Data Processing

Self-initiated visual research, in which we look for new ways to show computing processes. Instead of traditional high-tech images that treat digital technologies as something abstract and intangibly futuristic, we referenced bold shapes from industrial and graphic design and mixed them with realistic materials to create a more friendly approach to technology visualization and to accentuate the connection between humans and devices that help us move through our daily lives.

Digital technologies are a part of our world that is tightly integrated with our daily lives but is still something distant and mysterious for a regular user. Even if we vaguely understand the principles of how these technologies work, we perceive them as invisible parts of our devices, not having their own appearance.

Glimpses of these complicated processes happening within black boxes of laptops and smartphones appear on screens in utility software, but their visual language is limited and mostly outdated.

In Data Processing, we tried to find a fresh approach to the depiction of data processing and storage. Referring to mechanical computing devices, like the Curta, we found the tactile connection between faultless calculations and human nature.

Mixing forms found in vintage machines, functionalist and minimalist approaches of schools like Bauhaus and Vkhutemas, and bright colors inspired by the visionary Memphis Group, we created moving objects and static sculptural forms that illustrated different processes.

Some of the influences were more recognizable, like vacuum tubes, while others were based on more abstract concepts and relied on 2D visualizations of operations performed by CPUs.

A more organic touch to the project was added with textured materials and movements, similar to those that we see in living creatures and in natural light.

Combining objectified computing processes with what we find in nature, we aimed to build a friendly and approachable world that would emotionally connect us to what we experience through our laptops and smartphones.