The Persistence of Vision
September 25, 2012 11:35 AM Subscribe
Gregory Barsamian is a sculptor who creates three-dimensional objects, fixes them to arms radiating from a center point, and then spins the whole creation in a darkened room, lit only by a strobe light. The result is something akin to a 3D flip book.
Example videos can be found here, by clicking on the "Sculpture" link.
Example videos can be found here, by clicking on the "Sculpture" link.
This is really cool.
...until you want to look closer and stick your head in the spinning sculpture, I guess.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 11:53 AM on September 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
...until you want to look closer and stick your head in the spinning sculpture, I guess.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 11:53 AM on September 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
Dammit, I just spent ten minutes rediscovering the word zoetrope, and there it is in the nytimes article.
posted by ceribus peribus at 11:59 AM on September 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by ceribus peribus at 11:59 AM on September 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
Beautiful - there is something similar in the Ghibli Museum in Tokyo - you wander up to a ring of model Totoros, catbuses etc, they begin to spin the ring as the lights dim, and then it's all SQUEE as they leap and dance when the strobe comes on. To see objects animate right there in front of you is just a magical experience.
It looks like he's shown at the (excellent) Kinetica gallery before - hopefully again soon
*signs up for mailing list
posted by tardigrade at 12:02 PM on September 25, 2012 [2 favorites]
It looks like he's shown at the (excellent) Kinetica gallery before - hopefully again soon
*signs up for mailing list
posted by tardigrade at 12:02 PM on September 25, 2012 [2 favorites]
I understand exactly how this works but my mind still refuses to accept it.
posted by showbiz_liz at 12:07 PM on September 25, 2012
posted by showbiz_liz at 12:07 PM on September 25, 2012
There's a toy story zoetrope of this type at disneyland.
posted by anazgnos at 12:14 PM on September 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by anazgnos at 12:14 PM on September 25, 2012 [1 favorite]
Fantastic stuff! This ain't your father's zoetrope, nossir. The audio with the sculptures really adds to it.
posted by Thorzdad at 12:17 PM on September 25, 2012
posted by Thorzdad at 12:17 PM on September 25, 2012
One of his sculptures, Artifact, is in MONA here in Hobart. It's my 6 year old son's favourite sculpture.
posted by Jimbob at 1:00 PM on September 25, 2012
posted by Jimbob at 1:00 PM on September 25, 2012
I *think* that Toshio Iwai (designer of the >a href='http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenori-on'>Tenori On, Electoplankton and other lovely video games and things) might have been the first to do this kind of thing. He did one with birds that i remember being extraordinarily beautiful, but i can't seem to find a video of it - anyone?
posted by silence at 1:09 PM on September 25, 2012
posted by silence at 1:09 PM on September 25, 2012
The ghibli museum piece was exhibited at moma a few years ago. I can't overstate it's wonderfullness.
posted by lalochezia at 2:14 PM on September 25, 2012
posted by lalochezia at 2:14 PM on September 25, 2012
Barsamian's stuff is simply amazing, seen live. I happened by chance to come across his exhibition at the San Jose Museum of Art (http://www.sjmusart.org/content/innuendo-non-troppo-work-gregory-barsamian) when I was in town for WWDC in 2000, and it's always stayed with me, though I haven't had another chance to see his stuff in person, so far.
(I, too, have always thought that "Scream" was like a Bill Plympton cartoon come to life!)
posted by dlanznar at 8:16 AM on September 26, 2012
(I, too, have always thought that "Scream" was like a Bill Plympton cartoon come to life!)
posted by dlanznar at 8:16 AM on September 26, 2012
I saw him in the late 90s at Virginia Commonwealth University, and it remains one of the most unforgettable experiences of my life.
posted by 4ster at 11:57 AM on September 26, 2012
posted by 4ster at 11:57 AM on September 26, 2012
dlanznar: Barsamian's stuff is simply amazing, seen live.Seconded! I saw "Scream" at Pittsburgh's Wood Street Gallery (which tends to specialize in video/motion art, AFAICT) circa 2002. The lighting was good enough to be clear what was going on - for safety reasons, that's pretty important, unless you put it behind glass - but that didn't detract one bit from the I CAN'T STOP BELIEVING THIS MAGIC! aspect.
Later, I would work with an optical engineer who used to collaborate with Barsamian. My friend did holography.
posted by IAmBroom at 1:33 PM on September 26, 2012
Ooh! Also saw "Postcards from the Fringe" - cool, but not as cool.
Really, it's possible that no work of art will ever strike and awe me the way that his Scream did. So visceral, so fluid, so in-your-face.
posted by IAmBroom at 1:37 PM on September 26, 2012
Really, it's possible that no work of art will ever strike and awe me the way that his Scream did. So visceral, so fluid, so in-your-face.
posted by IAmBroom at 1:37 PM on September 26, 2012
these are amazing! thank you so much for posting this! :)
posted by luvcraft at 9:35 PM on September 26, 2012
posted by luvcraft at 9:35 PM on September 26, 2012
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posted by 4ster at 11:38 AM on September 25, 2012