This piece is a four-part, interactive experience between the artist and a viewer.
1. Office Quest
2. Computer-Mouse Pantograph
3. Data Art
4. Personality Analysis
1. Office Quest
2. Computer-Mouse Pantograph
3. Data Art
4. Personality Analysis
1. Office Quest
Standing next to a custom-built, presentation table, the artist invites a viewer to test the game “OfficeQuest” on a laptop. The game is a simple web-based 8-bit pixel design, and was created in collaboration with computer programmer Collin Cahill. The viewer plays an office worker whose purpose is to collect items which assist in productive activity and avoid items which distract from office work. A counter in the upper left corner of the screen keeps track of the viewer's score. If they collect enough productivity, the game ends.
2. Computer-Mouse Pantograph
OfficeQuest is played with a computer mouse attached to a specially fabricated pantograph. A pantograph is a tool for translating a drawing into a second enlarged or reduced drawing. In this case the pantograph enlarges the computer mouse movements and translates them into a pen drawing.
3. Data Art
The drawing produced from the pantograph, data art, is co-signed by the artist and the participant and kept by the artist as artistic property. The drawing is assigned a price for monetary exchange (around $0.50 - $1.50). It is placed on display for purchase among other data art. The lower price allows the participant an opportunity to buy back their data. This raises questions of data collection and sale in a digital market (represented here in the physical).
4. Personality Analysis
Although the viewer must purchase their data art, they are offered the free opportunity to take a photo of the artwork and upload it to the personality analysis website. The personality analysis website scans the photo and outputs a pie-chart showing the viewer their personality score as divided into 8 categories (cautious, assert, emotional, intelligent, sympathetic, trustworthy, self-conscious, excitement seeker).
Transactions/Translation
Info-Collectware was originally a part of the exhibition Transaction/Translation, a collaboration with Ashlee Mays: "Throughout our day to day lives we trade time for money, money for goods and services, information for access, and so on. Artists Dana Potter and Ashlee Mays use traditional and new media to lead viewers through a series of Transactions and Translations of material and time."
The map below illustrates the transaction/translation options for the viewer
as they move through the exhibition space.
The map below illustrates the transaction/translation options for the viewer
as they move through the exhibition space.
