Aerial Painting Hands (APH) was developed by the Computer Music Lab of CNUCE/C.N.R. located in Pisa, Italy to aid in “computer graphic performances.” The system consists of video camera, digitizer card, computer, MDI cable, synthesizer, amplifier, projector, and loud speakers. On a basic level, the system allows a “painter” to perform various, mildly guided hand movements that are then translated into paint strokes and colors, which are projected onto a large screen. APH is primarily a image analysis system. The painter must wear two white gloves which have three areas of color to help determine movement and position in a x-y plane. The left hand is used for color selection while the right is used to determine brush strokes and resulting sounds. The projected canvas can thus be considered an instrument where pitch is controlled by y-coordinate of the hand and and duration by the x-coordinate. This system provides interesting possibilities for playing with the connections amongst movement, color, and sound. It provides a great interactive, multidisciplinary canvas.

(Sorry, couldn’t post a picture as the information was embedded in a PDF file. Click on the link to view the set-up and explore other interesting devices created by this group.)