I'm Feeling Lucky
«I'm Feeling Lucky» features a 3D virtual landscape, generated in real-time using game engine technology. The landscape is populated with thousands of figures sourced from the vast pool of 360-degree image data collected by Google Street View. These figures are processed by a deep neural network, which transforms them into three-dimensional models, each frozen in their captured pose. The work interrogates mass image collection systems, as many of these individuals may not have been aware that their photo was taken, let alone anticipate being placed in this new, strange setting. Many thousands of figures sourced from all over the world are randomly selected to inhabit the endless landscape together. The work takes into consideration panorama paintings of the 19th century as objects of historical, cultural, and perceptual significance, and situates them within contemporary media contexts. The panorama is theorized as part of the lineage of immersive media technologies, as a proto-cinematic, or virtual reality form. In the case of I’m Feeling Lucky, The virtual environment is generated and populated procedurally, so the panoramic image becomes infinite as the virtual camera slowly pans across the landscape endlessly, portraying the stillness of painting at odds with the expectation of fast, high-speed movement and technical progression of digital imagery.
Biography
Timothy Thomasson is a Montreal based artist whose work examines moving images in both historical and contemporary contexts, looking particularly at the effects of computer-generated images and emerging technologies on society, culture, aesthetics, and perception. His work has been exhibited at galleries and media festivals internationally.
Tatum Wilson is a producer and sound artist based in Montreal. His work explores the emotional, perceptual and mnemonic imprint of sound through experimental composition, installation, and spatial audio. Under the alias ‘operaa’ he creates a delicate hybrid of ambient and acousmatic music, with production that melds digital textures, organic soundscapes and deep, enveloping bass.