Research 2: Cybernetic Artwork

Wen-Ying Tsai: https://vimeo.com/125169556


The first artwork that was explicitly inspired by cybernetics was Nicolas Schöffer's CYSP I, which responded to changes in color, light, and sound by becoming more or less excited. Continuing in this tradition was Wen-Ying Tsai, an architectural engineer-turned-artist who created sculptures out of stainless steel rods, strobe lights, sometimes water jets, and a combination of different sensors. His sculptures responded to sound and proximity changes in their environment by vibrating and emitting light, inviting their viewers to interact with them. Both artists' work can be considered cybernetic because they are both investigating complex interactions between systems. Because of the constantly changing nature of the environments around Schöffer and Tsai's works, and because their works responded based on a combination of different factors, the responses from their sculptures were less predictable than a one-to-one response. Additionally, the sculptures can provoke different responses from the environment (namely the viewers), which will then create different responses in the artworks, and create a feedback loop. And the light and sound that the artworks create not only affect the viewers, but also are reflected back and picked up by the artworks themselves, adding another layer of reflexivity to the piece.

mla citations

find a cybernetic artwork from 1960-present in any medium.

project description/artist's intent
what's the logic used?
what makes this work cybernetic?
600-1000 words, mla cited