At the Digital Media study program in University of/the Arts Bremen, computer science meets design, while engineering and natural sciences interconnect with the arts. Design, development and application of complex multimedia systems have long since ceased to be feasible by simply placing design elements on top of functional ones or vice versa – closer cooperation, a fusion of disciplines is necessary. Digital Media in Bremen takes on that challenge.
Addressing a large spectrum of topics ranging from technical basics of new media technologies, the studies also explore topics of virtual and augmented reality – basics in design, photography and typography – intermedial design, corporate design and sound design – theoretical-reflexive media sciences such as media theory, media history and semiotics. Teaching methodologies aim to offer proficiency in computer science, design and application, emphasize scientific orientation and interdisciplinarity, and teach professional skills on a broad scale.
Here we present four recent “semester” projects, a small selection of many projects available here that are regularly added. These include Gifgun – project that uses the mechanics of pop culture in order to generate attention in the digital world; vrKid – virtual reality headset designed especially for babies and toddlers up to 3 years old; RGB Fossils – project that plays with the idea of fossilizing digital image files and finally Candy Cloud – an interactive object that sprinkles users with bonbons whenever it detects movement below it.
All projects were guided by Prof. Dennis P. Paul, semester SS 2016 under the title Design Pop.
Gifgun
Gifgun is a project that uses the mechanics of pop culture in order to generate attention in the digital world. It automatically captures animated Gifs once the trigger of the pistol gets pulled and then uploads them to the internet.
The Gifgun uses a well known channel of Massmedia – the Internet, to upload a previously recorded Gif. With the help of a mounted Guntrigger the picture taking of an animated Gifs gets initiated. In order to “generate” the biggest possible audience for your contribution, the currently most popular hashtags worldwide get retrieved from a server and automatically attached to that Gif. Immediately and without any confirmation the Gif with its hashtags will be uploaded to the internet and presented to a large audience. There is no way to undo or change your upload once the trigger is pulled. Therefore the trigger has to be treated almost as carefully as the trigger of a real gun.
vrKid
vrKid is a virtual reality headset designed especially for babies and toddlers up to 3 years old. The headset has the shape of a hippo and its helmet design secures safe use for children and will protect them when they move around in their physical surroundings while using the device. The project takes a critical view at VR, with aim to drive discussion about the future of immersive media.
The helmet has a slide-in part for the smartphone in the front. The phone goes in from the bottom and is securely locked in place by turning the teeth of the hippo, which are connected to hooks on the inside. A hole through the hippo’s nostril allows the camera to catch the surroundings for augmented reality apps. To avoid wires for the safety of the child, the helmet has built-in bluetooth headphones. The headphones have soft cushioning and can be charged with micro USB.
RGB Fossils
As in many other systems, RGB is a way to measure, decode, translate and limit nature. What if, then, nature appropriates itself from these systems, introducing these digital aspects to its natural processes? This project plays with the idea of fossilizing digital image files and the effects of time in the separation of its colors. Although the RGB system is absurd when used in a non-light-based surface, it is possible to guess which are the original colors of each object, given the amount of red, green and blue that is visible in each fossil.
The RGB color system guides our perception of the world through the screens. Red, green and blue, in combined values, create millions of color combinations in the shape of light. This system, developed in the nineteenth century, serves as a powerful symbol of digitalization and interface technologies. For our eyes, every single visual element is translated into these numbered-coded tones that have little to do with the colors that surround us off-screen.
Candy Cloud
Simply described, the Candy cloud is an interactive object that uses PIR sensor and servo motor. When the sensor detects movement below the cloud, the cloud sprinkles bonbons instead of rain.
More projects at Digital Media Bremen
All projects are interesting.