So it begins! I was surprised at how quickly the lectures have gotten me engaged with the subject. We went over some moving picture history going all the way back to the work of Eadweard Muybridge and Georges Méliès, some staples from my film and animation classes. However, I found the work of Mary Ellen Bute’s particularly interesting, who used an Oscilloscope (a scientific instrument that displays voltage over time) that uses a stereo to create abstract images in the early to mid-1900s.
Mary Ellen Bute Synchromy No. 4: Escape (1938)
Her work reminds me of the more modern work of Jeroboam Fenderson & “HANSI3D” two Austrian artists that take the idea and run with it, using the music itself to create the images and without the aid of film’s ability to be cut stitched and used as assets to the greater peace. It’s just pure Oscilloscope noise with no orchestral accompaniment. https://oscilloscopemusic.com/
In the frame of VR I wonder if you would be able to get a similar result with an XYZ-axis adding an extra dimension to the usual X&Y; would you be able to extract the 3rd channel out of a stereo signal? You might get some 3D results with both conventional mono and 2-channel stereo. food for thought and I might revisit the Oscilloscope someday.
P.S. My 1st month living in London has been full of mixed emotions. The course is picking up pace after a slow start with most having a rather coy approach opting to type and go without a webcam in the web classes. I expected that but thought it might be different due to the class’s small size of 7 students.
After meeting in person on Friday people are becoming a little more comfortable with each other and I have nothing but respect for a head of year Anne having to lead the 1st year of this course through this pain in the arse pandemic.
I can’t wait until we can take our masks off in class because with a clogged right ear I can’t hear too good and it’s impossible to lip read. Without mentioning the endlessly fogged glasses.