ZeroOne San Jose: A Global Festival of Art on the Edge and ISEA2006 Symposium presents

Ryoji Ikeda – C⁴I + datamatics [ver.1.0]

Directed by Ryoji Ikeda
Concept, Video, Music: Ryoji Ikeda
Computer Graphics & Video Editing for C⁴I: Shohei Matsukawa, Daisuke Tsunoda
Computer Graphics and Programming for datamatics: Shohei Matsukawa, Daisuke Tsunoda, Tomonaga Tokuyama
Produced by Forma

C⁴I (2004 – present) and datamatics [ver.1.0] (2006) are the two audiovisual concert pieces in Ikeda’s latest body of work, datamatics. Using data as both material and theme, the datamatics project is a long-term programme of moving image, sculptural, sound and new media works by Ikeda that explore the ways in which data is used to encode, understand and control our world.

Both a concert and a film, C⁴I merges video footage with digital graphics, accompanied by a soundtrack mixed live by the artist. In this highly atmospheric work, Ikeda strives for an aesthetic of pure data. Blurring the lines between nature, science and philosophy, the work subtly and hypnotically suggests the convergence of the real and the virtual.

Using pure data as a source for sound and visuals, datamatics [ver.1.0] combines dynamic, computer-generated imagery with a meticulous layering of sonic components. Ikeda’s graphic renderings of data progress through multiple dimensions, from patterns derived from hard drive errors and studies of software code to seemingly infinite vistas created by four-dimensional mathematical processing.

Japan's leading electronic composer/artist, Ryoji Ikeda, focuses on the minutiae of ultrasonics, frequencies and the essential characteristics of sound itself. Since 1995, Ikeda has been intensely active through concerts, installations, and recordings, integrating sound, acoustics and sublime imagery. He has exhibited and performed at many of the world's leading festivals and venues, including: the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, 2005 (Melbourne); Centre Pompidou 2004, La Villette 2002 (Paris); Sónar 2006 (Barcelona); Barbican 2006, Hayward Gallery 2000, Millennium Dome 2000, Queen Elizabeth Hall 2000, Tate Modern Turbine Hall 2006 (all London); Auditorium Parco della Musica 2003 (Rome); ICC 2005, Tokyo International Forum 2006 (Tokyo); Göteborg Biennial 2003 (Göteborg). In 2001, he was awarded the Ars Electronica Golden Nica prize in the digital music category and he was short-listed for a World Technology Award in 2003.

datamatics is co-commissioned by ZeroOne San Jose: A Global Festival of Art on the Edge and ISEA2006 Symposium and AV Festival 06. Supported by Arts Council England, Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media (YCAM) and Recombinant Media Labs

C⁴I is commissioned by Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media (YCAM), Japan, 2004. Supported by Arts Council England