[spectre] Turbulence Commission: "SWM05: Distributed Bodies of Musical-Visual Form" by Troy Innocent and Ollie Olsen with the Shaolin Wooden Men and Harry Lee

[Turbulence]

July 18, 2006
Turbulence Commission: "SWM05: Distributed Bodies of Musical-Visual Form" by
Troy Innocent and Ollie Olsen with the Shaolin Wooden Men and Harry Lee
http://www.turbulence.org/Works/SWM05/

SWM05 features the distributed bodies of musical-visual form that are
inhabited by the Shaolin Wooden Men (SWM), a virtual band, a 'gang of
numbers' -- me(a)tacodeflesh. SWM require your assistance to manifest as
media creatures. They invite you to send them images of your local
environment in which they can appear. Sending images unlocks access to the
SWM05 mobile site which consists of downloadable micromusic ringtones and
small screen machinima performances. The SWM are everywhere. In a meshwork
of wireless entities, they are media creatures seeking a fragmented
existence to be consumed in the nanoseconds of play-time in the emerging
wireless net. SWM05 will transfigure the SWM by embodying them in a new
materiality.

"SWM05: Distributed Bodies of Musical-Visual Form" is a 2005 commission of
New Radio and Performing Arts, Inc., (aka Ether-Ore) for its Turbulence web
site. It was made possible with funding from the Andy Warhol Foundation for
the Visual Arts.

BIOGRAPIES

The SHAOLIN WOODEN MEN are a 'gang of numbers' whose bodies are 'made of
sound'. In their various manifestations they have released three full-length
recordings - "S.W.M. " (1992), "The Hungry Forest" (1994) and "Supermindway"
(2001) - and a collection of singles and remixed released on the
Psy-Harmonics label. The S.W.M. work across image, sound and interactivity
and have performed at DEAF96 and exhibited at ISEA96. Typically, they
require the assistance of creative humans to manifest as media creatures to
be distributed across the net.

TROY INNOCENT has been exploring the 'language of computers' and the new
aesthetics of digital space since 1989. In recognition of this work,
Innocent has been described as "the first philologist of virtual reality".
His artificial worlds - Iconica (SIGGRAPH 98, USA), Semiomorph (ISEA02,
Japan), and lifeSigns (Ars Electronica 2004, Austria) and Ludea
(SIGGRAPH2006, USA) - explore the dynamic between the iconic ideal and the
personal specific, the real and the simulated, and the way in which our
identity is shaped by language and communication. He is currently Senior
Lecturer, Department of Multimedia and Digital Arts, Monash University,
Melbourne, Australia.

OLLIE OLSEN is an Australian composer, synthesist and sound designer who has
been producing and performing rock, electronic and experimental music for
the past thirty years. Projects include "Max Q," "NO," "Third Eye,"
"Orchestra of Skin and Bone," "Shaolin Wooden Men," and "I am the Server."
Some recent collaborations and projects include performing with Negativland
(from USA-2001); guest soloist with the Australian Art Orchestra (2002); and
recording with Japanese bands, BOREDOMS and AOA (2001-2002.

HARRY LEE is a web developer working with Macromedia Flash, SQL, PHP and
related technologies. Recent projects include database development for
lifeSigns, exhibited at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) in
2004, in addition to numerous corporate and education projects. He lectures
in multimedia and digital arts in the Faculty of Art & Design at Monash
University.

For more information about Turbulence please visit http://turbulence.org

Jo-Anne Green, Co-Director
New Radio and Performing Arts, Inc.: http://new-radio.org
New York: 917.548.7780 . Boston: 617.522.3856
Turbulence: http://turbulence.org
New American Radio: http://somewhere.org
Networked_Performance Blog: http://turbulence.org/blog
Upgrade! Boston: http://turbulence.org/upgrade