BitShift BitShift

Bitshift was commissioned in the context of “Re-Programmed Art,” a research project around the work of Italian artist group Gruppo T, active in the ‘60s and pioneers of interactive and algorithmic art. Interested in Gruppo T’s work with early technological development and early use of UV reactive paint, I explored contemporary techniques that would let me make a somewhat digital use of “smart paint.” I settled onto thermoreactive pigments and developed custom Printed Circuit Boards able to act as physical pixels, electronically controlled to change the color of the paint. The PCBs are arranged in modules of 10x10cm and are chained one after another. A simple electrical pulse is sent through the first module, triggering its warming sequence, and making the paint go from blue to white, when done it pulses to the next module and this simple behavior sends a chain reaction along the modules. The initial pulse triggers an emergent pattern as the paint reacts to physical changes of temperature, and as the digital signal is converted into physical observable structures.

Detail view of BitShift