[Jeff Guidry]

I was at an independent record shop in Baton Rouge the other day, and I ran into this computer program, 77 Million Paintings by Brian Eno, better known to us music lovers as the pioneering ambient music artist. I wasn't aware that he was also a prolific visual artist, and has been experimenting with "ambient" visual textures for decades. He has taken a concept he has been working on for years, the random combination of visual images using television as a light source, and transferred it to a computer program that randomly fades in and out a large bank of images (with a possible combination of seventy-seven million images, hence the name of the program), along with a music soundtrack.

The program comes with an interview disc (which I haven't watched yet) and a book (that I have read) that details how he came up with the original idea and how it evolved over the years, culminating in this program.

Here is a link to the official site: http://www.77millionpaintings.com/

It's sort of like a more artistic screensaver, but it is not designed to start as a screensaver, you have to open it from its own icon. You can set the images to fade in and out on five different speeds, that I call "tectonic" "glacial" "molasses" "bank" and "DMV". The music plays in a loop in the back, but you can choose not to thave the music play at the start screen.

I rather like it, and seems to go a bit better with your own chosen soundtrack (it's especially nice with some IEM's late at night).

If you have it or get it, let us know what you think.

 

[Gautama]

Nice idea, but not something I would spend money on.

 

[Lazarus Short]

I like the music, and would like to try to sleep to it.

Laz

 

[chadbang]

I love video art and will probably grab this as it will be like having an installation by Brian Eno in your home. Hope Netflix gets it!

 

[Jeff Guidry]

Well, it's a computer program, not a DVD (though the interview disc is), so I doubt Netflix will offer the program portion.

 

[chadbang]

That's a shame. My largest screen is my television. I suppose I need to summon up the intestinal fortitude to connect it to my computer one day.

 

[Deiz]

Now, a thought I just had..

For those with a "modern art" taste, this would work really well with an in-wall LCD and perhaps a dedicated HTPC in the vicinity.

"So, you've got 25 pieces in this hallway? That's nothing, come over to my house, I've got over 77 million works framed up in my living room."

 

[Jeff Guidry]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deiz /img/forum/go_quote.gif Now, a thought I just had.. For those with a "modern art" taste, this would work really well with an in-wall LCD and perhaps a dedicated HTPC in the vicinity.

One of Eno's stated reason for releasing this art on software is that people all have TV sets and computer screens, and when they are not being used, they are just these big black holes in their homes. He hoped to fill those black holes with art.

TO CHADBANG: I bought so much stuff that I forgot that I got a dedicated DVD of Brian Eno's video work called 14 Video Paintings meant to be played as a standard DVD. I haven't watched it yet so I can't comment on the art, but that may be something you could look in to.

 

[Jeff Guidry]

UPDATE: I have now had a chance to watch the 14 Video Paintings DVD. The DVD contains two video painting cycles Eno did in the early 80s entitled "Thursday Afternoon" and "Mistaken Memories of Medieval Manhattan". The compositions were originally shot with a video camera on its side, and was intended to be viewed with a TV turned over on its side. Since TV's don't usually have flat, square sides anymore, it may not be advisable to try to turn your home TV over, and you might do better using your computer and turning its monitor on the side if you want to watch the original compositions. Fortunately, there is also a 'vertical' option, that will display the video as it was meant to be seen, though you get black bars on the sides of your TV, and less image size as a result.

"Manhattan" is the more intriguing of the two pieces, consisting of treated video of the Manhattan landscape from Brian Eno's apartment ca. 1980. It appears that the buildings and the sky are disconnected, a little flatter than they would be if seeing the untreated video, and are very interesting to look at. "Thursday Afternoon" while also good, is not as compelling to me, comprising of very slow motion shots of a female figure doing various things. Using human figures in ambient compositions sort of imposes a personality, and this interrupts the normal abstract musings that I have grown accustomed to when viewing such art.

As a side note, I recognized the music of the last movement of "Manhattan" as being a selection that was released on the Virgin music ambient compilation "Imaginary Landscapes". It is entitled "Tal Coat".

 

[luckybaer]

Eno is out there, man... we're talkin' Pluto.

 

[imported_Matt_Carter]

Grade A genius.

I love everything about that guy in a non homo way.