Time

Overview

Our understanding of time is often limited to the digital clock on our wrist or phone, connected to satellites orbiting the Earth’s atmosphere. These satellites, whose origins begin in US military research, each carry onboard atomic clocks pinpoint your location and send a globally unified time to your phone.

This time is sent to all of our devices using designed and programmed systems. In other words, this system of time has been intentionally designed. We can thinking of clock time as a form of digitality - by definition, it is made up us digits. This allows us to split up all of our time into discreet segments that are measurable and calculable. I know how long a minute is, and how far tomorrow is.

This form of clock time keeps us on track and allows people, business and governments to all operate on a common schedule. When we look at the time on our phone, we can be confident that everyone else on the globe is look at the same minute and second value although their hour might be different.

Clock time, however, is not the only way we perceive time. Every organism has their own internal time. The earth operates on an imperceivable time scale. Even day to day, minute to minute, time feels different. Most people say a day as a child feels much longer than a day as an adult.

This project asks you to consider what other systems can you design to measure a different form of time beyond clock time. What form of time will you choose to measure?

Description

Part 1: In Search of Personalized Time

Part 2: Your Time

Using p5.js, create a visual clock that displays/tracks time in an experimental or unconventional way. Your clock should not use numerals. Your clock should represent a way of telling or understanding time that is personal to you or you find interesting. As part of this assignment you should spend some time researching different ways of perceiving time and different time scales. This research should inform your project.

Your clock should be cyclical in some way; it does not need to keep track with the 60 minute system, but it must repeat on whichever scale of time you are working with.

In this course we are exploring how to design systems. Consider what system you want to design first, as well as how to best represent it.

Consider color, scale form. How does these influence our feeling of time as we watch your clock? Try to convey the the operating logic of your clock through its visuals. Research a number of artists either working with time or a visual style that you find and engaging. Use these artists are reference points for the visual design of your project.

Submit

  • Fill out form on Canvas
  • Submit to Canvas as either text entry of PDF
    • Submit a short paragraph description of your project. Include the concepts of time and artists you researched. 
    • Submit the title of your project.
    • Submit your p5 share link.
  • Submit p5 share link to the Time channel on Discord

Each student will present their work to the class and should prepare a 1 minute statement on their work which will include a description of their system as well as the artists and concepts of time they researched. Following this statement, there will be a 5 minute open critique in which the students and instructor will comment on the work. During this critique, the students work will be graded by the instructor using the following rubric.

Rubric (10 Points Total)

Concept (3 points)

3: The student went above expectations in their conceptual approach to the project. Their concept of time was researched and communicated through their work. The student pushed themselves to consider a novel interpretation of the project by exploring a concept of time beyond clock time. The student explored time as a designed system, and clearly considered how that could use their knowledge of programming to design a new system for displaying time.

2: The student meet expectations in their conceptual approach to the project. The student presented a thoughtful interpretation of the project prompt and explored a novel conception of time. It is clear the the student did some form of research for the project.

0-1: The student didn’t meet expectations for their conceptual approach to the project. Their concept of time in the project is either closely aligned with clock time or is not communicated through the project.

Code (4 points)

4: Within the project, the student(s) used their introductory programming knowledge to to create a conceptually and technically complex system. The student(s) made use of functions learned in class as well as explored new functions and approaches using p5 documentation or other sources. The student(s) is able to clearly communicate their system and the programming concepts that used to design their project.

3: Within the project the student used their introductory programming knowledge to to create a functional system. The student made use of functions learned in class. The student can communicate their system and the programming concepts that used to design their project.

2: The students project is somewhat functional. Clearly, effort was made to create a functional project, yet the final code contains bugs or errors. The student actively sought for help from the instructor or peers in advance of submission.

0-1: The students project is either non-functional or barely functional. While effort was made to create the project, the final code contains bugs or errors that causes the program to be unable to run. The student did not seek help from the instructor or peers in advance of submission.

Craft (3 points)

3: The student demonstrated exceptional thoughtfulness and intentionality in their visual and motion design. Visual elements of the project are clearly connected with the conceptual approach to the students clock.

2: The visual and motion design of the project is somewhat intentional and can be connected to the conceptual approach to the project.

0-1: The visual and motion design of the project is unrelated to the conceptual approach to the project.

References:

There have also been many different ways of recording time and thinking about time throughout history and in the present!

Many artists have looked towards the concept of time for inspiration:

  • Christian Marclay, The Clock

  • On Kawara, Date Paintings

  • Maarten Baas, Real Time

  • Arthur Ganson, Machine with Concrete

    (Gear reduction by 1/50th, would take over 2 trillion years for the last gear to turn)