Leandro M. Nuñez
Propagations
Argentina, 2007
In Propagaciones, Leandro Nuñez has physically instantiated one of the archetypes of Artificial Life, the cellular automaton, originated by John Conway in 1970. Now usually referred to as the Game of Life or Conways Life, it was itself motivated by John von Neumann’s notion of self reproducing machines. Conways original realisation was physical, sheets of paper on the floor, only later was the CA instantiated in software. Nuñez’ machine installation brings Life back into the real world of dirt and vibrations and inconsistencies, the very unpredictables so difficult to simulate in-silico. Nuñez’ work belongs to a long but minor tradition in the arts, that of the machine-sculptor, epitomized by such disparates as Duchamp, Takis, Tinguely and Ihnatowicz. What unites this group is a desire to connect with fundamental electrophysical realities, and to work artisanally and manually, taking basic mechanical, electro-mechanical and electronic components as a palette, in the production of eloquent artefacts which embody such ideas in a materially sensible, performative mode. Works such as Propagations do not so much depict as enact the behaviours they refer to. Propagaciones is also significant in that it contains no digital technology, reminding us that digital micro electronics is not the sole and privileged location of automated computation.
Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1975. Systems engineer and image and sound designer, he completed a degree in Electronic Arts at the Tres de Febrero National University (Buenos Aires). He worked as a collaborator on the programming of Cultivos estocásticos, by Mariano Sardón (2005), and on the video postproduction of Imágenes de la década peronista, by Gabriela Golder, (2005). He has worked as an editor for various TV stations and has taught the subject of Electronic Image at the Lawrence Bender Chair of the Tres de Febrero National University. He is currently director and editor of the production company Carburando.