Intersections - Nguyen Dang Binh

Jeff Lieberman
Slink
4 feet x 4 feet x 1 foot
Sculpture, robotic system with associated electronics
ARTIST STATEMENT
I am interested in physical phenomena and human perception. In this
piece, I explore the intersections of three different resonant systems.
The first is mechanically resonant: the motor and the extension
spring are tuned to resonate with each other. The second system
is electrical: 2000 lEDs strobing at the resonant frequency of the
spring. The third is the visual phenomenon of light resonating in tune
with the motion of an object, which, through a human observer, is
perceived initially as no motion at all.
The reversal of the strobing effect is interesting. Normally, strobing is
used to take still images and make them appear as a moving object,
such as in a movie reel. This is known as the “beta phenomenon”
and is a fundamentally human perceptual effect. A computer can
recognize every frame as a frozen object in its own right, but we
mentally connect distinct elements together to create motion.
In order to reverse this effect, I use a rapidly moving object and
initially strobe it to make it appear frozen in space. Why? Strobing a
rapidly moving object can make it appear to be moving in almost any
way one desires. Physics appears broken. In this case the climax
becomes the fact that the strobes, occuring at different times in
Electronic Art and Animation Catalog Art Gallery Artworks
CONTACT
Jeff Lieberman
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
50 Massachusetts Avenue, #101
Cambridge, Massachusetts 2139 USA
lieb@alum.mit.edu
www.bea.st/sight/slink/
different locations on the spring, can make the spring appear to
break into 12 parts and float separately in midair. Usually people do
not initially believe that this is a physical object. Their perception of
the world around them is altered.
TECHNICAl STATEMENT
A custom voice-coil actuator vibrates linearly at roughly 50 Hz,
at the resonance frequency of the die springs coupled with the
moving motor mass. This shakes a three-foot extension spring,
tuned to match the voice-coil frequency for its fifth resonant mode.
Twelve banks of 165 lEDs each strobe behind the spring, through
a translucent acrylic window, matching the vibrational frequency
and running at roughly 1% duty cycle, allowing the viewer to see the
spring in a suspended or frozen state. Changing the relative strobe
phase among the 12 banks of lEDs creates a positioning system for
each segment of the spring, which allows the spring to be broken
into segments and seemingly moved independently of the physics
governing the original vibration. Various effects are explored from this
initial thought.