Brief Project Description

Using mobile phones, "ZeroOne to the Globe—The World to San Jose" will produce and distribute syndicated SMS and MMS messages to link participants and visitors to ZeroOne San Jose 2006 and to world events.

Daily reports produced on site will link events in San Jose to subscribers worldwide. A parallel track of messages produced and harvested worldwide will bring international news and narratives to ZeroOne attendees.

The project highlights the shifting locus of the Internet to mobile devices, as well as the activist, global ‘DIY journalism’ potential of emerging technologies.

Full Description

Using mobile phones, "ZeroOne to the Globe—The World to San Jose" will produce and distribute syndicated SMS and MMS messages to link participants and visitors to ZeroOne 2006 and to world events[see figure a.],

Daily reports produced on site will link events in San Jose to subscribers worldwide. A parallel track of messages produced and harvested worldwide will bring international news and narratives to ZeroOne attendees. [see figure b.]

The project highlights the ubiquity of electronic communications and the shifting locus of the Internet to mobile devices, as well as the activist, global ‘DIY journalism’ potential of emerging technologies.

Form and content for the SMS messages are inspired by Yahoo and AP’s often enigmatic, Zen-like and surprisingly lyrical SMS offerings, e.g.: "White House to Release Oil from Reserves," “Experts Warn Debt May Threaten Economy,” “Organized Labor at Crossroads with Feud,” “Economist Blames Aid for Africa Famine.” Our interest in experimental narrative and the conventions of peer-to-peer text-messaging and of blogging also help define our editorial strategies.

With the ‘higher end,’ rich content, syndicated mobile audio and video component of the project, we will transmit creative non-fiction and fiction microcinema works to users with compatible mobile devices. The films of the pioneering Lumière Brothers and of Errol Morris bookend our inspiration points for the videos, as is Ira Glass’ “The American Life” for the audio works. A sample of earlier, related works produced as part of 2004–America & The Globe are online at www.america-the-globe.net/media-platform.php?mediatype=v

Additional materials will be harvested from media RSS feeds and newspaper covers, along with timely arts, culture and technology items.

Subscribers will have the option to select the number of text and/or video messages they wish to receive during the life of the project.

A companion web site will document and archive the project, allowing access to the project to people without SMS and MMS-capable cell phones.

Onomy Labs, collaborating partner in the project will help with conceptual design and technology developement. Onomy Labs, led by fellow Xerox PARC alumni Dale MacDonald and Scott Minneman, designs and creates interactive systems for museum displays.

The project is in development at The University of Iowa in the School of Art & Art History Intermedia Area, in conjunction with Onomy Labs, Inc., Menlo Park, California. It parallels related research and development for media projects including “T2ST,” a permanent display for the Liberty City Science Center, Jersey City, New Jersey; “Goal 2006!,” a project focusing on the World Cup in the era of globalization, worldwide and on site at the Württembergische Kunstverein, Stuttgart, Germany; and “The Iowa City Diaries,” a new media literature work for TIRWeb, the online companion to the Iowa Review.

Budget Notes: Project costs are estimated at $4,500. to cover travel, equipment, display costs and a research assistant stipend.

Documentation of previous, related work is online at www.uiowa.edu/~interart/jwinet/documentation.html

Jon Winet
jon-winet@uiowa.edu

fig a. [click on image for larger version]



figure b. [click on image for larger version]




figure c. Field Studio - DiverseWorks, Houston, Texas 2004 installation element of "2004—America & The Globe" exhibition.