Alpha Beta Clouds
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Transcript of Alpha Beta Clouds
AlphaBeta Clouds
2012
Catalog accompanying exhibition of thesis
work in partial fulfillment of the require-
ments for the Master of Fine Arts degree in
Graphic Design at the School of Art and
Design, College of Architecture and the Arts
at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
—
On the cover
Cloud Writer Model E. Cloud Writer
typeface designed and generated with
software by the author, 2012.
—
Type set in
Utopia, designed by Robert Slimbach
for Adobe Systems in 1989.
Akzidenz Grotesk, originally released
by the Berthold Type Foundry in 1896.
AlphaBetaClouds
Cloud WriterSystem for Public Displaysof Metaphor
thin
king
making
speculative
practical
It is within the cloud — amidst that hazy uncertainty in which we
cannot decipher in from out, where time is irrelevant as now
and past collide — here, all understanding is made. Decisions are
felt rather than clearly selected; their outcomes are always
unknown. Like all of history, this flurry of action occurs in quick
bursts which change the paths of lives and shape the stories
later told. This is the squirming struggle, the labor and pain, the
pathos from which we begin to comprehend ourselves and
the world in which we act. After all, when the cloud dissolves, we
are left to bask in the full light of day. We should embrace it,
savor it while we can. We do not wish the clouds to return, but
without them, our fragile certainties delude us, keep us from
imagining new possibilities. We would stop seeing new patterns,
thus stop making new meanings.
Without clouds, we would stop dreaming.
On Clouds
Metaphors
Through Culture
History
& Technology
01
homeof gods
02
godsof today
03
driftingself-reflection
04
loomingtrajectory
05
etherealpresence
06
reflectivemass
07
cyclicalformation
08
amorphousspace
09
dangerouspower
10
whimsical play
“Souls cross ages like clouds cross skies, an’ tho’ a cloud’s shape nor hue nor size don’t stay the same, it’s still a cloud an’ so is a soul. Who can say where the cloud’s blowed from or who the soul’ll be ‘morrow?”David Mitchell, The Cloud Atlas
“They are a writer’s goldmine: a metaphor that is flexible and yet still powerful.” Rebecca J. Rosen, Clouds: The Most Useful Metaphor of All Time? in The Atlantic
ephemeralcyclicalknowingnessamorphousdriftingpredictivehidingetherealcollectionfluffy / loomingvisible state
ephemeralvmomentary / fleeting / shape-shifting / instantaneous / unique / never the same
cyclical systematic / structured / recurring / time / eternally recurring / instantaneous
knowingness home of the gods / looking down on us / heaven / mt. olympus / fantasy / imagination the possible / beyond reality / magic / oracle / spells / rain dance / ride a cloud
amorphous elastic / forming / shaping / constantly changing
drifting swaying / blowing / dispersing / carrying
predictive forecast / outlook / on the horizon / trajectory / path / future-looking / fate / fortune-tellers
hiding shrouding / opaque / cloudy / hazy / mysterious unknown / dividing sky & earth
ethereal dreams / utopian / ideal / silver lining / head in the clouds / bliss / cloud 9 / ecstasy / fantasycloud watching / patterns / interpretation / personal reflection / private stories
collection accumulation / aggregation / collection / centralization / information / storage / memory / thinking / processing / communication
fluffy puffy / light / airy / wispy / whimsical / playful / carefree looming heavy / dark / threatening / towering / dangerous / powerful / destructive
visible state condensation / semi-solid / vapor objectified / feedback / visualization of system (h2o) self-reflexive / self-referential
ephemeralcyclicalknowingnessamorphousdriftingpredictivehidingetherealcollectionfluffy / loomingvisible state
Intentional DiscoveryFrom Open-Ended
Investigation
to Technical Production
water studies
clock studies
movement studies
grid studies
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density studies
cloud type
first concept sketch
water system studies
control system studies
prototype
SpeculativeCommunicationExploring
Applications
for the
Cloud Writer
As a clock, the Cloud Writer literalizes the fleeting ephemerality of each
moment via large scale cloud numbers emitted in public spaces
throughout Chicago. The specific nature of each context builds upon the
temporal metaphors of the ceaseless forward movement of time
contrasted with the cyclical nature of clouds and water.
This title is borrowed from an essay on evolutionary theory and plastic
control systems by the scientist Karl Popper. Popper tells us there
are no perfect mechanical systems such as clocks—only more and less
predictable clouds.
Of Clouds and Clocks*
1
*
Inspired by Chinese Da Zi Bao (large word posters) and Group Material’s
Democracy Wall projects, this proposal injects the many voices
of Chicago’s citizenry into shared public space. A web site would encour-
age any citizen to submit a 2–3 word dream for the future of the city.
Depending on topic, these dreams will emit at points of relevant context.
For example, political dreams may be spouting in Daley Plaza,
while environmental desires are emitted along the river or lake fronts.
Cloudsof Change
2
Igniting renewed hydraulic and communicative functions to Chicago’s
many abandoned water towers, this system would communicate personal
time related messages to citizens moving through the city by train, car,
bike, or foot. Responsive software connecting to phones and GPS systems
would gather shared info, such as calendars, locations, etc. to let you
know which way to go and when you are running late. The clouds know.
PersonalData Clouds
3
What is the future of Chicago and its seemingly unlimited natural
resource: the water of Lake Michigan? As global water sources continue
to evaporate, what mounting pressures will be placed on Chicago
to better conserve or share its abundance? Can we write our own future
or only respond to it?
LegibleWeather
4
Detroit 1987
On August 16, 1987, Northwest flight 255 crashed
after takeoff in Romulus, mi killing all the
crew and passengers except 4 year old, Cecelia
Cichan. The crash of the md-82 planed is
attributed to incorrect flap settings created by
warning omission during taxi checklists
and by fault of the associated warning system.
Failures both human and mechanical
154 people died in the crash.
A
Madrid 2008
On August 20, 2008—almost exactly 21 years after
the nw 255 crash—Spanair Flight 5022
crashed just outside the Madrid airport due to
the same incorrect flap settings and same
omission of the same taxi checklists. Coinciden-
tally, 154 people died in this crash which
also involved the same aircraft type as nw 255.
B
Johann von Goethe stated: »Names are echoes and smoke.« A name is
also a memory. And a story. As an anti-monumental memorial, the Cloud
Writer is an expression of metaphor, emitting clouds of time and memory.
Using the web app, visitors can select the names of those whom they
wish to remember to activate a performance of that name in cloud letters.
The ethereal briefness of a cloud is as that of a life.
Fluid Memorial
5
user inputweb site to enter names
remote accessweb app allows accessibility
from mobile devices
databasetemporarily
stores names
softwareretrieves the names,
sends to controller
controllerconverts names to data,
sends to valves
cloud-writeremits a name each minute, newest entry
or cycles through list
enter a nameif time = :30load a name
translate lettersto valve positions
if time = :30load a name
translate lettersto valve positions
enter a nameif time = :30load a name
translate lettersto valve positions
if time = :30load a name
translate lettersto valve positions
enter a nameif time = :30load a name
translate lettersto valve positions
if time = :30load a name
translate lettersto valve positions
Image List
Creation of Adam by Michelangelo Buonarroti. Fresco cycle, 1508–1512. Sistine Chapel,
Vatican City.
iCloud by Apple Computer Company. Software & mobile device icons, 2011. California.
The False Mirror by René Magritte. Oil on canvas, 1928. Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico. GOES 12 Satellite, NASA, NOAA. August 29, 2005.
Beauty by Olafur Eliasson. Misted water, 1993. Image courtesy and copyright
of the artist. Photography: Poul Pedersen.
Cloud Gate by Anish Kapoor. Stainless steel, 2004–2006. Millennium Park, Chicago.
Weather Patterns by Loop.pH. Light installation, 2005. York Art Gallery, UK.
Blur Building designed by Diller, Scofidio, and Renfro. Built for the Swiss Expo 2002,
platform outfitted with thousands of nozzles emitting a cloud-like mist of water drawn from
Lake Neuchatel. Yverdon-les-Bains, Switzerland.
Playstation 3: Mushroom Clown. Advertisement by TBWA/Paris, France, 2007.
Silver Clouds by Andy Warhol. Helium-filled, silver mylar balloons. The Andy Warhol
Museum, Pittsburgh. Photographer unknown.
Chicago Fog image from www.epiphanydiocese.wordpress.com. Photographer unknown.
Other images generated or adapted by the author.
01
02
03
04
05
06
07
08
09
10
See more of the Cloud Writer project at
www.alphabetaclouds.com
Cloud W
riter System
for Public D
isplays of Metaphor
The
Clo
ud
Write
r is a com
mu
nicatio
n p
latform
that allo
ws u
s to
read
and
write
the
clou
ds via b
ursts o
f wate
r vapo
r le
tter fo
rms. Th
is exh
ibitio
n catalo
g d
ocu
me
nts th
e C
lou
d W
riter’s d
eve
lop
me
nt an
d sp
ecu
lates o
n its p
ote
ntial
for p
ub
lic app
lication
s—fro
m th
e p
ractical to th
e fan
tastic.
Alpha B
eta Clouds