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mechanical artwork by jo fairfax generates japanese zen gardens
jo fairfax's animated drawing machines reflect a dialogue of natural and mechanical forces, and activate with viewers' movements.
artist jo fairfax created automated drawing machines inspired by japanese zen gardens. the artist’s programming experience coupled with his appreciation for the sensibility of zen gardens, led him to design this mechanical artwork.
iron filings charge as magnets rotate
the artist took inspiration from a TV program that featured a walkthrough of japanese zen gardens. he watched how a zen garden gardener spoke about his sensitivity towards the different elements that took part in the making of such landscapes. the forms and materiality of the gardens appealed to fairfax and he set about making machines to recreate a similar aesthetic.
motion sensor activates the motor and movement of the magnets
the machines generate shapes in iron filings, in response to people approaching them. fairfax programmed an arduino uno to set off a mechanism with integrated magnets below the platform of iron filings. each time a viewer approaches the machine, it starts to ‘draw’ and agitate the black particles, moving them around the platforms. slowly the drawings become three dimensional and the sense of the magnets’ tracing becomes visible.
charged iron filings sway as magnets move creating a texturized surface
the charged iron filings create varying geometric clusters that shape the zen gardens. the drawing machines reveal the forces acting on them, imitating grass and sand that react to the natural force of the wind. the gesture of the viewer’s movement that activates the machine coupled with the magnetic power makes the artwork become a dialogue of forces… elegant and subtle, just like a zen garden.
a wave pattern produced mechanically
iron filings build up forms over time revealing geometric traces
the zen garden drawing machines reveal a physical result of the forces acting on them
the machines create ongoing three dimensional drawings
zen garden machine
each mechanical garden has a motor and series of magnets that create forms in iron filings
an arduino uno is placed in each artwork
