Casca: “Stand close awhile, for here comes one in haste.”
Cassius: “‘Tis Cinna; I do know him by his gait.”
–Julius Caesar, ACT 1, scene 3
I always think of that brief exchange from Shakespeare’s play anytime I recognize someone simply by the way they move, and I can’t help but be reminded of it when I watch this very cool sculpture that recreates a person with simply 15 lights in motion.
We first came across this dynamic little piece, titled “Study For Fifteen Points/I,” at Colossal, and this kinetic artwork comes from Random International, a “collaborative studio for experimental practice within contemporary art.” The motorized piece uses 15 LED lights attached to metal arms, which, when viewed from the right angle, replicates the motion of a person walking.
You might need to watch it a few times to truly appreciate it (focus on the lights and not the metal legs and arms, otherwise it can look like someone with the worst case of bow leggedness ever).
They say that the goal of this piece was to experiment “with the minimal amount of information that is actually necessary for the animated form to be recognised as human.” Considering we have 206 bones and 640 muscles (not to mention complex systems to make them all go), 15 points is a very small amount of information to create a natural looking human gait.
If you find yourself losing the man inside that machinery, the blurred footage can really help highlight how they did it.
We have to say, this sculpture was a bright idea…What? Shakespeare loved puns too you know.
What are some of your favorite kinetic art pieces? Get moving to our comments section below to share yours with us.
Images: Random International
