GeoStickies Geographical Interactive Artwork with Mobile phone Network Last Update:Jan 29th,2003 Composite concept sketch: panorama image of Stortorget and map image are from malmo.com GeoStickies is an artwork that explore the possibility of using world spread outed technology -MobilePhone network- as local media : [about:Concept and framework] [Exhibition plan] GeoStikies: about,Concept framework of the artwork There are two advantages in Mobile phone compare with other media. 1)Mobility 2)Popularity When we utilize mobile phone as a medium of artwork, possible audience could access to artwork from anywhere, anytime. We`ve never had this accessbility to the artwork geographically besides the possibility that mobile phone has. How do we define the artwork with this "Mobility" and "Popularity"? This is an aim of this project `GeoStickies`. And also, it is a question that how this medium creates cultural value when we used it as an medium of artwork. GeoStickies project try to suggest one of posibilities for those questions with providing a mobile phone application/art installation. 1: Cultural value of this project: 2: What this artproject suggests to public? 3: Who and where is this artproject`s target? 1: Cultural value of project: In between site specific artwork and media art For longtime now, artists tried to bring artworks out of museum and it was so-called "Public art" or "Art in Public space". As a result, we can see huge size sculpture almost any public plaza in any country. Art is no longer limited in museum space. Sometimes you`ll find some public art project on certain mass media such as newspaper, magazine, TV or enen on World Wide Web(WWW). In art history, those are called "Site specific art" and "Media art". Technologically, Mobile Phone is a result of evolution of technology past decades. It has mobility almost same as newspaper or handy radio. It has limited interactive feature but is catching up to the fuction that World Wide Web and PC has. Then artwork on mobile phone will be called a part of media art which has interactivity and mobility. And there is a possbility to define mobile phone as an medium for artwork in between site specific artwork and media art. Interactivity enables artwork to be place sensitive. Since audience could interact with artwork from anywhere with the sense of place. They are no longer limited in front of monitor screen or video projector when they face to artwork. Now the artwork could react to the place where the audience is. Mobile phone may bring media art into the field, outside of the meseum or computer screen. 2: What this artproject suggests to public? Invisible layers on the place: Place as database of memories, Audience as browser As we have a word "memorial", it isn`t hard to imagine that certain memory is strongly connected where the memory is created. In this way, we could recognize memorials in public plaza or park as a "tag" to pick up our mind to remind certain happening, a piece of history or great person. Remember, the statue in public plaza was created to these purpose. Every statue or sculpture in public plaza used to have certain historical memory behind. Even they still have. But you may agree that those sculptures does not have that strength they used to have. if you agree with it, imagine why it was happen. I assume we may not need the "tag" to big happening as huge sculpture, or we need another form of "tag" for memory ,or we are no longer interested in big happening but small happening in our everyday life. Even I have no clue to prove these things and assunmprion. If we remind what kind of information is running through Mobile Phone Network or e-mail, it could be small personal information rather than big news such as on the top of newspapers. Imagine how much greetings are running over these hi-tech networks! It isn`t be visible since everything is happen on electronic circit. But I assume we already have enough imagination to imagine how it looks like. Someone called this as "Information space". So , where is that? How we can feel it as physical space as well as urban space? GeoStickies is an interactive public artproject that enables us to feel those "Information space" that could have been overrayed on to urbanspace. The project puts some "tags" of small happenings onto geographical fields so that audience can feel correspondance of "Information space" and "Urban space"- like tiny electronic memorials for tiny happenings- The role of mobile phones in this artworkis to make this information space accesible from audience from anywhere through mobile phone. With a help of location information system or short distance wireless network (WiFi or Bluetooth), audience can walk through information spcce as they walk through urban space. See exhibitionplan for detail. The idea of "GeoStickies" is from `POST IT`. Can you imagine if we can stick small memo onto the air or in the middle of the urban space? ..and you wll browse the space of `database of stickies` with walking urban space 3: Who and where is this artproject`s target? Think Globally, Act Locally Mobile artwork as local service Larest size plan Entire City Middle size plan A district of the city Smallest size plan A public plaza, or street Even though mobile phone service is scalable, accesible from anywhere in nation wide service area, target of this artwork is community scale rather than nation wide. It could be a small city or a district of middle size or big city. Even the idea could be applied to much smaller scale -a public plaza. Scale may be limited by condition of avilable technology or type of exhibition. The audience and participants of the artwork is also targeted i(and limited) in each scale. But, since the whole concept and system is applicable to any place in the world where mobile phone exists, the value of the artwork could be recognized as a prototype of future service of mobile phone. In turn, we should not forget the value of the artwork as cultural activity in the city. Since the contents of each stickies `sticks` to personal memory or small happening of residence of the city, it will be a good example of how to use mobile phone and new media art as tool for cultural activity in urban setting. [about:Concept and framework] [Exhibition plan]

GeoStickes: Example of exhibition plan -What is needed- 1:General discription of artwork Following is direct implementation of the idea of "GeoStickies". Which has neighborhood size, entire city scale or size of some streets. The artwork has three elements/phases such as "Geographical database", "Browsing and Entry" and "GeoStickies overview". a) "Geographical database" Tiny electronic memorials for tiny happenings Geographical databese is main component of "GeoStickies" but only visible or able to be experienced through mobile phone of audience or limited occasion such as installation piece in museum or public space. The database is consists of "data cells" which has content and also correspondant geographical /location information so that audience can browse or enter the data from urban space. Audience will see/ hear correspondant data up to where they are. It means each cell is overlayed onto ueban space imaginally. Data cell may correspond to each cell of mobile phone network. Each data cell contains different data up to location (see "Entry" section). Then audience can "browse" or "enter" the data based on location where the happening is happen. See technical detail of geographical database in "System" section *Data type The data type could varies up to availability and popularity of mobile technology. We could put different type of data into geographical database such as "GeoTextStickies","GeoSoundStickies", "GeoPhotoStickies" or "GeoMovieStickies"... b) "Browsing and Entry through mobile phone" Access to invisible database of tiny memorials overlayed on urban space Here is list of some different types of the way of browsing database and entering data into database. Detail will be decided after the aviable technoogy is shown Entry by audience Entry by artist or/and volunteer c) "GeoStickies overview " Bird's view of "GeoStickies" on urbanspace,at museum,on website or on large size videoscreen
2: System
a)Geopraphical database of stickies The database may bulid on www server which is accessible from mobile phone. Contents of each stickies stored in order of geographical location of where the information is created or gatherd. Correspondence of actual location of where audience is accessing to the database (location data of audience`s mobile phone is expected to be provided from mobile phone operator company) and location tag of data on the server enables the database as geographical database. Type of contents differ with different service on mobile phone. Suppose text data is easy to store and could have most broad accessibility from mobile phone. But if we can use multi media send message or graphics on WAP(Wireless Application Protocol) for browsing, we could put different type of data into geographical database. Like "GeoSoundStickies" or "GeoPhotoStickies"...... b) Browsing and Entry Passive browsing: If audience move to one cell to the other while they are moving in urban space, the data which is appearing on mobile phone such as ringer tone changes up to where they are. Or screen saver picture on color screen is changing while they are riding tram or bus. Or text message appears on mobile phone's screen. Or SMS message is sent to mobile phone. Active browsing: If "passive" way is not possible, we could chose this way. Active browsing means just like we do on web browsing. Audience need to access to web site of "GeoStickies" on WAP function of mobile phone each time. c)Alternative technique for the case of if we can not use location information These are alternative idea to get location information without mobile network's location data service *Using stickers and/or posters with location ID# This is low-tech substitute of location data from mobile phone network which uses sticker or poster that sticks on urbanspace. Each sticker or poster has unique location ID number and ID number is correspond to the location tag on geographical database. Sticker or poster shoud be sticked onto well kown and prominent place. Sticker/Poster includes a note of how to use "Geostickies" service as well as concept and location ID so that any possible audience who has mobile phone can access to "GeoStickies" using this direction and location ID printed on sticker/poster. The problem of this alternative way is the area of "GeoStickies" service may be limited by the capability of how many sticker/poster will be shown in urban space. And also, because of any audience should input location ID# on WAP webpage on their mobie phone, accessibility is not same as the case of if we can use location data from mobile phone network. *Using ZipCode If the city where the "GeoStickies" is held has "Zip code" -which is used for postal service-, the code could be substitute of location data from mobile phone network. Problem is Zip code may not have same resolution as mobile phone network`s cell has and most of the audience would not know what the Zip code of each location is. Even US and Japan has Zip code system, people normally knows Zipcode only their residencial place.
[about:Concept and framework] [Exhibition plan]