Assisted by:

Drew Baker ( VRML programming )

Requirements:

Windows 2000/XP system with IE 6 or Firefox 1.5 using: Cortona VRML 4.2, Flash 8+, color display with ≥1024x768 resolution, 5.1 or stereo audio, hi-specification CPU and graphics card. * note * This piece requires the Cortona plugin to be configured for correct viewing. Please refer to the setup instructions before accessing the work.

Context:

World[s] is a series of dynamic virtual sculptures generated exclusively from the word ‘world’ translated into the native script of society’s most common languages (according to research done by SIL International).

Each word in its text format is imported into a two-dimensional 32x32 pixel Flash file. The embedded characters are then vectorized, re-proportioned into a square configuration, and multiplied at 90° intervals and their respective mirrored states. The result is the creation of a group of mandala-esque entities less than 1KB in size that can be infinitely expanded without pixilation. These visual elements are then rasterized as 64x64 pixel bitmaps which are subsequently translated into sonic analogues. The visual and audio equivalents are inherently linked into pairs and provide the basis for the next evolutionary stage of the artwork.

These pairings are then incorporated into a three-dimensional space defined by a set of Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML) files. Within this virtual realm, a series of simple cubic structures oscillate at the terminal points of a central rotating star. Each structure is the summation of four possible rotational states (0°, 45°x, 45°y, 45°z) of a prototype cube that is texturized and sonified by a single pair.

When a viewer selects one of these basic elements, the entire realm is destroyed and a new complex formation is created within the void. The newly generated architecture is based entirely from the single prototype cube that was selected by the viewer. This cube is multiplied and arranged into a perfect 3x3x3 lattice. The lattice is then quadruplicated in a manner identical to its basic precursory structure, and an exponentially more complex ‘world’ is formed.

Interacting with the furthest extremities or the innermost depths of the construct initiates a mechanism of self-destruction and an ensuing regeneration of the interface star. Though this process, a cyclic relationship between the works evolutionary states is created.

Commissioned by:

Stanza for Soundtoys.net

Supported by:

Arts Council England + The Watershed Media Centre + King’s Visualisation Lab, Centre for Computing in the Humanities, King’s College London