EEG AR: Things We Have Lost
By John Craig Freeman and Scott Kildall
“EEG AR: Things We Have Lost,” by John Craig Freeman and Scott Kildall, will allow participants to conjure up virtual objects by simply imagining them into existence using brainwave sensor technology. We will generate a database of objects based on the broad theme of “Things We Have Lost,” which includes things such as pensions, empires and dodo birds. We will outfit test subjects with EEG-reading brainwave sensors and ask them to think deeply about what he or she has lost. Once our software detects a measurable and consistent pattern, it will issue a database call to instantiate a virtual object using augmented reality technology. The virtual object will then appear in front of the participant, viewable on any iPhone or Android device. As part of the exhibition, we will take the test subjects into the city to see if it is possible to create and place virtual objects just by thinking them into existence. These virtual objects will remain at the location as trace reminders of the lab experience.
Please visit our Facebook Page to provide your answer to the question, “What have you lost?” A virtual object will be created based on your answer and entered into the database.
This project is being developed in collaboration with ManifestAR, an international artists’ collective working with emergent forms of augmented reality as interventionist public art.
The group was recently awarded the ARtSENSE Commission at FACT, in Liverpool.
FACT (Foundation for Art and Creative Technology) has been leading the UK video, film and new media arts scene for 20 years with groundbreaking exhibitions, education and research projects. The organization aims to pioneer new forms of artistic and social interaction with individuals and communities.
ARtSENSE is a European research project in collaboration with 2 other cultural organizations and 5 technical and research organizations to develop wearable technology that aims to improve and augment the gallery and museum visitor experience. The technology will be discreetly embedded into eye glasses, with information beamed directly onto the retina of the wearer. The planned research will look at monitoring the physiological activity of the user, included eye-tracking, heart rate and skin conductivity to ascertain the “state” of the user (bored, excited, interested) and to then adapt the information sent to the user (textual, audio, video) accordingly.
This commission was awarded in order to create significant new artworks that align with one of its current research interests looking at augmented visitor experience.
Our project, entitled "Invisible ARtaffects" will explore linking augmented virtual objects with audience response translated through compact wearable bio, audio, eye and brainwave sensing devices. We will create individual and collective works based on the theme; I think, I see, I speak, I feel- therefore it is. Our research will involve a year-long collaboration between ManifestAR artists, FACT and the ARtSENSE Consortium. The project will culminate in an exhibition at FACT in 2013. ManifestAR will also explore and create work in the city of Liverpool, beyond the galleries at FACT.
The exhibition “Invisible ARtaffects,” including “EEG AR: Things We Have Lost.” will open at FACT in Liverpool in spring of 2013.
Instructions:
The current EEG: AR database is on display at Ropewalks Square in Liverpool.
- To view the work on any late modle iPhone or Android, go to Ropewalks Square in Liverpool, enter http://eegar.johncraigfreeman.net/ in your web browser or download any free code reader app (http://redlaser.com) now
- Press the scan button and aim at this code
- Once the EEG AR mobile app is launched, press ‘View Object’
- If you don’t have the free Layar Augmented Reality Browser installed, you will be prompted to do so (http://layar.com)
- Once Layar is installed, the project will launch
How it Will Work
During scheduled lab/clinical hours, we will invite the public to participate by appointment or on a first-come-first-serve, walk-in basis. During the times that the *doctors/scientist/artists are not able to be present physically at the clinic, we will conduct trials remotely using telecommunication and monitoring technologies.
As audience members enter the EEG AR: lab/clinic, they will be greeted by one of the artists or an assistant, who will screen them at the reception desk to pre-qualify them as test subjects. While we prepare the exam room for the trial, subjects who meet the criteria will wait in the waiting room, which resembles a tea lounge or doctor’s office, where they can enjoy video documentation of past trial results on a flat screen television. Individual test subjects will be invited back to the exam area and asked to take a seat in a reclining exam chair, which is situated in front of a large live feed projection. We will then outfit the test subject with a brainwave sensor device and monitor their EEG levels.
NeuroSky MindWave brainwave sensor.
The test subject will be asked to relax and to think deeply about what he or she has lost. We will begin by measuring the Attention and Meditation values represented by the medium and dark grey bars to the left of the graph below. View a video of streaming brainwave data.
Brain wave data display from Brain Grapher software.
If those values meet or exceed a predetermined high value, an SQL statement will be generated which will query the database of lost things and randomly select one to instantiate in the physical location, where anyone can view it using a smart phone. The experience can take up to thirty minutes per test subject to complete and must run its course.
Once we get this functionality working we intend to explore pairing the brainwave sensor to the test subjects smart phone, so that the experiment can be move out of the lab environment and into the streets of Liverpool.
During gallery hours beyond those designated for the lab/clinical trial performance, the clinic is open to the public as a video installation. It should be staffed with an gallery attendant for security of the equipment and to assist gallery visitors whom might find interactive works of art intimidating.
Exhibition Proposal
The exhibition of this work requires the fabrication of a clinic-like environment with a ceiling mounted projector, a suitable projection surface, a stereo audio system with a selection of computer equipment, a webcam, clinical furniture and a flat screen television, contained within a 10 x 10 x 3 meter free standing temporary wall structure. The lighting needs to be kept low and controlled. If audio spill over is a factor in the space, a localized speaker system should be used. Installation time should take one week using standard preparator’s tools and techniques.
Equipment:
- Two Neurosky MindSets
- Three iMacs with cables and extensions as needed
- Two USB Powermates with extension as needed
- Ethernet and cable as needed (if wireless is inadequate)
- One remote monitoring webcam
- One 3000 lumen projector with ceiling mount, cables and extensions as needed
- Two pre-amplified 100 watt stereo speakers with wall mounts, cables and extensions as needed
- Medium flat screen HD television set and stand
- Apple TV with cables and extensions as needed
Furniture:
- One reclining medical chair
- Two rolling computer stands
- Two rolling stools
- Seven standard chairs
- One standard office desk
- Four sectional chrome privacy screen with white curtains
- Two coat racks
- One folding table
- Seven potted plants
Structure:
- Eighteen 1m x 3m free standing modular wall panels
- Suitable 3m x 4m projection surface or screen
Previous Related Works
Virta-Flaneurazine Clinic Xi’an, Virta-Flaneurazine: John Craig Freeman and Will Pappenheimer,“Tangible Spiritualities” in the West Galleries of the Xi’an Academy of Art Museum, in conjunction with Digital Art Weeks 2010. Curated by Art Clay. Xi’an, China. July 2 - 16, 2010.
After Thought, Scott Kildall, Portable Testing Kit and Custom Video, Eyebeam, NYC, 2010.
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