There must be something generational about my fascination with digital art. We were born at the same time… And though we went about our respective lives, I took a number of steps to keep in touch on this binary alter ego. Here are two examples.
I have been having a lot of fun reshaping the pixel. It turns out to be malleable, surprising as that may seem. I have used pixels to create matrices and this allowed for an uncovering of some physical qualities of pixels –for instance, how they are capable, at a macro level, of performing unexpected reconstitutions.
Also, it might seem at first blush that I’ve reconnected with some of the earliest endeavours of digital artists, who went about programming creation. Except that my work did not end up producing geometric figures, because a smidgen of unpredictability was granted to the robot I built. This brought Jackson Bollock closer to the imperfections of human movement. His brush strokes have a degree of freedom. He actually has a personality!
Can a robot learn, like a child? Robotic artist Jackson Bollock is a reactive paintbrush and a research device. I like to think of him as a single-cell organism endowed with embryonic artificial intelligence. I think he enjoys interfacing between man and machine.
My job provides enough flexibility for me to work on my art, and conversely, my artistic creation is also a great boon for my professional life.
In 2005, I set up a visual simulations company, along with a partner. Recently then I was approached by Réalisations Net, a company that is going through major growth thanks to the unique interactive environments it is developing for the largest casinos, bars, and hotels, in Las Vegas, Detroit, Barcelona, and soon, Dubai, Orlando, and elsewhere. They offered me an opportunity to play an important role in their interactive environment projects, from developing new ideas to acting as production designer. I went for this new adventure, all the while remaining as a consultant with my former company, which is still developing.