Edward Ihnatowicz

Edward Ihnatowicz was a cybernetic sculptor active in the late 1960s and early 1970s [cite book
last = Reffin Smith
first = Brian
authorlink = Brian Reffin Smith
coauthors =
title = Soft Computing: art and design
publisher = Addison-Wesley
year = 1984
location =
pages =
url =
doi =
id = ] [cite journal
last = Brown
first = Paul
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Emergent Behaviours towards computational aesthetics
journal = Artlink
volume = 16
issue = 2 & 3
pages = 75–83
publisher =
date = July 1996
url =
doi =
id =
accessdate = ] . His sculptures explored the interaction between his robotic works and the audience. [cite conference
first = Aleksandar
last = Zivanovic
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = The Development of a Cybernetic Sculptor: Edward Ihnatowicz and The Senster
booktitle = Creativity and Cognition Conference
pages = 586–591
publisher =
date=April 12-15, 2005
location =
url =
doi =
id =
accessdate = ] [cite conference
first = Aleksandar
last = Zivanovic
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = SAM, The Senster and The Bandit: Early Cybernetic Sculptures by Edward Ihnatowicz
booktitle = Robotics, Mechatronics and Animatronics in the Creative and Entertainment Industries and Arts Symposium, AISB 2005 Convention
pages =
publisher =
date=April 13, 2005
location = Hatfield, UK
url =
doi =
id =
accessdate = ] [cite journal
last = Reichardt
first = Jasia
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Art at large
journal = New Scientist
volume =
issue =
pages =
publisher =
date = May 4, 1972
url =
doi =
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accessdate = ] .

He was a pioneer of the use of computers in art and especially robots as art. As Eduardo Kac [cite journal
last = Kac
first = Eduardo
authorlink = Eduardo Kac
coauthors =
title = Origin and Development of Robotic Art
journal = Art Journal, Digital Reflections: The Dialogue of Art and Technology, Special issue on Electronic Art, Johanna Drucker, (ed.), CAA, NY
volume = 56
issue = 3
pages = 60–67
publisher =
year = 1997
url =
doi =
id =
accessdate = ] states:

...three artworks created in the mid and late sixties stand as landmarks in the development of robotic art: Nam June Paik and Shuya Abe's Robot K-456 (1964), Tom Shannon's Squat (1966), and Edward Ihnatowicz's The Senster (1969-1970). While these works are very significant in their own right, they acquire a particular meaning when re-considered today, since seen together they also configure a triangle of new aesthetic issues that has continually informed the main directions in robotic art.

He was an active member of the Computer Arts Society.

AM

His first cybernetic work that moved directly and recognisably in response to what was going on around it was the "Sound Activated Mobile" (SAM) [cite book
last = Reichardt
first = Jasia
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Cybernetic Serendipity: the computer and the arts
publisher = Studio International
year = 1968
location =
pages =
url =
doi =
id = ] . It had four microphones mounted in front of fiberglass parabolic reflectors (reminiscent of a flower) on top of a spine-like column of aluminium castings. Hydraulic pistons in the vertebra-like units allowed the neck to twist from side-to-side and bend forwards and backwards. An analogue circuit was used to control the hydraulics to move the robot to face the direction of the predominant sound. It was exhibited at the "Cybernetic Serendipity" exhibition [cite book
last = Reichardt
first = Jasia
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Cybernetics, Art and Ideas
publisher = Studio Vista London
year = 1971
location =
pages =
url =
doi =
id = ] which was held initially at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London in 1968 and later toured Canada and the US ending at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. SAM's behaviour, that of turning to face people as they talked and tracking their movement if they continued to make a sound, together with its sensitivity to quiet but sustained noise, rather than loud shouts, encouraged many people to spend time in front if it, trying to attract its attention.

The Senster

His most significant work was The Senster [cite book
last = Benthall
first = Jonathan
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Science and Technology in Art Today
publisher = Thames and Hudson
year = 1972
location = London
pages =
url =
doi =
id = ] [cite book
last = Reichardt
first = Jasia
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Robots: Fact, Fiction + Prediction
publisher = Thames and Hudson
year = 1978
location =
pages =
url =
doi =
id = ] [cite book
last = Simons
first = Geoff
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Are Computers Alive?
publisher =
year = 1983
location =
pages =
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = 0-7108-0501-2] [cite book
last = Michie
first = Donald
authorlink = Donald Michie
coauthors = Rory Johnston
title = The Creative Computer: Machine Intelligence and Human Knowledge
publisher = Penguin Books
year = 1984
location =
pages =
url =
doi =
id = ] , a large hydraulically actuated robot that followed the sound and motion of the people around it, giving the impression of being alive. The Senster was the first robotic sculpture to be controlled by a computer. It used an array of four microphones to detect the direction of the sound around it and two Doppler radar arrays to measure the motion of people. A computer program controlled the hydraulic actuators to move the body so that the Senster was attracted by sound and movement but repelled by loud noises and violent motion. The program bears a strong resemblance to that used in behavior-based robotics developed a decade later.

The Bandit

His final work of Cybernetic Art was "The Bandit", which was exhibited at the Computer Arts Society exhibition at the Edinburgh Festival, UK in 1973. It was a hydraulically actuated lever controlled by a computer and had two modes: one where it was position controlled and one where it was force controlled. When a visitor first held onto the lever, it was force controlled, with a demand value of zero. The person could thus move the arm as he/she pleased. The computer system recorded the series of motions, then switched to position control mode, where it played the series of positions back to the person. The way the person reacted to the motion of the arm was statistically analysed and the computer program printed out its classification of the gender and temperament of the person.

Biography

*1926: Born in Poland
*1939–1943: War refugee in Romania and Algiers
*1943: Arrived in Britain
*1945–1949: Attended the The Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art, Oxford Created bespoke furniture and interior decoration
*1962: Left home to try to find his artistic roots. Lived in an unconverted garage. Experimented with life sculpture and portraiture and sculpture made of scrap cars.
*1968: Created SAM
*1969–1971: Created The Senster
*1971–1986: Worked as a Research Assistant in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at University College London
*1973: Created The Bandit
*1988: Died of a heart attack

References

External links

* [http://www.senster.com/ihnatowicz/ Biography and detailed information about his works at www.senster.com]