Aerial views of our surroundings often give us surprising insights into the world we live in. Who hasn’t ridden in an airplane and marveled at the unexpected shapes of city grids and their countryside counterparts? Seoul, Korea photographer Hosang Park uses photography from above to create unique and compelling views of Korean parks and public spaces. They’ve been compared to circuit boards, and it’s easy to see why: each element looks carefully laid out and very deliberately placed.

Hosang Park began taking pictures of the public spaces from the upper floors of surrounding high-rises in 2004. The parks, undoubtedly meant to be welcoming, comfortable places for families to gather, look stark and barren from above. Because of the angle of the photographs, their inorganic planned nature is apparent. Any sense of depth is erased by the angle and field of the photographs, leading the viewer to see public spaces that are surprisingly akin to abstract geometric paintings.

The lack of organic feeling in these spaces adds fuel to the idea that they represent real-life circuit boards. It almost makes you wonder if the resemblance to electronics parts was intentional on the part of the city planners. Either way, it seems obvious that the planners were striving for a futuristic utopian setting…but based on the lack of people enjoying these outdoor spaces, it’s safe to say that they aren’t quite the urban paradises they were planned to be.

According to the artist, his intention was to shed light on “the stark realities of democracy” in Korea – in a funny way. And because he took care to simply present the spaces instead of telling their story, he does make it easy for viewers to reach their own conclusions about the photographs. The collection, called A Square, was recently exhibited in New York, the photographer’s first solo U.S. show.

The post Nerd’s Eye View: Korean Circuit Board Landscapes first appeared on Gajitz.

Not long ago, a sweet little robot came along and stole our hearts. His only concern was making the world a better, cleaner place, and he asked for nothing more in return than a few dust bunnies. Now, Roomba is finally getting his moment in the spotlight. Someone had the great idea to set up a camera in a darkened room to take long-exposure shots of Roomba scuttling around, and Roomba photography has taken off from there. The idea is similar to other light painting or light graffiti, with the notable exception that Roomba is a machine, so lacks the ability to consciously draw pretty pictures with its light.

The path of the Roomba can seem alternately haphazard and well-orchestrated, depending on the picture. In some, the little robot vacuum seems to clean every last inch of the floor. In others, it’s like it’s dancing because no one is watching. But in every one, the LED trail it leaves behind describes some very interesting and lovely patterns. By changing the color of the LED, or by using differently colored lights for different parts of the Roomba’s action, the entire composition can change.

At the 2007 Maker Faire, someone even demonstrated how Roomba can draw awesome Spirograph-type pictures with a pen attached to it. The Roomba photography trend has led to a Flickr group of nothing but art created by roving Roombas. It’s a bit under-populated at the moment, but we can only guess that as more people see what great art these little cleaning machines can make, more people will start recording it.

The post Art That Doesn’t Suck: Light Painting With Roomba first appeared on Gajitz.

Have you ever asked yourself what might happen if humans weren’t at the top of the food chain? What might life be like if we could be plucked from our daily routines and manipulated by some outside force? London artist Chris O’Shea developed a playful public art exhibit for the BBC Big Screen in Liverpool that teases and plays with passersby. The screen features a live feed from the street, showing the pedestrians below it. As they make their way across the square,, a giant hand darts across the screen to poke, tickle, flick or pinch them right off of the screen in real time.

Hand from Above from Chris O’Shea on Vimeo.

The installation is called Hand From Above, and it’s geek art at its finest. It was created, according to the artist, to encourage people to slow down in the midst of their daily routines. By throwing something completely unexpected into their day, O’Shea is injecting a little laughter into everyone’s lives. If the video above is any indication, most pedestrians love the project. Only a few walked by without even a smile, and most who saw themselves being harassed on-screen stopped to play along.

The post Monty Python + Kids in the Hall = Geeky Public Art Billboard first appeared on Gajitz.