Synthesis

Synthesis was my graduation project while studying Photography and Situated Media at the University of Technology Sydney, and the culmination of 6 months research and practical work. The final project was a physical “theremin” which could be used to control a projected visual display like a musical instrument.

In creating the visuals I had my first opportunity to work with 3D graphics – in this case, using three.js and GLSL to render the "flowers" in response to Arduino input from the instrument.

Each of the inputs correspond to different parameters that modify the shape and movements of the flowers, sometimes far beyond recognition. I really wanted to create a sense of play and exploration while the viewers interacted with the work. Because of the instrument's design, it cannot be intuitively controlled by a single person: it is instead encouraged that visitors collaborate to experiment with its permutations without instruction.

The instrument is constructed from a number of inputs: a capacitive theremin made using a coat hanger, spare electronics and an Arduino board forms the main interaction device controlling the "amplitude" of the visuals. Additionally, there are five infrared proximity sensors and four potentiometers for controlling the remaining parameters.

While the somewhat unconventional design borrows from the Theremin, an electronic instrument from the 1920's, the installation itself produced no audio. Instead, the 3D flowers displayed are generated and animated procedurally in response to viewer's interactions.