Monument (If it Bleeds, it Leads) is an art installation in which a computer program continuously scans the headlines of 4,500 English-language news sources around the world, looking for people who have been reported killed. Each time it finds an article, an algorithm determines the number of deaths, and instructs a ceiling-mounted mechanism built from Legos to drop one yellow BB per person. During the course of the installation, BBs accumulate on the floor, contributing to an ever-growing constellation, ultimately forming a sort of monument. At the beginning of an installation the pellets are sparsely scattered around the space, and by the end they form a dense and chaotic arrangement, with errant BBs traveling throughout the building.
Video and images available at http://caleblarsen.com
Installation using RSS, PHP, and a Lego Mindstorm NXT
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Type: discussion