Ernest Edmonds' Communication Game
Fri, 15 May 2015
I've been working on a project for Ernest Edmonds recently to re-construct one of his "Communication Game" artworks from the 1970s. The original artworks used light bulbs, switches and logic circuits to enable low-bandwidth communication between distributed users in ways that pre-dated computer networks by many years.
For the modern reconstruction I used three Arduino Nanos to implement the logic of the original artwork according to a supplied "truth table". The Arduino's were then embedded in a three-side pyramid structure with lights (LEDs) and switches arranged according to Ernest's plans.
Now that the piece is complete I will be handing it over to Ernest at the weekend ready for transportation to Brazil where it will be part of an (amazing) exhibition of work by him, Frieder Nake, Paul Brown and Harold Cohen. Códigos Primordiais (Primary Codes) opens on 16th June in Rio de Janeiro and runs until 16th August.
Ernest Edmonds can be heard talking about his Communication Games in this YouTube video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdSDoMBhhnA.
