small work for robot and insects

host productions
(andy gracie, brian lee dae yung, gary burns)

small work for robot and insects stages an attempt to establish communication between a colony of insects (one of the most ancient of all life forms) and a robot (rapidly becoming one of the most advanced). the robot has a neural network brain with which it listens to, analyses and generates responses to the calls of insects with sequences of motion, lights and sounds. over an indeterminate period the robot and insects should be able to evolve a vocabulary and effective language. what we see is a snapshot of that process.

alongside the robot and cricket communication, the piece has a foundation as a sound installation. throughout the duration of the piece the calls of the insects are sampled and stored into buffers which are processed in real time and added into the environment.

host productions is a vehicle for the work of uk digital artist andy gracie and various and numerous collaborators. over the past seven years host productions have been producing sound based installations and performances throughout the uk in a wide range of venues, as well as showing collaborative work in japan and australia. recently the work has begun to involve more complex mechanical systems and notions of communication, particularly between ostensibly different entities. future plans involve the use of other robotic systems and moving to a sunnier lifestyle in barcelona.

http://dropshots.org/swfri.html (temporary site)

Acknowledgements: 'small work for robot and insects' is a Breathing Space commission. Breathing Space is a revolutionary commissioning and touring scheme initiated by Arnolfini Live in Bristol. Funded by Art Council England's National Touring Programme.