50 Different Minds
Before written communication, the semiotic patterns and colors of textiles provided pivotal information about culture and social beliefs. In 50 Different Minds, Ligorano/Reese invert this idea by converting the actual words of a twenty-first-century phenomenon, Twitter, into textile designs.
– Susan Taber Avila, Fiber Arts, Spring 2011
50 Different Minds is the first in a series of fiber optic data tapestries. Inspired by Bauhaus artists Josef and Anni Albers, in 50 Different Minds transforms information into light. A suite of algorithms control the display of color fields and patterns using public data.
The data tapestry searches for words that suggest colors in real-time Twitter feeds. It builds patterns of concentric squares that expand and contract according to the frequency of specific words in Albers’ famous quote. It tracks flight arrivals and departures from nine U.S. airports drawing intersecting perpendicular lines with data donated by FlightStats by Cirium. Data collection and visualization are in real-time. It responds to specific hashtag commands sent using Twitter.
Since its debut in 2010 at the Zer01 Biennial in San Jose, 50 Different Minds has been shown at museums, galleries, biennials and art fairs in Miami, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle and Cartagena, Colombia.
When craft came into our elements, the art shall never be free of that forge…
At the Loom Passage 2
