New media think tank &then has teamed up with laser tagging creators GRL to carpet bomb Mumbai's landmarks with vanishing virtual art till Thursday. And everyone is invited
New media think tank &then has teamed up with laser tagging creators GRL to carpet bomb Mumbai's landmarks with vanishing virtual art till Thursday. And everyone is invited
Graffiti gets a bad rap in America. Out here, a bunch of new media artists plan to use its futuristic avatar for a "large scale coming together".
How would you like to set Lower Parel mall High Street Phoenix aglow with an ephemeral message? Better still, click yourself against the facade?
All you'be got to do is show up at the laser tagging project that new media think tank &then is developing with inventors Graffiti Research Lab.
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"It is one of the ways to put the tools for unfiltered, unsanctioned public expression in the hands of those who might otherwise shy away from it," says &then co-founder Vikram Sood.
He thought of introducing India to this interactive art when he met GRL co-founder James Powderly on a happenstance.
James is a robotics engineer who, among other projects, once helped develop a remote-controlled arm for NASA's Mars rover program.
In its simplest form, the L.A.S.E.R Tag system is a camera and laptop setup, tracking a laser point across the face of a building and generating graphics based on the laser's position, which then get projected back onto the building with a high power projector.
This playful simulacrum of street tagging gives passers-by a whiff of the thrill of posting a message in places. It is what its creators call a "gateway graffiti experience".
Non-commercial, non-conformist, temporary, digital and free to the public, laser tagging has cropped up in cities across the world since the first tags in Vienna, Austria.
So inspired is Victorian rocktronica band The Galvatrons that they have titled their new futuristic album Graffiti Laser.
"This is a fresh move in interactive art. Most Indian artists and designers treat new media and interactive art as purely online entities.
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There should be a human interaction leading to a result in any art form. We are constantly open to collaboration," says Vikram.
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And then is also on the lookout for programmers and coding for new media projects who, Vikram says, are in short supply.
Each of you who is interested gets a turn at the laser pen. So, even if you aren't a graffiti artist, the city is your canvas albeit at night.u00a0
Till January 28, 8 pm to 4 am. For schedule and free participation, email Vikram Sood on vikram@andthen.co.in
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