Small screens (about the size of a small mobile) embedded into book like objects display the cover of a book allowing for a browse-able and tangible “shelf-view” of a bin of books from the LRS.
Ideas – Tangible Data Visualisation #3
Located in the central stairwell. A bank of 6 small printers, similar to the ones used to print out receipts in the library, are suspended from the top floor. Each printer represents an aisle in the LRS. As an object is requested, the printer corresponding to the aisle in which the object is currently housed, prints out the cover of the book and other relevant information. People walking up the stairs will be able to see what is being requested in real-time.
Over time the paper will pool on the floor.
The umbrella is to protect the printers from roof leakage.
Ideas – Tangible Data Visualisation #2
Library borrowing activity is represented by real paint drops which fall from the top of the central stairwell. Each drip represents a borrowed or returned library object with its colour corresponding to its dewey decimal colour as mapped by Chris Gaul.
The paint splatters and accumulates on the floor providing a tangible representation of activity accumulating over time.
A discrete perspex barrier stops people from being splashed as they walk past.
Ideas – Tangible Data Visualisation #1
Library borrowing activity is represented by LED “drips”. Each drip represents a library object with its colour corresponding to its dewey decimal colour. As an object is borrowed a droplet slides down into the pool. As objects are requested a droplet slides up.
A mirror on the floor extends the path of the drips into the underground space, making reference to the underground LRS.
LRS Visualisation – 3D Model
First generation (very straight) visualisation of the LRS system mapped as navigable 3D model.
This can be linked to a real-time feed from the library database showing usage of the system which will in turn show its relevance. Interactivity with the bin contents will allow for exploration of the collection.
Ideas…
Bin Usage
At the start of each day, all bins are transparent. As each bin is accessed, it increases in opacity.
Why? To observe which bins are most frequently accessed and extrapolate possible patterns of use.
Visualisation of information: Daily, weekly, monthly, yearly…
Which items are being requested?
As an item is requested or returned, the relevant bin lights up in the corresponding dewy decimal colour as mapped by Chris Gaul. The cover image and any other interesting information can perhaps “fly” out of the bin towards us so we can see the item.
The LRS “sound system”
Each bin is assigned a sound and as such library clients will be able to play a composition. Aisle 1 – Drums / Aisle 2 – Strings / Aisle 3 – Percussion…. This will be most effective when a past period of time is replayed at high speed.
What objects are in the bins?
A user can navigate into each bin to explore its contents.
Creative visualisation
The straighty one eighty visualisation approach is a good point to then subvert the obvious mapping of objects to their physical location.
Why not: flatten all the bins out, make them crumble like high rises being detonated, pull out all the titles that contain the word “curious”, “sublime” or “ridiculous”? Turn each object into a particle and assign them properties; e.g. objects cluster according to their colour and kind or all objects on social sciences (blue) move around in zero gravity, all objects on language (turquoise) form words…
ML010010121_ML-10 – 8th September 2014 4:15pm
A bin containing mainly poetry. An expressive and self important bunch of objects, orating with emotion, on first observation, it would seem, by their simultaneous grandiose readings, that they are entirely self-absorbed. However, a second observation recorded them creating a collaborative poem with a narrative they could not dream of creating individually.
Date: 8th September 2014 4:15pm
Bin: ML010010121_ML-10
Objects:
Todd, Janet, 1942- Gender, art and death / Janet Todd. | 820.5 TODD
War poems and others / Wilfred Owen | 821.91 OWEW
Day Lewis, C. (Cecil), 1904-1972 Poems of C. Day Lewis, 1925-1972 | 821.912/DAY/2
Buckler, William E. (William Earl), The major Victorian poets : Tennyso | 821.808/1
Hughes, Ted, 1930- Birthday letters / Ted Hughes | 821.91 HUGB
Voices from: http://www.acapela-group.com/
ML010010111_ML-10 – 8th September 2014 4:15pm
Here the objects, a mixture of fiction and non-fiction (geo-politics, cartography, sociology) were observed orating what was generally their first sentence. Once chaotically and a second time in turn.
Recurrent themes amongst the fiction books: death, violence, fear
Languages spoken : English, french and russian
Date: 8th September 2014 4:15pm
Bin: ML010010111_ML-10
Objects:
Renault, Mary | The persian boy / Mary Renault | 823.91/REN/1
Raymond, Derek | I was Dora Suarez / Derek Raymond | 823.91 RAYI
Rendell, Ruth, 1930-| Simisola / Ruth Rendell | 823.91 RENS
Tiedemann, Arthur E. | An introduction to Japanese civiliz | 915.2034/5
Yonemoto, Marcia, 1964- | Mapping early modern Japan : space, | 915.20425 YONE
McKinnon, Michael | Arabia : sand, sea, sky / Michael M | 915.3/2
Delassus, Jean Francois | Le Japon: monstre ou modele? Englis | 915.2034/6
Transactions of the Asiatic Society | 915.2 TRAN [1]
Ramet, Sabrina P., 1949- | Balkan babel : the disintegration o | 949.703 RAME (ED.3)
The sleeping beauty : a journey to | 813.6 POLY
Walker, Alice, 1944- | The color purple / Alice Walker | 813.54/WAL/1
ML010013811 ML – 4 – 8th September 2014 4:15pm
Although containing a lot of Architecture magazines, this bin is quite varied, making for some interesting conversations.
Objects include:
Information technology, action movies, documentaries on corruption, satiric video recordings on giving performance reviews, settling your baby, architecture magazines.
Date: 8th September 2014 4:15pm
Bin: ML010013811_ML-4
Objects:
Abortion, corruption and cops [vide | 363.46 ABOR
The Dreaded appraisal [videorecordi | 658.3125 DREA
The art of war [videorecording]. | 700.994 ARTW
Super size me [videorecording] | Ha 647.95 SUPE
Settling your baby [videorecording] | 649.122 SETL
Information technology in business | 658.05 INFM
The unorganised manager. Part 3, Di | 658.402 UNOR [3]
Great Australian albums. The Saints | 782.42 SAIN
I’d like a word with you [videoreco | 658.314 IDLI
ML010031811_ML-10 – 8th September 2014 4:15pm
In this bin consisting mainly of legal books and journals, we observed a strange musical communication. It would seem they have found a way to dramatise what could be interpreted as “dry” content.
Date: 8th September 2014 4:15pm
Bin: ML010031811_ML-10
Objects: Burton’s Legal Thesaurus, A Dictionary of Modern Legal Usage, The Canadian Bar Review
Bin ML020032521 ML-8 8th September, 2014
Observation.
Contents (all journals):
54 x Laws and Bills
2 x Building Services
2 x Pol Oxygen
1 x Vanity Fair
7 x Details* *”The definitive destination for modern men seeking to curate a more refined lifestyle”
In a recent workshop on facilitating group work involving 30 academics from different faculties, it was interesting to see how people self selected into groups based upon what I can only put down to appearance as most of us didn’t know each other. On two tables were brightly coloured or stylishly dressed design and architecture faculty members, on the other tables, everyone else. I moved to a group of maths/business/engineering participants to have an opportunity to work with people more likely to think differently to me. It was at first frustrating as there were some very dominating and non-inclusive voices and it didn’t seem we had much common ground, but by the end of the session we listened to each other, built on each others expertise and embraced varying concerns including the installation of a security camera to watch over our harbour-side communal kitchen.
What, if at all will the the journal Details, “The definitive destination for modern men seeking to curate a more refined lifestyle” discuss with Laws and Bills? Or will Details, Pol Oxygen and Vanity Fair form an exclusive group?
UTS Library | Artist in Residence 2014 