Interactive video which records short video segments of the viewer which become part of a patte…

Timeframe

Artist Daniel Shiffman (American, born 1973)

Date2003

Mediumsoftware, flat screen tv or monitor, and webcam

DimensionsOriginally shown on a 42 inch plasma screen. Most recently on a 40” LED screen.

Credit LineGift of Daniel Shiffman.

Object number2016.5

On View

Not on view

Copyright© 2002 Daniel Shiffman. The images and text contained on this page are owned by Telfair Museums or used by the Museum with permission from the owners. Unauthorized reproduction, transmission or display of these materials is prohibited with the exception of items deemed “fair use” as defined by U.S. and international copyright laws.Label TextIn the late 19th century, Englishman Eadweard Muybridge photographed progressions of animal and human movements, capturing the beauty of motion. Inspired by Muybridge, Timeframe unlocks the frozen frames of his motion studies with live video. Shiffman’s work invites you to see yourself inside a grid of 1024 frames of video, your movements rippling across and around the screen in a repeating pattern. This art work is created by an algorithm, a set of rules that the program follows, for example: “Create video sequence of 1024 blank images;” “Create table to describe order that frames should appear;” “Repeat as long as the program is running;” “Read current frame from camera and overwrite oldest frame.” Shiffman wrote the code for Timeframe in Processing, a programming language widely used by artists. Look into the webcam attached to the screen. Try touching your head or waving your hand while looking at the piece. How many frames show you completing this motion? Try holding your phone or a piece of paper in front of the webcam to create patterns.

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