PG'sCommDesBlog

Book 2: PG (self portrait)

This book worked to compliment the first book: the internet is imbued with you. The book contains no written content. Its purpose is to see how well my online movements can reflect my own identity. What can the dimensions 32 x 32 pixels say about me? 

The book sections are divided by their ‘tabs’; alluding the online sphere and depicts the most common favicon in my browser history.

The work was inspired by my interest in digital identity and also Evan Roth’s work “Internet Cache Self-Portrait” 2012-14, a work that was triggered by an algorithm to take screen grabs at random and print them out on a banner. It prompted me to questions the conclusions that can be drawn from our online movements. From these ten favicon; could people guess my age....gender....temperament?

The cover of the book is embossed with a pixelated font, reading ‘PG’, to again,  to the post digital era. The QR code is used on the end pages to create continuity between the two books. 

Side note:

My final was delivered in a vacuum sealed bag. Stuck onto this was a barcode and a use-by sticker. The book often is seen as obsolete as soon as it emerges from the press. The vacuum seal plays on this idea; that the book expires. 

Final video

The idea for the book:

Through an almost child-like narrative; I wished to explore the idea of digital identity. This book is essentially a speculative publication (it hasn’t been invented yet). It is a book that is ‘imbued with you’; it imports information such as your interests, browser history, locations and trending topics in order to tailor a story that aligns with your own interests; an idea inspired by Julius Pop’s work, Bit.fall.  

For example, the story might read:

 there once was a doggo called Donald. This doggo came into contact with a rabbit called Bae. They found themselves in the middle of a A-league tournament. A very big A-League Tournament.

 he spontaneity of trending topics keeps the book refreshed, never obsolete. The book is no longer permanent. No-one ‘decides the book’? The reader, in a way, decides the book. 

The storyline for the book is generated by an algorithm that plucks the most searched ‘definitions’ for words, embedding them within the story. Therefor the book also provides insights to the human psyche. Google’s most search definitions include; the meaning of... life, terrorism, love and Bae. The internet (online movements) exposes our curiosities, our insecurities. The internet reflects the story of us. Algorithms create our own digital portrait which then reflects back at us in the advertising banners of our newsfeeds. This is why I have included reflective material in this book. The title page reads; ‘the internet is imbued with’; the second half of the page is a mirror. ‘The internet is imbued with...you’. The next page displays a browser window; which too, literally reflects the readers face, again suggesting that the internet is part of us. 

The appearance of the book:

I wanted to create a sense of comfort in this book. It takes on the traditional form of the codex. It is easy to navigate; you flick past the end pages, through the title page and then to the narrative. However, further into the book it becomes a more interactive experience.  The end papers reference traditional endpapers that became popular in the 1930′s, along with marbled end papers. This aids in creating the feeling of a conventional codex book. However, the squares are actually QR code, helping to reference that this book is a book of the post digital era. 

The background used also works to create subtle meaning within the work. The pattern is formed of squares, in attempt to mimic pixels, suggesting that this book is part of the post-digital era. 

The sounds of the book:

A couple of weeks ago, when Andy and I had a chat - we talked about taking the very formal elements of a book and integrating them with the post-digital. So I have experimented with one of the more overlooked aspects of book design, but still integral to the book; the end pages. 

The end paper, in the context of a book, is ‘a leaf of paper at the beginning or end of a book, especially one fixed to the inside of the cover’.

This part of the book is quite exuberant, embellished with ornate patterns. From my research (see above), they are either marbled or feature a detailed repeat pattern. Marbled papers were the first decorative papers to be introduced (in the 1930′s), however, I have taken inspiration from the repeat patterns.

From a distance, the pattern has a very formal and conventional quality, giving the illusion that the book ill be very traditional. It is only on closer inspection that the viewer will see that the motif is simply a QR code. The inclusion of this references our immersion in the post-digital era.

https://hyperallergic.com/134950/the-lost-beauty-of-book-endpapers/

In progress:

Freaky Friday on a Tuesday

I am researching ideas for my book. The notion of digital identity has become a recurring idea throughout my research and my work. Currently I am working on creating a book that constructs a narrative/story based on curiosities trending online. What do we do when we wonder? We Google Search, but unlike the encyclopaedia, Google tracks our movements, and therefor the data it collects reveals insights to the human psyche. 

I am yet to find any academic resources on this yet, but I am working on it! So far I have found a few articles and blog posts that explore the idea that Google knows who we are and how we function. I love to look at compilations of what is ‘trending’ or ‘most searched’. For example I type ‘the definition of’, and suggestions begin to appear. Health. Love. Terrorism. Bullying. Bae. What ‘bae’ means is as important as what ‘love’ means. I love this. 

Anyway, this is just one way in which I am exploring the digital identity. Here are some links if you want to have a bit more of a read! :)

https://www.fastcompany.com/3054746/what-googles-year-in-search-reveals-about-humanity

https://mic.com/articles/107468/what-google-image-search-reveals-about-our-cultural-stereotypes#.FdJnPTz2Z

In order to get somewhere I decided that I needed to at lease outline some broad aims to create focus and direction. Last Tuesday, Andy and I had a long discussion about my research and what potential ideas that could stem from it. I have identified that I want to create a strong conceptual piece, but also a strong visual piece as well.

These are the few things I think could be helpful:

A series of books, including one with a link to a site. This will allow me to explore a few ideas.

I want to reference the ‘end of books’ or the book as a fashion item. Where the book is going. Forecasting the book in 50 years. The book as artefact, a capsule of knowledge.

To contrast this, I would look at the influence of books, from the Gutenberg days, up until today.

Connection of our digital lives with identity, exploring how ‘the internet is imbued with you’ -  Christian Paul

Incorporating sound - reactive paper, digital poetics, video, child’s book, speculative design. The idea is to augment the physical with the audible.

A book with traditional and formal values, but within that creating contrast - exceptions

Another idea: watching people read from the perspective of the book (as part of a film)

Digital Identity through Favicons

An idea that I always seem to return to is the idea of digital identity, and how well our online movements reflect our personality. The 36 x 36 pixel images of the favicon seemed like a starting point - because it is visual. I wondered, can you paint a self portrait with favicons?

The idea is that you paint your own portrait using the favicons from your browser history (hypothetically). The frequency of your visits to certain pages would therefor say something about how you spend the majority of your time. For example, my portrait infers though I do spend some time on tumblr, it is frequently interrupted by the urge to shop on Ebay and Asos. You may also be able to conclude that I am a student at RMIT, and I am thinking about travelling (Google maps + Air BnB favicons) 

This work also reflects on how are data is collected (and exploited) for commercial purposes - and used for targeted content marketing. It prompts the question how well do algorymths know us? 

Reflecting on class

The class began by looking at examples of typography and letterforms. We analysed the extension of type as an image, and how this can contribute to its meaning. The calligraphic letterforms echoed the movement of the bamboo. We also looked at very ornate letter forms, where the embellishment of the letterforms was their primary function. We continued to explore works of modernists, futurists and surrealists such as Stéphane Mallarmé, and his work ‘Un coup de dés jamais n’abolira le hasard’ (A throw of the dice will never abolish chance). This work contrasted the earlier examples; the layout created meaning in the work - as opposed to the imagery. The work was cryptic, baffling mathematicians, philosophers and many more.

I found the preface to this book online (in English). Mallarme discusses the importance of the text’s subtleties; how the placement and pages interrupt the flow of text, creating silences. The empty space serves to puncture the poem create form. However, even in telling us that the layout is important - he reveals us nothing about the underlying secrets of the text. 

Andy then translated for use in the post digital context, using the essence of this book (the dynamic layout of its text), replacing the words with ‘Re-captcha’ images by using an algorithm. This online book kind of mimics the idea of chance (each time the page is re-loaded a new arrangement is formed). Like Mallarme’s work, Andy’s book also has it’s hidden message - though it can be read by us - the work cannot be read by a computer. 

Class work: playing

In class we explored using algorithms. Here are some funky visuals that I created by moving my mouse. Wanting to further experiment with something like this, I opened the program at home, only to find many errors, with what I created. I tried hard to correct them. Hopefully I can resolve this, but for now, I have given up!

Direction 2: integrating physical book with a digital experience using Google Maps

I was captivated by Jon Rafman’s “9-eyes” project, which captured scenes of everyday life on Google Street View. An image of roadside tragedy is contrasted by the following picture- the comedic image of a dog stuck in a fence, creating a bizarre online theatre. I am also fascinated by the accessibility of the work (really, anyone could go and see the work in the Google maps space) and the way it collates the perspectives of a singular moment (if you visited the scene in real life - that scene would be different).

In another subject, we also looked at a campaign where M&M’s put big M&M posters all around the city of Toronto, Canada just before the Google car photographed the streets of the city. M&M fans would then have to trawl through Google Maps in order to find these posters. (If they found them - they won a car). Little hints and clues were posted via social media to aid keen M&M fans. 

The idea of using the digital space and connecting it with the physical is somewhat similar to Rafman’s project. Using Google Street View could be a worthy idea for exploration (kind of like creating a virtual reality, except it is reality. An idea that I had was to publish a book that is written in only code (to reference the make-up of the digital space). Each letter would be represented by a co-ordinate i.e.

41°24'12.2"N 2°10'26.5"E    = A

37° 17' 4.7256'' S142° 55' 53.9184'' E    = B

31° 57' 1.8972'' S115° 51' 37.6452'' E    = C

Class findings...

This is what I found, last week during class, but haven’t posted about it until now (sorry). The site is called ‘iloveepoetry’, and exists to celebrate the emergent poetic genre. The site even goes so far to classify genres of e-poetry such as code poetry, kinetic poetry and generative poetry, just to name a few. 

A definition of ‘E-poetry is poetry that arises from an engagement with the possibilities offered by digital media’, utilising any form of digital media, for example, GIFS, websites and E-PUB’s...and more. 

The work above is “Puddle” and “Paddle” by Neil Hennesy. The narrative is constructed through the movement of letters and words. Simple, yet effective. Imagine this work printed out - the experience would be incomparable. 

I only had a look at a few pieces - but there is such a broad range of works. This could be a source of inspiration for a digital publication.

http://iloveepoetry.com/?p=11968

Other works include a satirical news website, that highlights political issues through irony and humour...

http://www.theonion.com/article/man-overjoyed-he-no-longer-has-purchase-entire-day-51479

And a poem written in code format!