33 Questions per Minute by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer

SPOTS, the media installation at Potsdamer Platz,Berlin. presents 33 Questions per Minute by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer

Berlin, Park Kolonnaden at Potsdamer Platz, 12.12.2005:

* Questions from passers-by become part of an interactive work of art
* 33 Questions per Minute by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, until 8 January 2006

What is life? Who am I? Where do we come from, and where do we go? If you’ve ever wanted to ask a deeply personal question on a gigantic media facade, then as from 13 December 2005 you can by taking part in the interactive art project 33 Questions per Minute (33QPM), Relational Architecture 5 by Mexican-Canadian artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer. Passers-by can type whatever questions are occupying them into a terminal that is installed within viewing distance of the SPOTS light and media facade.

SPOTS is one of the largest light and media installations in the world and is integrated into the facade of Potsdamer Platz 10. As the name suggests, 33QPM will display 33 questions each minute. If no question has been typed in at the terminal, the computer generates the questions itself from a virtually limitless source of sentence fragments, combining human curiosity with purely mechanical, often meaningless strings of words. The software, which Rafael Lozano-Hemmer developed himself, can generate 55 billions questions in German, English and Spanish. It would take 3,000 years to output all the possible question combinations. Lozano-Hemmer: “33QPM is a project that represents mechanical irony. Inexhaustible grammatical algorithms make a romantic and hopeless attempt to ask questions that have never been asked before. The words are combined electronically and form random links between totally disparate levels of experience.”

Comments

, Jim Andrews

"The software, which Rafael Lozano-Hemmer developed himself…"

Did Conroy Badger have anything to do with it?

ja?
http://vispo.com

, rafael

Jim Andrews wrote:
> "The software, which Rafael Lozano-Hemmer developed himself…"
> Did Conroy Badger have anything to do with it?

Hi Jim, YES! Conroy Badger programmed almost all of the piece. His name, together with all the credits for the piece, were supposed to be sent in the press release that the Germans issued and Rhizome published. They have told me that they have already "corrected it" and sent it out again. For the record, here are the full credits:

33 QPM
o Rafael Lozano-Hemmer - Concept, direction, grammar rules.
o Conroy Badger - Programming.
o Will Bauer, Ana Parga, Sandra Badger, Colin Griffiths, Andreas Broeckmann (curator: City Gaze), realities:united, Ulrike Kneitschel, Phil Sunderhauf, John deKron - Production support.
o Ana Parga, Maria Velarde Torres, Luis Jimenez-Carles, Luis Parga, Gabriela Raventos - Spanish word input.
o Rebecca MacSween, Jennifer Laughlin, Susie Ramsay - English word input.
o Stephan Klinger, Sakrowski, Till Braband - German rules and word input.

SPOTS media facade
o Client: HVB Immobilien AG, Munich
o Conceptual idea: Marc Fiedler, Cafe Palermo
o Design, architecture, planning & artistic direction: realities:united architects, Tim Edler and Jan Edler
o Project architect: Christoph Wagner
o Collaboration: Malte Niedringhaus, Stefan Tietke, Carla Eckhard, Erik Levander, Jan-Philipp Wittrin
o Electrical engineering: Eckhard Fischer, Ansorg & Horn engineers, Berlin
o Software development: John deKron, Jeremy Rotsztain
o Control engineering & lamp system: SE Lightmanagement AG, Switzerland
o Installation & electrical: LifeArt Technologie GmbH, Berlin
o Metal structure: Metallbau Schindler, Havelsee
o Sheet metal work: Ferrum Lasercut GmbH
o Foil printing: R_Color Henning Reh GmbH, Massenbachhausen
o Application to facade: Kaufmann Ulm Lichtwerbung GmbH, Ulm / Neonlichtservice NLS GmbH, Panketal
o Fire safety report: Dr. Michael Kiel, HHP Braunschweig
o Light pollution report: Dr. Steffen Muller, lighting planner and surveyor (publicly appointed and sworn) for artificial light and daylight systems, Berlin
o Graphic design: Musterfirma, Ulrike Bruckner
o Foil sponsor: 3M Deutschland GmbH