Zoomorphe encompasses research in the following areas: a) novel physical interfaces; b) the integration of the physical and virtual studio utilizing 3D modeling and rapid prototyping technologies; c) developing playful and alternative interaction scenarios for mobile and portable computing; and d) experimentation with new processes and materials development. 

 

Arthropods found in the sea provide an interesting point of departure for our prototypes, as they are simple segmented forms with complex surfaces found in multiples that lend themselves to abstraction. They also speak to practical concerns such as attaching themselves to a surface for long periods of minimal activity devoted primarily to filtering, not unlike a sensor.  The final form of the housings will take into account interactions made possible when a mobile device is connected to a ‘digital limpet’ discovered on a lamppost, or a field of chattering barnacles growing on the wall of a building?

 

Deploying a network of small task specific sensor-based devices, embedded or attached to city surfaces, creates ambient aware or smart environments. Using mobile devices, artists and designers can develop new interaction scenarios for objects, surfaces, and the territory that make up Unicom (ubiquitous computing) environments in what is now sometimes referred to as the “internet of things.”

 

3D rapid prototyping for this project will be undertaken at the Digital Sculpture Lab in the Faculty of Fine Arts at York University, and in Hexagram, at Concordia University.