龍星如/周姜杉

IC （Iris and Cedar） is an artist group based in Beijing who are interested in the relationship between data and perception， and subjective narrative embedded in data. Their work combines elements of computer science， visual art and story telling， using real-world generated data to create multi-sensory experiences.

IC have been exhibited internationally at venues including Victoria and Albert Museum（London UK）， Royal College of Art （London UK）， Watermans Art Centre （London UK）， OCT-LOFT Art Terminal （Shenzhen China）， Audi City Beijing （China）， and Power Station of Art （Shanghai China）. Their recent work is interactive archival data visualisation about Chinese contemporary art， the CCAA WOW， presented at Power Station of Art， Shanghai.

As curators，they co-curated \"Information in Style： information visualisation in the UK\" at the CAFA Art Museum in 2013.

Iris has a master degree from the Royal College of Art， and Cedar has a MA degree from the Central Saint Martin Collage of Art and design， University of Arts London and a MFA from the Goldsmiths Collage， University of London.

IC （龍星如和周姜杉） 是一個基于北京的藝術組合。他們的研究方向為數據與感知的關系及數據體驗下的主觀敘事。他們的作品涉及視覺藝術、計算機工程和敘事，使用實時獲取的數據創建多感官體驗。

IC的作品在國際范圍展出，其中包括英國維多利亞與艾爾伯特博物館、倫敦的Waterman藝術中心，深圳的華僑城OCT藝術中心，奧迪CITY北京，上海當代藝術博物館。2014年IC創作了中國當代藝術互動數據可視化作品， WOW CCAA， 展出于上海當代藝術博物館（PSA）。2013年，IC聯合策劃了中國第一個數據藝術展覽，《信息新浪潮——英國信息可視化藝術設計展》，展出于中央美術學院美術館。

龍星如擁有英國皇家藝術學院的碩士學位。周 姜杉擁有英國中央圣馬丁藝術與設計學院及倫敦大學金匠學院的碩士學位。

LZH： We now look at the notion of “information”in such a broad way； even primitive records of knot tying hold a sense of graphical beauty. The rise of computer science has given information a new kind of status. We could hardly say that “information is beautiful”before the digital era， because it used to be purely statistical and fairly rigid. Now we are witnessing a different scenario； could you introduce the moment when information became visualised， or became a focus of aesthetic works？

C： The notion of visualising information could be dated back to cave paintings. However， information visualisation has only become a way of visual representation since the birth of cartography. Different from documenting information with semiotics or images， the map was invented to provide a brand new angle to “see”the world. The map gives you a bird’s eye view， to experience something that can never be touchable on the Earth. It’s the same with info-graphics； Florence Nightingale’s rose diagrams are great early examples of combining information and visuals. Information visualisation， in its observation of reality， its perspective and expression， is very similar to many other artistic processes.

L： The history of data visualisation can be succinctly summarised as our journey to explore and describe to others those phenomenons with untouchable， invisible boundaries； for instance， Michael Florent van Langren’s early graphs of statistical data， early compass maps， the moment when the abstract notion of “longitude” became real， where all visual transformations of the untouchable geographical data to came life. Florence Nightingale and Francis Galton’s graphs were， on the other hand， visual transformations of sociological phenomena. The dawn of the computer age and digital storage provided a new kind of expressive medium， or mediation tool – the data， somehow opening doors for those who sought different aesthetic tools and design methodologies in this particular historical period.

LZH： Very interesting answers. We ought to re-discover ways of reading data， and build new understandings from these new ways of reading. What kind of dimensions does data visualisation provide？

L： Clouds of data and fragmented， scattered pieces of information do not construct meaning directly. Data visualisation’s role here is a journey of re-discovering these contents. Data visualisation is not only an analytical tool， it also provides a canon for narratives which include deconstruction or reconstruction of conventional， linear narratives， through creative composition of sensational experiences of narrative.

C： Data visualisation can be viewed as a process of mapping invisible data to visual languages， further concluding phenomenon that are external to sensational experience， such as visual， audio， or other types of haptic experiences. Data visualisation itself， according to the nature of its approaches， can also be categorised as static， moving （such as animation）， or interactive. Interactive visualisation is becoming more and more significant in this field of study today. When audiences can closely observe these invisible phenomena and data， and even provide input or intervention， they will also become relational and have impacts on the data. In this way the infinite data feedback loop starts.

LZH： Your recent project is the archival visualisation for CCAA （China Contemporary Art Award） and Mr Uli Sigg. Could you introduce this project to us？ Audiences saw a presentation of systematically moving images， texts and videos – are there any more details of the project that you’d like to share？ Will this project carry on？ And will data visualisation help people better comprehend information？

L： CCAA Tunnel is composed of two parts： a looping seven-minute sequence of programmed frameworks， and a visitor interaction mechanism called “CCAA Now”， projected onto the surface of a fabric curtain covering both sides of a 50-metre-long corridor in the Shanghai Power Station of Art. While the physical corridor links different spatial sections of the exhibition， the piece enlarges this central linking area into a virtual， 3D space where visitors can walk into and interact with.

The archive of fifteen years of Chinese contemporary art is translated into four visual movements with embedded narratives. Archive contents， including texts， images and videos， are simultaneously components of visual forms and representational information addressing four analytical aspects. The four frameworks construct a storyline of the show： “impression”， “birth”， “time”， and “award”， each addressing one aspect of China’s first contemporary art award， of which winning works from 1998 to 2014 are exhibited in the space.

C： In most situations， the purpose of data visualisation is not necessarily to help people comprehend information. Instead， data visualisation， in the same way as other forms of artistic expression， could be a way of providing a different approach to a question. This new angle can provide audiences with a unique and less generic experience， which may inspire their exploration of a question， and which might also lead to new understandings of the same phenomena.

Our long-lasting interest and research direction lie in the relationship between data and experience， especially the subjective narrative embedded in data experience. The CCAA 15 Years project is our first attempt in visualising， or “experientializing”art archives. We found this project very exciting and inspiring. It brought up some new research points， such as the social contextualisation of data and modes of experience in exhibition settings. We are currently working with Chronus Art Centre in establishing a research project on archivisation of new media art， and experiences of this archive.

LZH： Experience is essential to the reading of information. I’m interested in your attitudes towards interactivity. Do you think， in some cases， interactive methods or interfaces set boundaries that can limit the imagination？

L： Interactive methods are “linguistic transformations” to me； they are essentially processes of translating between information and experience. The translator， however， can be precise， or thoughtless. David Rokeby set a precedent for interactive art when he first translated body movements into sound fields. It was the inception of an exhilarating era of interactive art. However， as more and more people today have developed a fundamental sense of how interactive processes are composed of transformations of various data and signals， the magic of“interactivity”demystifies itself. Against this backdrop， the definition of “good interaction”is now less about technology， and more about the precision， reasoning and beauty of the “translation”. Good “translation”s（interactivity） ought to be haptic， resonating and contextually sensible， and not mystical or pretentious. In terms of interfaces， I believe the definition is more open； for instance， in Tino Sehgal’s work， participants usually become the “interface”through which information flow is carried from mouth to mouth. A media artist with an open mind will create “interfaces”nor rules that open up one’s imagination， as oppose to limiting it.

C： The process of data visualization has its roots in databases. In computational science， a database is defined as a structured collection of data. Many new media objects do not tell stories； they don’t have a beginning or end； in fact， they don’t have any development， thematically， formally or otherwise， which would organise their elements into a sequence.

Viewing and researching on a database has significant differences from reading a novel or watching a film， due to its detachment from linear narratives. From data sourcing， analysing and representing， each step will have an impact on the final output. I personally think that introducing the viewer’s subjective experiences into each of these steps is the most interesting and challenging part of data visualisation.

LZH： There are numerous ways of transforming or visualising information. I remember in one of the exhibitions you curated， there was a really striking and touching piece developed by British artist Luke Jerram. He used 3D printing to create a sculpture – a seismogram of the Tōhoku earthquake rotated through 360 degrees. Does this visualisation veil the reality of the earthquake itself？ Or does it provide an alternative approach for the audiences to intervene and contemplate reality？ Do data art and data visualisation generate alternative realities？

C： No. Artistic expression can be described as generating a reality. In many cases， an artwork provides one or multiple angles to view that reality. When someone is attracted by an artwork’s perspective or expression， he or she might notice things that slip their usual attention， or even observe things from a brand new perspective. This conceptual inspiration might lead to changes of views， or to further actions. In this sense， this artwork sends a message to the future.

L： It depends on the framing when we discuss data visualisation. As a scientific analytic tool in fields such as astronomy， physics or biology， data visualisation is intended for the delivery of scientific precision； it is by nature responsible for a factual reality. However， even in the spectrum of science， due to the differences or uncertainty of data sources， analytical principles or visualising methods， data visualisation is still far from a perfect representation of “the reality”.

However， when we move to the notion of data visualisation as art， we focus more on how – as Cedar has pointed out – data visualisation provides angles to view reality. In essence， it is similar to other instances of creative processes. If there is one “reality”to be explored， it is the reality of the current society – a society largely digitalised， a society in which information is a mass phenomenon， in a more liberated way. Medieval art was echoing with the reality of a theological society， and Renaissance thinking reflected on a society of humanism， while data art – or all sorts of digital art– communicates ideas of a society of pervasive information， of internet tribalism， of technological phenomena suffused in people’s lives. Of course， we do believe that a new kind of “reality”will somehow be born from this background.

LZH： Does that mean creating a kind of alternative reality？ As oppose to reflecting on or replacing reality？

L： I think “to replace reality”is a bold statement. In fact， if we are to discuss the concept of “reality”， I think any mediated fact is re-constructed reality， sometimes “hyperreality” （see Jean Baudrillard）. Our artworks are more about extending new structures and envisioning new scenarios based on factual existence， which is data.

C： Every kind of media has its own way of representing the world. What databases showcase is a world with structure but without linear order. This is in huge contrast to conventional narrative which is based on cause-effect relationships and chronological narratives. Before data visualisation， the creator had the priority to design how the world is represented in his work. However， when realtime calculation and computation are involved in artworks， audiences are then empowered with the same right to choose， to navigate， even to update an artwork， just the same as the creator himself.

信息的模樣

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李振華 X 龍心如、周姜杉 （ L=龍心如 | C=周姜杉）

李振華：今日人們對信息的看法有著很大的改觀，哪怕是過去古人的繩結、刻度等，都還有被發現圖形化的美感，信息借助著電腦的興起，開始呈現出一種很特別的情況，我想之前我們很難說信息是美的，因為信息就是一些數字或是刻板的數據存在。你們能否介紹一下信息什么時候開始成為了圖形，什么時候開始成為美學工作的關注點？

C：我想信息成為圖形可以追溯洞穴壁畫。但信息圖形作為一種視覺表達方式，我覺得地圖是一個開始。與單純的用符號和圖形去記錄和保存信息不同，地圖更多的是為了描述特定的現實，并提供一個不同的視角。……