[posted by Doug Fox on Great Dance] Tomorrow the web-based dance visualization project Synchronous Objects will launch. Synchronous Objects is a joint project of William Forsythe and Ohio State University’s Advanced Computing Center for the Arts and Design (ACCAD) and the Department of Dance. Tomorrow, April 1st at 3 PM Eastern Time, there will be live streaming of the “Forsythe Symposium: Choreographic Objects.” (The event details page and live-streaming page). Watch an introductory video on the OSU website about the Synchronous Objects project.

The main focus of Synchronous Objects is to develop a set of data visualization tools for capturing, analyzing and presenting the underlying choreographic structures and components of Forsythe’s “One Flat Thing, reproduced” (OFTr), which premiered in 2000. These visualizations in the form of information graphics, 2D and 3D animations and visual dance scores will provide audiences, students and researchers with new approaches to thinking about and studying Forsythe’s intricate, counter-point work.

Here are a few images from the Synchronous Objects photo gallery:

Alignment of Dancers in Animated Form:

Section of a Visual Movement Score:

Geographic Mapping Visualization:

I’ll-be-writing more about Synchronous Objects once it’s up and running. In preparation for its launch, here are some background materials.

Videos of One Flat Thing, Reproduced

On Dailymotion, there are two videos of OFTr – the quality is not that good but it’s still helpful to see these extended clips. Watch part 1 and part 2.

Pacific Northwest Ballet performed OFTr twice last year. In this promotional clip, you can watch short segments and enjoy PNB’s sense of humor as they address the fact that ten audience members walked out of the theater per performance. Plus, the company’s Artistic Director Peter Boal provides some helpful background:

And here’s a another clip of OFTr that includes some solo and close-up shots:

Exploring Visualization Projects and Applications

Data visualization is an ever-growing, innovative field and there are excellent online resources and examples.

To see a variety of data visualizations, visit:

– Information Aesthetics
– EagerEyes.org
– Flowing Data
– Visual Complexity

And also take a look at Many Eyes collaborative visualization application from IBM. Anybody can upload their own data, create a visualization and share it with others.