Melanie Estes: Week 7 Tape Mapping

I worked with Abby George to create the taping design we placed on the wall next to the kiln. When we were first discussing ideas, we thought about using crochet charts or henna designs. These both have a repetitive nature and feature a lot of curves and swirling forms. Deciding to go with something more geometric, we started looking for inspiration in mandalas. We chose the geometric mandala design in the center. To add more interest, we decided to add some outlying features around the outside of the circle.

I drew the design in Rhino using curves and Array Polar, exported to Adobe Illustrator, and then used Illustrator to export as SVG. Taking the lines into MadMapper, I then used individual quads on each section to separate the spaces in between the lines, allowing them all to be on or off to allow for interesting playing with the space. Each quad is a copy of the last, just with a new mask. This way they all can be on and line up to act like one individual quad. I also went back into Rhino and drew new curves that follow along with the form of the shapes. I converted these to SVG as well.
When it came to MadMapper, I knew I wanted to have a composition that relied on music for input. I gave the backdrop a royalty free video of dust floating in front of a projector, and connected the speed of the video to audio. I did the same for the multicolored visuals on the outlying sections, using a video of a disco light. The lines are textured with Line Anim, with the noise speed and opacity connected to audio. I also have a copy of the lines at a small thickness that is always on to have some sort of outline at all times. There is another copy of the quads of the mandala that has a Gradient Color texture in circular mode. I wanted the colors to be mostly neutral to go along with any music played. Therefore any in-software material used is in grayscale.

I originally thought I would use some sort of turtle, because the entire design looks like a turtle from the right angle. However, having it totally reactive to whatever music the computer is playing allows it to interact with more senses than just visual. Abby and I worked well together. Collaborating on the design itself was a wonderful experience. Where I drew the SVG lines and separated the quads, she worked to pace the tape on the wall. We were able to share ideas and learn from each other, allowing me to create this composition.