If you’ve ever found yourself wondering; ‘what kind of art can a robot like Spot the robotic dog do?’, then I’m happy to tell you, dear reader, that you’ll soon be able to go see the dog paint live in a gallery.
This morning when I was writing out today’s edition of 5 Things, one of the items I included was exceptionally peculiar, and is one of my favourite stories that I’ve ever included in the morning wrap-up: The Guardian’s piece on artist Agnieszka Pilat’s robot dog exhibit. What’s the robot dog doing? Why, painting, of course.
We’ve written about Spot in great detail before, he’s one of Gizmodo Australia’s most beloved robots. He’s currently being trialled at the Snowy Hydro facility, has been put to work in Aussie mines, and has been modified with a whole manner of things, although scary in a dystopia way, some users have also weaponised the poor robo-pup, against the wishes of its creator, Boston Dynamics, which is completely against putting weapons on him (although Spot is used by law enforcement around the world).
How about we take a step back, though, and give Spot a paintbrush? Well, that’s what’s happening at the National Gallery of Victoria’s ‘Triennial’ exhibition. The exhibition involves 75 extraordinary projects, ranging from our humble robotic friend, to artistic blends of traditional art and modernity. You’ll even get to see, drumroll please, a banana taped to a wall.
But enough of that art; as cool as it is, I love it when robots do a funky little thing. Here’s Pilat discussing her work in June.
“Heterobota tests our threshold for machines to exist outside of servitude and develop their own creative pursuits. Here, audiences are invited into the home of four-legged robots – Basia Spot, Omuzana Spot and Bunny Spot – to observe and interact with them as they go about their daily routines. Playing, resting and painting in their studio, the robots make their own artworks and their behaviours and creative capacity seemingly echoes our own,” the synopsis of the exhibit reads.
Oh, just a quick note; these units are quite expensive. A single Spot unit can cost as much as $150,000, so having three of them, plus the attachments required to draw on a canvas, makes this experimental exhibit quite pricey.
If you’d like to see Spot’s art exhibit, it’s located on the ground floor of the National Gallery of Victoria’s International section. Additionally, if you’d like to see the artist discuss their work, Pilat will be speaking on December 3 from 3:45pm–4:15pm at the gallery’s great hall.
The National Gallery of Victoria’s ‘Triennial’ exhibition will run from December 3 to April 7, and entry is free.
Image: Agnieszka Pilat/National Gallery of Victoria