creativity/machine

Marcelo Vieta, a masters student at Simon Fraser University, has a research blog called Technology, Self & Community

At First Monday: Digital music and subculture: Sharing files, sharing styles by Sean Ebare. Via hypergene mediablog.

I’ve just edited my xml feed so that it will provide full posts, including images and links. (And I will definitely have to stick to my plan of using only absolute links from now on).

The RSS 1.0 feed is still excerpts only, so take your pick.

Hot off my notebad, here’s my version of what transpired at Charles Leadbeater’s seminar at QUT today. Just the main points on the role of users in innovation and the emerging category of the ProAm which Leadbeater thinks is a growing force in the cultural economy. His approach has significant similarities to the standard cultural studies line on active consumption, but he is a big picture guy, interested in far wider social, cultural and economic implications.

Users as Innovators
In closed innovation models, consumption is the end point of a process of innovation that originates in the mind of a (special, creative) author. Consumers are passive except in exercising their right to choose among options, and to accept or reject the innovations present in those options.

In open innovation, consumption and use is an essential part of the innovation process, not the end point of it. In fact, the purpose of an invention or innovation is defined not by the inventor, but by its use in networked communities.

Services should be understood, not as predetermined routines, but as scripts, with users of the services as co-influential actors who rewrite the scripts as much as they follow them.

The more radical the innovation, the greater uncertainty about its purpose, function and use, and therefore the great the role of users in establishing its significance. (examples: the world wide web; mobile phones).

Disruptive innovation begins at the margins, driven by experimental consumers and enabled by small companies who need to do something other than sell more of the same to the same markets. These marginal and experimental markets are made up of critical audiences who operate in subcultural economies of cultural value.

The ProAm Economy (much like the notion of the prosumer I was bandying about a while back).
ProAms are amateurs who are as knowledgeable, skilled, emotionally invested and resourced in particular pursuits as professionals, but who don’t derive their main income from these amateur pursuits. [I think that sociologists call this category “serious leisure” - unpaid work that is done for reasons of self-actualisation and lifelong learning, as well as for status]

This emerging category derives from the contemporary importance of knowledge-based consumption as a major source of cultural capital, and the greater importance of cultural capital as against class or geography within developed, networked societies.

The work/leisure divide is far too simplistic, but neither is it meaningless - a better approach is to consider gradations of intensity of the relationship between subjectivity, work and leisure pursuits. Charles proposed a continuum from professional through post-, pre-, and semi-professional all the way to dabbler at the weakest end.

I think we might complicate this further in looking at particular pursuits where the professional-amateur divide has been more or less blurred in modernity already ( photography, music) and those which have only really been achievable by professionals (full-scale chemistry and physics) or that have never been professions (stamp collecting).

Questions dealt with some of the issues around the unrewarded nature of user innovation, and the underground nature of much user participation which might nevertheless help to drive commercial innovation forward.

All in all, pretty convincing arguments, and so bang on my thesis topic its quite unbelievable. I’d better hurry up before everyone gets on the amateur bandwagon…

Distributed Creativity: Speculations on Quilting, Computers, and Art, by Catherine Jones

I wanted to try something different from the usual formulaic “link+commentary” blog posts, so I decided to conduct a blog interview with the mysterious urban explorer behind the Sleepy City photography project and website. I was very pleased with the insights the interview generated, and I’ll certainly be doing more of them. Enjoy!

Jean: First of all, it seems to me that there is a fair bit of creative urban documentary photography happening at the moment (e.g. Satan’s Laundromat) but what you’re doing is more unique. What inspired you?
Dsankter: Perhaps you should say uncommon - there are people world-wide documenting similar environments. Inspiration comes from everywhere, the more you observe the greater range of experiences and ideas you have at your disposal. It’s like a novelist trying to write without ever leaving their room. I guess thats all a bit vague, specifically I get inspired by discarded bits and pieces and the hidden places I never noticed.

Can you share some stories or anecdotes about how you accessed various locations and set up shots?
Boating is my favourite way. The boats are cheap, nasty and not puncture resistant. It’s dangerous because in the drains the tidal water rises fairly quickly and the implications of airspace running out are obvious. However if you time it right the tides carry you along nicely and you don’t have to paddle. It’s lots of fun, I just wouldn’t recommend it to anyone stupid enough to actually try it. Sometimes I wonder about the sanity of our little group!

Taking photos underground can be difficult because it’s confined, damp and dark. The setups vary as much as the shots themselves. The setup is different depending if you are painting with manual flashes, wireless flashes, torches, fireworks, natural light or any combination of the above. Sometimes you just aim and hope for the best.

I remember trying a fisheye shot from underneath a passing train. The tripod was flat on the ground wedged under the rails. The camera was pointed up at 45 degrees or so. From memory the exposure was about 25 seconds at F8. It was triggered via IR remote control. The noise of the train was deafening and we werent 100% sure the train would clear the camera. At the time the risk seemed worth taking. The camera was fine and the final shot came out okay. I’d love to try it again though.

How about the technical stuff - equipment, digital manipulation etc.?
Film! ISO 100 or slower for reduced grain. Digital is too expensive but if Canon offers me an eos 1ds then I’d jump in a minute Honestly you could take any of my photos on a manual focus oldschool slr. That is the cheapest option, though it is nice to have AF when you’re shooting action and sports.

I love the wide perspective and it’s suited to the tight places but I shoot a little telephoto for variety (and to justify buying a long lens!). You need the option for the perspective that best suits your subject. A good tripod is your best friend. Independent leg adjustment and low angle options are things I couldn’t give up. The ability to mount the centre column horizontally has gotten me photos I would have missed. When I get the photos back I quickly forget the cost of camera gear

I keep digital manipulation to a minimum, being about to control everything at exposure is practically a science. I would love a full set of colour correction filters but at 77mm they get expensive quickly. I use tungsten film (64T) and gels to colour correct, but small colour adjustments are easier and quicker in photochop.

Can you tell us something about your professional background or life story?
I started taking photos mid 2002, it’s amazing how much information is on the internet at places like www.photo.net. They make it easy to find the answers to difficult questions. If the answers aren’t there then break it down to first principles. I’m not a professional photographer (I wish!) but I get enough sport photos published to cover film and processing thankfully.

Instead of a proper life story, I’ll say you never know where the things you do today might lead tomorrow. That first step into urban exploration has taken me to places I’d never guess. Screw thinking outside the square, I’ll be off looking in the corners for secret exits.

Do you see yourself as an artist, an explorer, a photographer, or perhaps a combination of all three?
It’s like the 3 magi in evangelion Anyway, I don’t consider myself as an artist - my camera is a way of documenting what’s around me. To me the artist label has the wank factor and the ‘artistic interpretation’ attached. Obviously a stereotype, but one I don’t really need to explain. I don’t see myself as creating art, I feel like I’m shooting the story of my life. The places I go and the people I’m with. The explorer label fits more easily. I think the more soot, dirt, bruises and cuts you have when arriving home the more fun you had. I take photos, so photographer fits also.

What do you think of Brisbane’s transformation since the late 80s/early 90s into this gleaming postmodern/creative city?
I was born in the 80’s so I won’t comment on the earlier periods I know little about! However even in recent years you can see how much Brisbane has been pillaged. Massive amounts of historical real-estate has been converted or demolished to make way for apartments. Even heritage listings are not safe, the old Newstead gas works is on the chopping block for development.

Still the changes to brisbane are making it more livable, less of an eyesore (to most people) and probably more attractive to tourist dollars. There’s nothing to gain by thinking of what’s gone, but I still cringe when I see the ‘renovated’ CSR sugar building (.pdf) at Newstead. Next up is probably the Tennyson Power Station. […] Ultimately it’s for the greater good I guess, though its nice to entertain the selfish thoughts sometimes!

I love the little cracks of old that shine between the polished front of the city. The old gutters, manholes, lightposts and buildings are there, you just need to look a little harder.

Do you have any plans for your work beyond your (seemingly anonymous) website?
I would love to shoot commercial/industrial photos, something along the lines of Tom Paiva’s work or Bob Sacha’s. I’ve only just begun to consider shifting it from a hobby to a profession after the popularity of my site lately. Since metafilter picked it up the traffic has been amazing.

Would you like to see other people taking up the themes of “underground” explorative photography, or embarking on similar projects?
The loneliness and quietness of the underground appeals to me. It’s a temporary sanctuary from the advertising, pace and problems in the world above. I sincerely hope that the underground never becomes popular and exploited. As time passes the mainstream absorbs the more obscure hobbies and the greedy chase minds and dollars. I hope the underground can avoid this and remain a little haven for those lost souls who find their way downwards. No doubt that sounds terribly elitist, but we are very attached to the places we visit. Noone wants to see them trashed, locked up and demolished.

Images of the bits of Brisbane that don’t match the shiny postmodern marketing at sleepy city:

Through the decaying doorframe or that unnoticed metal hole wait adventure and sights few will ever see. All it takes to step across into this parallel world is a torch and a curious spirit. No joining fees, no ridiculous contracts and nobody looking over your shoulder. You might be surprised how little of your city you have ever appreciated.

Thanks to the null device for the link.

Newly discovered LMB (like-minded blog): the null device - music, technology, culture and stuff.

I am just about ready to move on from the GarageBand thing - it will be one of my case studies, but any more consecutive posts on the topic and this will turn into some sort of Apple fansite. And I don’t even have a Mac.

However…

It seems quite a lot of people didn’t like it when Wired said, and quoted me as saying, that GarageBand was quite an important development - this bulletin board discussion is an example. Typically, those already skilled and knowledgeable about PC audio and music production technologies are quick to jump in and point out that (for example) ACID is way better than GarageBand, and plus it’s been around for years.

Well, lest anyone thinks that I’ve only just “discovered” music production software via GarageBand hype, let me state (however uncomfortable it feels to do so) that I’ve been a heavy and enthusiastic user of Logic, Sound Forge, and about a zillion plugins and audio toys since 1997. In the last couple of years I’ve used ACID a fair bit and I know my way around Fruity Loops. I have tertiary music qualifications and a background in professional classical music, abundant (if sadly underused) theory skills and a modest amount of knowledge about sound theory and studio recording techniques.

I list these “qualifications” to explain why I’m not evaluating GarageBand in comparison to, say, ACID: GarageBand is aimed at total novices - and I’m not a novice, and (most) ACID users aren’t either. So it doesn’t really matter what I think of GarageBand as compared to ACID or Logic (just by the way though, I think ACID’s interface is quite counter-intuitive). The real point, as I’ve been saying, isn’t really what GarageBand “does” that other software can’t do, it is who is going to be able to use it - every single person who buys a new Mac - because it comes bundled, and because you really only need ears and the ability to use a mouse in order to get started with it. Yes, it’s about marketing - yes, similar tools have been around for the PC for years already, yes, Apple’s innovations are essentially repackaged and aggressively marketed versions of pre-existing software, but that only makes it all the more interesting to me. As part of their contrastive marketing strategy, unlike Microsoft, Apple is clearly encouraging Mac users to see themselves in a particular way - as creators of culture, as cultural agents if you like. Will it work in the case of music? We’ll have to wait and see.

New Australian PhD weblog on Internet Genealogy Research by Kylie Veale. Welcome to research blogging!