FRICKbits is live!! It's free, no catch. Download it now.

2014-10-31 08.55.39 download_button

Don't hesitate, hit the download now. It's going to take you a few days, weeks to really collect enough data to actually have it feel like art or anything resembling your patterns. Don't worry, I never see your data, everything all resides on your phone. If you are super curious, --go to my FRICKbits site, the privacy policy is on the front page.

It's taken years to get this first step. I almost can't believe it's live.

And this is just the beginning, I believe all that data and surveillance about you is meaningful. Perhaps the secret to figuring out who you are, rather than hide…I say grab it all. “Take back your data and turn it into art”. This app will get better, the algorithm will convey more and have more complexity. Just get started. !!

FRICKbits? Where did this come from?

FRICKbits iphone app, captures your pattern of movement and turns it into art. It looks a little obscure, but Jennifer Lepies  from Business Geomatics sent me a note last week saying "... I meant to write something about geo data connecting with art for a long time, your idea and the upcoming app FRICKbits seems to be perfect."

You describe yourself in your CV as a "data artist". You have a background in engineering and high-technology. How come you finally got hooked on art? Even so intense that you went back to school for it.

I was always a ‘Maker’, and for my whole life was always making things. Even when I worked in tech, I ran a computer hardware team that created and made new consumer products. My mother and sister were artists, it didn’t seem that odd to me. What I learned from art school is that you pull from your own experience, and my experience was the love of data and technology.

How did it happen that you got your first steps to the iphone app?

Mostly I make hand-built artwork from self-tracking data. After making a studio full of wall size patterns from weight, sleep, daily time, internet use, mood, walking and location data I could see we unconsciously have very eloquent rhythms. We recognize something human in these data patterns, and don’t know why it feels familiar. I thought “why can’t everyone have human data portraits of themselves?” Maybe the future is 3D printed textured wallpaper from our data…but in the meantime, how do we do this on an iPhone? We all carry a phone everywhere, maybe that is the best place to keep a data portrait with you at all times.

How does the program FRICKbits work? Which data sets are used for the portrait? And how do the color patterns evolve?

We imagined FRICKbits could produce pattern from an algorithm, a set of rules that draw colored pattern based on a set of measurements. I had made a series of hand constructed artworks that combined steps, GPS location, weather and scenery to make abstract collage, that were actually based on a bunch of measurements. We used this idea and simplified it, knowing we can add more complexity to the algorithm later on. FRICKbits uses GPS location data that we down-sample and abstract into line and bits based on frequency of travel. It’s organized so things keep to a grid. Color palettes are made to feel like the light and color of a city or place. You earn small bits and clusters for the places you go all the time, like home and work. It’s vector based, but we modeled the look after a series of my watercolor pattern portraits.

Before you started transforming location data /tracking data into art you gathered all other sorts of data like internet use, sleep or weight. What is - as an artist - so special and appealing about location/tracking data for you?

Everyone has now been trained to see maps from a google view, we used to hand-draw little diagrams for each other to find our house, or find our way to a party. Now we always see our travel path in perfect accurate scale. But -- that’s not how we remember it. We don’t recall or reconstruct our physical travels in linear time or with accurate coordinates. It’s a good metaphor for art. After tracking my location for years now, I could see we tend to travel the same places repeatedly, and occasionally venture outside our normal rhythms. The pattern of where you move in a city or travel is a very personal type of portrait, a GPS ‘location-selfie’.

FRICKbits_3phonesNowadays collecting data to use it for some reason is sort of a sore spot. Can you explain why you go with your FRICKbits app to that "wound"?

Right now, it hurts when people talk about the data surveillance of their personal habits. Lots of data is tracked about us and it’s hidden or simply not shared. As a data activist, it feels like we’ll get further if we don’t hide, but demand more. I love the things I learned from self-tracking. I say, go the other way, and push companies to share your data back with you. I bet people would be astonished with how much is known about them, and the patterns extrapolated and predictions made about them.

People look at me and ask “what would I possibly do with my data?” – “Turn it into art!” I say. It’s not so crazy, it’s another version of a data-selfie. How else will be begin to shift the equilibrium and have a chance as individuals to fight back, and have a say about the data collected on us?

FRICKbits is a project on kickstarter these days. The campaign still runs until September 7th. The pledge was 7,500 US-dollars and the people already contributed almost 3 times that amount. You're probably quite happy about that result?! How does it bring FRICKbits forward?

Yes, I was stunned. I think people are starting to realize they want their data to mean something, to take it back. We learned from our initial beta testing this month that users were captivated by their travel patterns, but it wasn't enough to see the art-patterns animated on the screen. Because it’s an app, they wanted to play with it, have a little more control to manipulate  their personally made data portrait. We’re scrambling to add some gesture controls, and then add a way to print out what you've created. I’m using the funds raised for more development to make FRICKbits work better. It’s really exciting.

FRICKbits - press release

Your data can now be art on your phone

Artist created free iPhone app to help users reclaim their data and turn it into art

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Austin, Texas -- After a year where many have agonized about all the data gathered about us (e.g., clicks, searches, location, likes) and we’ve learned the meaning of metadata, an artist demonstrates the first chance for you to take back your data and make it artful. Laurie Frick has been transforming her personal data, including location, steps, sleep and weight into abstract, hand-built wall size installations for years.

This year, she teamed up with digital design company thirteen23 to build a free iPhone app to make art algorithms turn your tracking data into abstract patterns on your phone. Launching in September in the Apple store, Laurie Frick is in the midst of a Kickstarter campaign to draw a community of beta testers and art enthusiasts to be the first to download and try FRICKbits when it goes live.

“Art from data was a compelling idea, and we’re drawn to solving new problems in mobile technology” said Doug Cook, founder of thirteen23, “We had never seen a mathematical algorithm tackle the problem of color, shape or pattern let alone express location as hand-drawn art on the phone.”

Many websites and fitness apps gather pedometer and location data, but the output has a cold, clinical feel of infographics. Coming from an artist, this app has the characteristics of hand crafted watercolor drawings and attempts to change the way you see the data gathered about you. Out of the gate, FRICKbits uses your location data to draw the patterns of where you travel in a city, or for that matter – anywhere on the globe. “Location data is the easiest to understand, and we tend to go the same places over and over” said artist, Laurie Frick “the pattern of your movements in a city are beautiful and yet often ignored, we just don’t think about them. The repetition of travel patterns and stray movements can transform into an abstract data portrait of you.”

FRICKbits gathers occasional location data, a clever means to not have any noticeable impact on battery life and shows actual location with tiny monotone dots and brightly colored art dots on a clean white map. While the user can choose and change color palette at any time, they ‘earn’ smaller colored bits and clusters for the locations traveled most frequently. Long stretches of pattern stand in for the occasional and high-speed movements. Location data accumulates, and the pattern gathers richness and texture over time. Touch the screen and you shift back and forth from the actual map to the art rendering of your travel patterns. As for privacy, the data belongs only to the user, and it’s up to them to share it via social media, email or text. One button lets you export data or clear it at any time.

Is this the beginning of how personal data will crossover into the world of art? Self-tracking data will be the ultimate ‘data-selfie’, personal data portraits gathered over time on our phones. It’s your life, it’s your data — why not turn it into art?

About

Laurie Frick is a data artist from Austin, Texas who makes hand-built work from self-tracking data, and had an idea that the artistic rules and procedures were really an algorithm to turn anyone’s data into abstract patterns of art. Two years ago, she set out to make an iPhone app…and long story short, met thirteen23 and made a trade. One of the most amazing mobile technology shops in Austin, Texas got a full lobby installation based on their chat metadata, and Laurie Frick got the first iteration of the FRICKbits free iPhone app. Laurie Frick exhibits widely, and is represented by Edward Cella Gallery in Los Angeles.

thirteen23 is an award-winning design studio specializing in digital strategy, user experience design, and software development. Founded in 2006 and based in Austin, Texas, thirteen23 combines breakthrough design with cutting-edge technology to create innovative digital products for its clients. From startups to the Fortune 500, we’ve worked for some of the best, including Electronic Arts, Honeywell, Vice Media, Food Network, and Obama for America. For more information contact us at business@thirteen23.com.

Contact: Laurie Frick, FRICKbits Phone 512.350.5511 laurie@FRICKbits.com http://www.lauriefrick.com @FRICKbits

Take back my data... will art be the beginning of a data revolution?

FRICKbits_pencil_2phones_orange_nologo_72Yesterday, @PJPangburn sent inteview questions for an article about FRICKBits. What was the lead-up to making FRICKbits, this iphone app that turns data into art? What is your background in working with data? I know you work with self-tracking data. Do you use other types of data, and how does this manifest in your art?

Measuring sleep was the self-tracking data that really got me hooked. I have a background in engineering and came up through the ranks in tech companies, quit, went back to graduate school in art and melded the two. The intense curiosity for self-tracking started 4 years ago with measuring how people spend time during the day and during the night. I measure a ton of data about myself, and we run the Austin chapter of the Quantified Self. Turns out sleep data is like a fingerprint, everyone is different but uniquely identifiable. It just hit me, self-tracking data is like a pattern portrait of you.

What was the genesis of FRICKbits?

After making a studio full of hand-built patterns from weight, sleep, daily time, internet use, mood, walking and location data I could see we unconsciously have very eloquent rhythms. We recognize something human in these data patterns, and don’t know why it feels familiar. I thought “why can’t everyone have human data portraits of themselves?” Maybe the future is 3D printed textured wallpaper from our data…but in the meantime, how do we do this on an iPhone?

How did you go about conceiving of and designing it? 

We tried to do it ourselves using Phonegap, and could see that gorgeous simplicity in an iPhone app is the result of complex code, and serious expertise. Magically I got a call from thirteen23, probably the most talented digital design shop in Texas and we quickly agreed on a trade. Straight swap. They wanted to bring some life to the lobby in their new office, and I needed an iphone app. Quickly, we agreed that location data is the easiest for people to understand, they’re familiar with how a route looks on a map. Poof and off we went.

What software did you use? 

FRICKbits runs native on IOS, and there is a lot of performance tuning to make the animation lively and quick.

Is this a way of giving people power over their smartphone and mobile device data?

Right now, it’s a ‘one-sided handshake’, lots of data is tracked about us and it’s hidden or simply not shared. As a data activist, it feels like we’ll get further if we don’t hide, but demand more. Go the other way, and push companies to share your data back with you. I bet people would be astonished with how much is known about them, and the patterns that are extrapolated along with predictions made about their behavior. People look at me and ask “what would I possibly do with my data?” – “Turn it into art!” I say. It’s not so crazy, it’s another version of a data selfie. How else will be begin to shift the equilibrium and have a chance as individuals to fight back, and have a say about the data collected on us? I have a science fiction fantasy that we boost our immune system with mindfulness delivered from data portraits. Art functions as a necessity of daily life.

Do you think that people shouldn't be so afraid of the data they produce?  

I think people should be aware of the data they produce, it’s possible the social good will trump privacy. And we’ll begin to get a sense of ourselves, some level of self-awareness. But this is not like eating vegetables, art makes data sticky. We might actually love it.

You talk about fitness data being cold and clinical. I assume other data feels this way to you. How does your app's algorithm make art taht is the polar opposite?

We modeled the algorithm and pattern from my hand-drawn ink and watercolor pattern portraits. It’s a vector based system that mimics squiggly lines and the feel of something hand crafted.

What data can FRICKbits use to make art?

Out of the gate, we are using location data, actually occasional location data so we don’t kill the phone battery. The patterns get better with time, and we don’t want people to turn it off after a few days – so FRICKbits has no impact on battery life. People travel the same places over and over, and it’s quite beautiful the way you cover your route to and from work. Eventually we can draw FRICKbit patterns from any data. I like the idea of using the M7 chip and gathering your speed during the day. Anything that is very indicative of you, but totally unconscious, maybe credit card spending or how often you touch the screen of your phone would be fun data sources.

Any final thoughts on data and art both in the present and future?

I’m very excited about self-tracking data’s ability to predict. Prediction is very close, it’s going to explode people’s minds.

Will artists will profit off their own data after they make into art

Yes, artists will profit from their data, but they will also profit from turning other people’s data into art….cause an app economy will develop around access to more individual personal data.  If more people demand their data, I can see a whole app economy around art from data, analysis tools, coaching and research. Lots of small start-ups and apps that could benefit from people giving private access to narrow segments of their personal data. I don’t think it changes the incentives for large corporations like google and facebook to benefit from tracking us, but if they are required to transparently give it back to us, we might find clever ways to get some meaning out of it.

Launching a kickstarter for FRICKbits tomorrow!

I'm both kindof excited and scared to death. I'm getting ready to push the 'go' button for a kickstarter campaign for FRICKbits tomorrow. (it's LIVE now)FRICKbits_2pencil_phones I make hand-built work from self-tracking data, and realized the rules and procedures I follow are really an algorithm to turn anyone’s data into abstract patterns of art. Two years ago, I set out to make an iPhone app…and long story short, I met thirteen23 and we made a trade. One of the most amazing mobile technology shops in Austin Texas got a full lobby installation based on their chat metadata, and I got the first iteration of the FRICKbits iPhone app. And now I sorely need some funding help to get the free iPhone app into your hands, and finish development. Take back your data and let it mean something to YOU. 

All the tiny measurements can add up to a data portrait of you. Have you ever wondered what’s really known about you? Everything you post, every time you use a credit card, your phone log, search history, your location …mostly it’s a little creepy, and after we revoke a couple permissions for apps we don’t much care about, we try to forget about it. It feels hopeless. Usually when things are the darkest it’s exactly the time it starts to turn around. We’re at that moment right now, it’s not hopeless. But instead of agonizing about every big corporation tracking us …take back your data and make it something good. Use technology to boost a little self-reflection. Not ugly graphs and charts…but genuine art.

REWARDS are gorgeous heavy metal limited kickstarter edition of Pattern Portraits that inspired the look of FRICKbits.

5_Pattern_Portrait_colors_72

The print on heavy metal has got to be seen to be believed, is also waterproof so you can put them in a kitchen, bathroom, on your desk or in a book shelf. The last award has big size prints too. Choose several and give the others as gifts. Seriously, my work has never been priced so cheap. Am putting every bit of energy into launching this app, am super excited, really want to make the rewards for supporting FRICKbits irresistible!