EV. 3) Habrá diferencias en la velocidad del flujo sanguíneo asociadas a distintos niveles de presencia. 4) Habrá correlación entre el grado de presencia medido por cuestionarios y parámetros de la velocidad de flujo sanguíneo. 5) Cada componente de la experiencia virtual tendrá una influencia en las variaciones de velocidad observadas. Para analizar las hipótesis planteadas, se realizaron cuatro experimentos distintos, en los que se analizó la velocidad del flujo sanguíneo durante: 1) distintas condiciones de navegación, 2) distintas condiciones de inmersión, 3) una tarea de percepción visual y 4) tareas motoras para manejo de un joystick. Durante la tesis, se han propuesto distintas técnicas de procesado de señal basadas en análisis espectral y en la obtención parámetros no lineales de la señal, que no habían sido utilizadas previamente en experimentos psicofisiológicos con DTC. Se ha observado que existe un incremento en la velocidad del flujo sanguíneo durante la exposición a un EV, el cual puede deberse a distintos factores que intervienen en la experiencia: tareas de interacción visuoespacial, tareas de atención, la creación y ejecución de un plan motor, cambios emocionales Los análisis han mostrado que existen correlaciones significativas entre la velocidad media de flujo sanguíneo en las arterias cerebrales medias durante la exposición al EV y respuestas a los cuestionarios de presencia utilizados.Rey Solaz, B. (2010). Contributions to the Development of Objective Techniques for Presence Measurement in Virtual Environments by means of Brain Activity Analysis [Tesis doctoral no publicada]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/8505Palanci

I inneslutande VR : En kvalitativ undersökning om användares närvarokänsla första gången de befinner sig i en virtuell miljö.

Syftet med denna uppsats är att göra en undersökning om vilka faktorer som påverkar användares närvarokänsla första gången de använder sig av en inneslutande virtuell miljö. De inneslutande VR tekniker vi har valt att fokusera på är Computer Automatic Virtual Environment (Cave) och Head Mounted Display (HMD). Forskaren Carrie Heeter beskriver tre typer av närvaro och forskarna Wallace Sadowski och Kay Stanney räknar upp faktorer som de påstår påverkar användarens närvarokänsla. Vår frågeställning är vilka likheter eller skillnader det finns mellan våra testpersoners svar och Sadowski och Stanneys faktorer. Vi intervjuade och genomförde ett test med tre testpersoner i en Computer Automatic Virtual Environment baserat på två program. Vi valde även att intervjua två experter om vilka faktorer de ansåg påverkade deras närvarokänsla första gången de använde sig av en HMD. Första programmet som testpersonerna fick pröva på var Cuevadefuego som bestod av tredimensionella bilder till skillnad från det andra programmet, Crayoland, som bestod av tvådimensionella bilder. Intervjufrågorna till testpersonerna och experterna baserades på frågor som handlade om experternas och testpersonernas reaktioner och intryck relaterat till deras närvarokänsla och vad de trodde det var som påverkade deras närvarokänsla. Resultatet av intervjuerna och testet är att det finns likheter mellan de faktorer som testpersonerna anser påverkar deras närvarokänsla och med Sadowski och Stanneys faktorer men inga direkta skillnader