We are all witnesses to vast technology advancement, and it’s fun to watch how it can be used for art. Artist Damien Henry seems to think so as well, so he wanted to see what happens when he uses machine learning to create a video – from a single image.
He used a prediction algorithm and gave it one photo at the beginning. From then on, the machine calculated each following frame and predicted what it would look like. The result is almost an hour long video composed of more than 100,000 frames, and it’s pretty impressive.
As the artist himself states, there is no editing and post-processing in the video whatsoever. He used one image at the beginning, and the algorithm calculated the frames to follow one by one, predicting what it would look like. He used the track from Steve Reich called “Music for 18 Musicians,” and for a dreamy and trippy video like this, it’s really a perfect choice.
My first though when seeing this video was traveling by a train, and I believe most of you will have the same thought. I travel this way a lot, and those hours are a time when I stare out the window, listen to music and think. This video, along with the accompanying music, reminded me of those moments. Staring out the window, occupied with my own thoughts, and a bit drowsy from the long ride. And what’s more, some parts of the algorithm-generated scenery actually resemble the scenery I see on the way to my hometown.
All in all, I find this video quite impressing. It’s not perfect, of course, but when you think that it’s created from only one photo, you can’t help but wonder what the technology will bring us in future and how it will affect art. I am definitely curious to see that.
[Music for 18 Musicians – Steve Reich ; Video clip made with Machine Learning. via Gizmodo]
