Readings in Organized Chaos

Fig. 2. Max Lanier and Lora McDonald, book elements from Readingsin Organized Chaos, interactive reading installation, 1993-present. "Chaotic books" are created from a marriage of discarded books and detritus to act as visual and tactile cases for screens that display "bytes" of electronic information. The books are connected to a large reading table that houses the bank of information chaos while establishing an environment for the reader. the parallels between the broken hearts of lovers and the broken hearts of warriors . Talking about broken hearts at the individual and social levels implies walking a fine line between a soap opera and real drama. There are always two versions of a story, especially when it comes to broken hearts. Whether the heart of a nation or the heart of an individual have been broken, we usually encounter truth and deception walking hand in hand, acceptance and denial side by side-attack and defense, winner and loser, right and wrong: broken heart. The first version of the installation, presented in 1992 as part of a cultural festival in Mexico City that commemorated the 500th Anniversary of the discovery of the Americas, consisted of various parts. At its heart, an interactive computer program allowed the audience to select a variety of images and sound options. The interactive texts were written by the artist and recorded by friends and professional actors. Around the installation were several computer-generated images created through a combination of digital printing and traditional printmaking techniques . Several objects related to the topic were scattered throughout the space occupied by the installation. The system utilized for presenting the interactive installation Broken Heart responded to selections made by the audience through a mouse connected to a computer. All the responses from the system resulted in animated sequences displayed on the computer screen and texts recited through the computer's speakers. The images in Broken Heart were created with computer-graphic techniques. The general process consisted of simulating three-dimensional textured models of all the objects represented in the images, for example, a crystal heart and a human torso. The image applied as a texture on most of the objects simulated with the computer came from the photograph that I took a while ago of a torn plum. The original Broken Heart interactive installation contained seven animated sequences and 20 recited texts. The computer system included an Apple IIci with 32 Mb of RAM, a RasterOps 24STV 24-bit graphics card, a 400-Mb external hard disk and a 70-Hz stereo speakers. The second version of the Broken Heart installation has two new features: it includes video sequences in addition to the digital imagery, and it is multilin304 Words Oil Works gual. Participants can see individuals from different ethnic backgrounds as they "recite" the texts. Participants can also choose several languages for the audio delivery of the texts. This version of Broken Heart is contained in a CORaM (compact disc-read only memory) and makes extensive use of the Quicktime compressed-video format. READINGS IN ORGANIZED CHAOS Max Lanier and Lora McDonald, 823 S. Ash, Tempe, AZ 85281, U.S.A. Email : . Readings in Organized Chaos, a work in progress, consists of a large library table surrounded by wooden chairs. From the center of the table radiate cables/ lifelines, each terminating at a book. The bodies of these tomes are comprised of actual (discarded) books: once containers of knowledge (encyclopedias , dictionaries); of law (law books, driving manuals); of culture (literature and history); of trash (pulp novels, magazines, newspapers)-now disposable (Fig. 2). The marriage of this "discarded knowledge" and other pieces of detritus from our society forms the basis for this work. The books are wrapped and rebound with fragments of society's castoffs: from a tree-shaped air freshener discarded in a parking lot to the antiquated mainframe computer that sits gathering water and dust behind some academic-looking building. Eroded by the elements of change/time, these objects and surfaces, which are distinctly humanmade, take on a patina specific to materials in the physical realm. This is in sharp contrast to the quality of information in the digital realm. Today, the aware reader is wired into an information society...