Collecting Low Impact Environmental Data with Kites
Chucho (Jesús) Ocampo Aguilar
Artist in Residence, Space Exploration Initiative, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Artist in Residence, Space Exploration Initiative, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Lanzarote
February 2024
Papalotes Atmosféricos, by Chucho (Jesús) Ocampo Aguilar,
introduces a series of wind interfaces designed to
explore kites and wind instruments for the purpose of low impact data
collection and conduits for performative environmental observation and
non-cartesian mapmaking.
In this fieldwork exploration, kite strings resonated with the sound of the wind, while sensors and cameras were lifted into the sky to capture Calima dust storms carried from the Sahara desert and other meteorological phenomena; fieldwork brought to life. As Artist in Residence with the MIT Space Exploration Initiative’s Lunar research in Lanzarote, Chucho’s artistic research methods highlighted a sense of site specificity to the space analogue landscape.
Researcher:
Chucho (Jesús) Ocampo Aguilar
Special thanks:
MIT Media Lab
Carmelo Peña Santana & Jable de TAO
Timanfaya National Park
Laboratorio de Geociencias de Lanzarote
In this fieldwork exploration, kite strings resonated with the sound of the wind, while sensors and cameras were lifted into the sky to capture Calima dust storms carried from the Sahara desert and other meteorological phenomena; fieldwork brought to life. As Artist in Residence with the MIT Space Exploration Initiative’s Lunar research in Lanzarote, Chucho’s artistic research methods highlighted a sense of site specificity to the space analogue landscape.
Researcher:
Chucho (Jesús) Ocampo Aguilar
Special thanks:
MIT Media Lab
Carmelo Peña Santana & Jable de TAO
Timanfaya National Park
Laboratorio de Geociencias de Lanzarote
Photos: Maggie Coblentz