What is transformer?
Transformer is an artistic installation in the field of generative art. The installation will take the form of a
machine whose task will be to change the profile of the global economy by replacing fossil fuels with green
energy.
How it works
The machine's task will be to extract funds from recipients and then reinvesting them in financial instruments
from the energy sector. The machine will function according to an algorithm whose goal is to transfer capital from
the area fossil fuels in favor of ecological energy sources. In this process, through programmed algorithm paired
with the brokerage application, the machine will operate on financial instruments such as company shares and
commodity contracts. Programmed the algorithm will be able to raise funds, invest, succeed or go bankrupt.
Visualization of the process
An important part of the installation will be translating complex economic processes into language readable to
recipients without economic competences. The machine will present the effects of your business by mapping stock
exchange data (charts, current balance sheet, total transferred capital), but also by visualizing social and
ecological processes, which are supported by complex stock exchange operations (tree planting, water purification,
improving air quality).
The alghoritm
Through numerous data mapping mechanisms and visualization of the effects of financial transactions, the
recipient will be able to observe how capital flows and what effects it has on environment. All these
processes
will be reflected through,generated on the basis data from markets, processes visualized in a spatial form.
They
will be used mechanisms such as multimedia projections, mechanical visualizations, light installations and
audio.
Machine funds are topped up using payment cards. The application is carefully recorded on systems connected to charts, indicators and visible in our results from the information here visualized using flow meters in telecommunications channels, electromagnets and punched characters resembling machine codes (but also the classic system of recorded main units).
The payments give the impression that the machines are involved in a huge office process, the meaning of which is not understandable. Overwhelming influences cause screeching sounds, shaking, combustion-driven needle devices that produce incomprehensible prints for receivers that work or act upon receipt of interaction.
Machine funds are topped up using payment cards. The application is carefully recorded on systems connected to charts, indicators and visible in our results from the information here visualized using flow meters in telecommunications channels, electromagnets and punched characters resembling machine codes (but also the classic system of recorded main units).
The payments give the impression that the machines are involved in a huge office process, the meaning of which is not understandable. Overwhelming influences cause screeching sounds, shaking, combustion-driven needle devices that produce incomprehensible prints for receivers that work or act upon receipt of interaction.
This is where the first doubt arises: are all the consents, regulations, and statements produced by the
machine
worth the price? Don't bureaucratic processes generate more waste than value (are they not a snake eating its
own
tail?)
The step by step working alghoritm may look like this:
- The machines top up the fund using a payment card.
- Each investment is carefully recorded on a system of complex charts, indicators and forms of information flow visible before our eyes, here visualized using substances flowing in numerous channels, electromagnets and punched symbols resembling machine code (but also the classic stock exchange order quotation system).
- Depositing funds gives the impression of sending the machine into a huge bureaucratic process, the meaning of which we do not understand. The overwhelming impression is intensified by the screeching sound of shaking, combustion-driven dot-matrix printer engines, which prepare incomprehensible forms confirming the transaction for recipients.
more >
Timeframes
Who we are
We are a team of artists and friends from the Academy of Fine Arts in Wroclaw. We currently live in different
places in Poland, but we still cooperate in the field of art, artistic education and activities in the field of
cultural popularization. We established the Bit Explorers Research Team out of the desire to implement projects at
the intersection of art and science. We want to implement technologically advanced installations, based on the
experience of fields such as: generative art, mixed media, digital art, experimental interface. Through artistic
expression based on new media, we want to sensitize recipients to the problems of the modern world. We care about
a pro-social message, expressed through an imaginative form. We are united by common ideas in art and the desire
to search for new materials for artistic expression, drawn from the socio-economic processes taking place around
us.
Module Control Electronics
A single Transformer controller serves as the universal hardware base for all modules, which differ only in their software. Ultimately, the modules will be integrated into a cohesive system that communicates internally, triggering connected devices in a sequence programmed by the central 'brain'. Individual modules receive their tasks from the brain and execute local sub-sequences. Upon completion, they send a status message back to the brain, ensuring all tasks are perfectly synchronized.
The entire system operates via the MIDI-USB protocol. This allows any module to be hot-swapped and tested independently using any device that supports the MIDI standard. Furthermore, in the event of a hardware failure, a module can be temporarily replaced by a laptop to simulate its function until the original is repaired. This fail-safe design guarantees the continuous operation of the Transformer installation in the gallery, eliminating the need for downtime during repairs or, for example, during a temporary loss of live stock exchange data.
The entire system operates via the MIDI-USB protocol. This allows any module to be hot-swapped and tested independently using any device that supports the MIDI standard. Furthermore, in the event of a hardware failure, a module can be temporarily replaced by a laptop to simulate its function until the original is repaired. This fail-safe design guarantees the continuous operation of the Transformer installation in the gallery, eliminating the need for downtime during repairs or, for example, during a temporary loss of live stock exchange data.
Communication test between two modules.
The system uses the MIDI-USB protocol to synchronize tasks between the main "brain" and subordinate modules, ensuring reliable, continuous operation and the ability to hot-swap components of the installation.
The system uses the MIDI-USB protocol to synchronize tasks between the main "brain" and subordinate modules, ensuring reliable, continuous operation and the ability to hot-swap components of the installation.
9th Silesian Science Festival
Our Bit Explorers team was pleased to present at the 9th Silesian Science Festival.
It was a perfect opportunity to introduce visitors to the concepts of the Transformer project and demonstrate how, at the intersection of art,
technology, and hard stock exchange data, real pro-ecological changes can be generated.
At our stand, we discussed the mechanisms of the global economy, presented early prototypes, and tested interactions with the public. The immense interest in the installation confirmed our belief that complex financial processes become much more understandable when given a tangible, mechanical-artistic form. We thank everyone for the inspiring conversations!
At our stand, we discussed the mechanisms of the global economy, presented early prototypes, and tested interactions with the public. The immense interest in the installation confirmed our belief that complex financial processes become much more understandable when given a tangible, mechanical-artistic form. We thank everyone for the inspiring conversations!
Work in progress
