Introduction
Live是個很妙的字，它說明了這個作品有著鮮活的概念，巧妙呈現出現代人的辦公室生活文化，更以實境節目的型態現場show給你看，這個裝置由四個辦公座位組成每個座位為一個單元，一個接一個，循環牽動著各個環節。每個單元就像一個工作者，每天無意識地處理自己分內之事藉由電腦相關設備之便，如游魚般，無意識地、規律地處理/從事生產活動，看似獨立卻又相互依存，如同網路時代下虛擬的生產線，疏離卻又環環相扣。
裝置始於一隻活生生的金魚–「魚經理」
藉由魚游的路徑辨識來觸發辦公文件的列印。開始一連串的職場連鎖反應–文件成為腦力工廠集體壓榨生產的紙團腦袋，產生如泡沫般的構想帶動識別證驅使設計師打卡上工，將一天工作量壓縮在一分鐘內完成精疲力盡收工之餘，不忘提醒一下總機小妹別再混了，在小妹撒嬌甜美的聲音中魚經理得到了最實質而激勵的回饋–一顆魚飼料。這個循環餵食機制讓魚經理得以繼續活下去(That’s how we make our living)進而維持整個辦公室生態循環。
展覽最初在台灣新竹科學園區智邦藝術基金會展出
而後獲2006年奧地利電子藝術節(Prix Ars Electronica Interactive Art)入選(Honorary Mention)
“OFFICE LIVE” is one of the experimental projects launched by TechartGroup. It represents the typical scenario and power structure within a comtemporary office in a ironic and humourous way.
How do a goldfish, a vacuum cleaner, and 13 pieces of crumpled paper put on a lively performance of an absurd but yet realistic office scene?
Techart Group’s “Office Live” is an interactive chain-reaction installation that consists of a series of four interconnected units. “Office Live” is an attempt to use the concept of kinetic art to represent the characteristics of modern office automation as well as the working life of the human involved.
The core concept is that the modern office, under a standard management procedure and automated office network and system management, has become a self-organizing and self-generating organism. In that respect, what are the relationships between the working tools and the people involved? The theme of “Office Live” is represented via the working environment of an office and its essential elements. The four units personified a fish manager, creative concept staff, work executor, and administrative staff respectively. Each installation is set on “standby” and “ready to activate”. The “fish manager” plays the role of an immediate domino effect activator. By printing work instructions automatically from a printer and activating various devices sequentially, such as reviving the crumpled papers scattered on the desktop or automatically activating the screen, instantly switching the desktop from private personal tools to a ready workstation. Finally, during the whole process of reporting back to the fish manager, an automated working life circle is completed. There are no actual human involvement and activation throughout the entire process. The activation of the office scene domino effect is done through the swimming of the fish manager.
The four chain units consist of an interactive fish tank with a live fish, self-running crumpled papers, self-playing CDROM player and a desk with changing projected images. Rube Goldberg Machine and Kinetic Art inspire the concept of this chain-reaction installation, but the interactive technical skills enhance the power of chain-reaction and make the installation more dynamic.
This work stresses no actual “human” participation, but rather through interactive chain-reaction kinetic installation, to represent the concept of self-organizing and self-generating modern office operation. It also attempts to contemplate the nature of modern day office lives through this installation.
(以上中英文簡介感謝天工開物Techartgroup提供)
Award
Honorary mentions in Interactive Art, CyberArts 2006
Prix Ars Electronica (http://www.aec.at/en/prix/winners_honorary.asp)
Date: 2006/3
My contribution: Concept development, Multimedia programming (partly), Feeding fishes:P
Photo: courtesy of Techartgroup and Johnny
**Disclaimer: This project was developed with Techartgroup. I claim no ownership over it.
