portfolio — ida flik
2016
University project

data clocks


A machine that translates data into drawings


Data clocks are an installation that document air pollution in real time. Online openly accessible data is translated into an image humans can read and compare much more intuitively than abstract, numeric data sheets – which is the format data is usually published in. During the course of one day, the pen moves from the middle to the edge and draws a pattern that gives us information about the air pollution values during that day: the darker the pattern, the higher the air pollution at that time. This creates a pattern similar to trees' annual rings, which is also used to interpret and learn about past living conditions.

For this project, I built and programmed the machines to translate data into movement. The machines were exhibited in a row of three, comparing emissions from three places across the world in real time.