ASU Herberger College School of Art Faculty:
2006-2007 Exhibition

April 14 through September 9, 2007

MARY BATES NEUBAUER

Mary Bates Neubauer
Monsoon VI, 2006
digital Lambda print
48 x 48"
Courtesy of Bentley Project, AZ

Monsoon has an information-bearing surface created from daily precipitation recordings in the Phoenix area. It is a computer rendering of a virtual 3-D object, with numbers arranged cyclically in 12-month rotations.

The small ripples on the surface of the image are caused by the textural ‘noise’ of a line graph describing the daily fluctuations in rainfall over a 25-year period. Phoenix experiences two monsoon phases annually. The tonality and lighting applied to this image reflect some of the colors and moods of these seasonal events.

This work visualizes information through statistical data. Three-dimensional models for displaying number streams can provide fresh viewpoints on long-term patterns in the global environment and can lead us to consider the larger cycles of nature.

The print in this exhibition is from a series of artworks that focus on the hidden aspects of our surroundings, emphasizing a visual/tactile way of understanding global and metropolitan functions. The project provides a unique way of viewing the behavior of data through time, and has the capacity to interpret all manner of number streams. Input from municipal, corporate, national and global information databanks can be printed as two-dimensional images, produced as sculptural forms and prototypes, or viewed as animations and interactive images on monitors.

Special thanks to Nancy J. Selover, ASU Climatology Department, for providing long-term data on Phoenix temperature, rainfall, dew point and wind speed data.

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