tx th nxthng . ivan belousov
/ main . art projects . cv
project: "ramps"
author: Ivan Belousov
interactive installation
technique: programming, 3D modeling, sound design
tags: media art, game design, retro-futurism, media archaeology
exhibitions: "Realism of the Invisible" - a showcase of students of the Art & Science master's program at ITMO;
"Demodulation" is a festival of Yandex Museum, where modern technologies coexist with retro computers, and art is combined with science.
you can download and launch the ramps virtual space by following the link:
https://txthnxthng.itch.io/ramps
curator: Helena Nikonole
author: Ivan Belousov
interactive installation
technique: programming, 3D modeling, sound design
tags: media art, game design, retro-futurism, media archaeology
exhibitions: "Realism of the Invisible" - a showcase of students of the Art & Science master's program at ITMO;
"Demodulation" is a festival of Yandex Museum, where modern technologies coexist with retro computers, and art is combined with science.
you can download and launch the ramps virtual space by following the link:
https://txthnxthng.itch.io/ramps
curator: Helena Nikonole
The “ramps” project is an interactive virtual space styled to match the aesthetics of video games from the late 90s. This work is a reflection on the technological leap of the 21st century, framed as a letter from the present to the past.
The starting point was an excerpt from “Notre Dame de Paris”, where Victor Hugo reflects on the change in the carving of thoughts through architecture by book printing. Just as the author of the 19th century looked back at the technological revolution of the 15th century, the “ramps” project directs its gaze to the recent digital past, creating a chronicle of the future that has already arrived.
The virtual space was assembled in Unity. It consists of 3D models of a real abandoned building and skateboard ramps. The artist recreates the places where he spent his childhood before the advent of the Internet and personal computer in his life. With the help of programming, interactive mechanics are added to this nostalgic environment, which embody the technological progress of the 21st century. In the virtual space, player can collect local cryptocurrency to open new rooms and find smartphones with short content. Using the Openal API, NPCs with GPT connected are placed in the virtual space. They talk about people and their virtual lives. There is also a memory generation mechanic based on the DALL-E model in the virtual space.
The memories left in the virtual space are collected on the page:
https://txthnxthng.com/chronicles_of_technology_and_media
Thus, the project becomes a joint media archaeological research.
The starting point was an excerpt from “Notre Dame de Paris”, where Victor Hugo reflects on the change in the carving of thoughts through architecture by book printing. Just as the author of the 19th century looked back at the technological revolution of the 15th century, the “ramps” project directs its gaze to the recent digital past, creating a chronicle of the future that has already arrived.
The virtual space was assembled in Unity. It consists of 3D models of a real abandoned building and skateboard ramps. The artist recreates the places where he spent his childhood before the advent of the Internet and personal computer in his life. With the help of programming, interactive mechanics are added to this nostalgic environment, which embody the technological progress of the 21st century. In the virtual space, player can collect local cryptocurrency to open new rooms and find smartphones with short content. Using the Openal API, NPCs with GPT connected are placed in the virtual space. They talk about people and their virtual lives. There is also a memory generation mechanic based on the DALL-E model in the virtual space.
The memories left in the virtual space are collected on the page:
https://txthnxthng.com/chronicles_of_technology_and_media
Thus, the project becomes a joint media archaeological research.
gameplay
The work is exhibited using equipment from the late 90s: an old monitor, keyboard and mouse — all this enhances the effect of the "reverse future" and immerses the viewer in the atmosphere of that era, creating a contrast between technology and the environment. The viewer is invited to move inside the game, imagine himself as a child in the late 90s and try to imagine what the modern world would seem like to him. In the project, time becomes a non-linear loop and invites us to reflect on the path of technology and the generation of people who saw the world before and after.
You can download and launch the ramps virtual space by following the link:
https://txthnxthng.itch.io/ramps
You can download and launch the ramps virtual space by following the link:
https://txthnxthng.itch.io/ramps
