statement

Systems, Synthesis, and the Search for Authentic Representation

My artistic practice and research trajectory emerge from a fundamental insight gained early in my career: systems thinking, when applied across disciplinary boundaries, can profoundly transform creative expression. Through works spanning computational photography, artificial intelligence, and interactive media, I investigate how technological mediation shapes our understanding of truth, authenticity, and representation.

This investigation began during my time in experimental theater, where Keith Johnstone's "Status Games" revealed how subtle shifts in dialogue could fundamentally alter perceived relationships—a dynamic that parallels the interconnected nature of systems design. This realization has evolved into a research methodology that examines how mechanical precision, biological adaptation, and digital processing can collectively expand our expressive capabilities while maintaining fidelity to lived experience.

My current research focuses on three interconnected domains:

First, I explore computational photography as a critical intersection of mediated systems and surveillance. In an era where our phones automatically adjust color and composition while feeding corporate data lakes, my work questions how we might harness these technologies while preserving authentic representation. Projects like "Artifact #1" transform iconic cinema into abstract studies of light and motion, revealing how technological mediation can simultaneously distort and illuminate truth. This investigation extends beyond technical experimentation to examine how computational systems simultaneously constrain and expand our expressive possibilities.

Second, I investigate the relationship between artificial intelligence and creative authenticity. Works like "Nonsense nor Sensibility" (2004) and "Kerouac's Ear" (2008) explore the boundaries between human and machine creativity through stylometric analysis and generative text. These early experiments in AI-driven creativity have evolved into more recent works like "Companions" (2024), which examines how AI systems might augment rather than replace human connection. The latest iteration of this research, "Nearest Neighbor" (2023, with Rebecca Baron), uses humor to critique the transhumanist impulse to replace human understanding with technological substitutes.

Third, I explore how Indigenous knowledge systems offer alternative frameworks for understanding computational processes. The "Songlines to Software" curriculum developed at Scripps College exemplifies this approach, bridging traditional storytelling practices with contemporary mapping technologies. This work suggests how computational thinking might move beyond Western categorical models to embrace more fluid, relational understandings of reality.

These research threads converge in my current investigation of what I term "authentic synthesis"—the challenge of creating new forms of mediated experience that maintain fidelity to lived truth while expanding our expressive capabilities. This work combines precision engineering, biomimetic strategies, and digital signal processing to develop frameworks for artistic creation that honor both technological possibility and human experience.

Looking forward, I am particularly interested in exploring how machine learning might enable more dynamic, responsive forms of audience engagement while preserving artistic intent. This investigation extends beyond technical innovation to examine how emerging technologies might strengthen rather than erode our connection to the natural world and to each other.

Throughout this research trajectory, I maintain a deep commitment to truth in representation and respect for natural systems. Whether working with computational photography, artificial intelligence, or interactive media, I seek to develop frameworks that expand our expressive capabilities while maintaining fidelity to lived experience. This approach suggests new possibilities for artistic creation that honor both technological precision and human authenticity, pointing toward future forms of media that might enhance rather than diminish our understanding of reality.