"Dreaming Machine #1 (Prototype)" by Ben Bogart
This installation is the first exhibition of the work in progress entitled "Dreaming Machine". The work is a continuation of the artist's M.Sc. thesis project "Memory Association Machine" (http://www.ekran.org/ben/wp/?p=227). "Memory Association Machine" uses a novel combination of an Artificial Intelligence and a cognitive model of human creativity.
Both "Dreaming Machine" and "Memory Association Machine" are inspired by a cognitive model of creativity and memory. This model is manifested in two processes; first, both systems use an artificial neural network (a Self-Organizing Map) to integrate and organize visual sense experience into a field, and second the process is modeled on a creative free-association where elements of the systems' experience are selected using a model of propagation similar to a cellular automata.
Dreams are a complex interaction between our bodies, minds, memories, and experiences. They are a source of imagination, inspiration, and give insight into the nature of being human. "Dreaming Machine" is a trajectory of artistic works exploring the topic of dreaming. The development of these works will continue through my Ph.D. research into cognitive models of dreaming appropriate to computational implementation in autonomous responsive site-specific installations.
