Figment
Using machine learning for students can still be daunting. In recent years, the situation has been improved by libraries such as ml5.js, which make machine learning available to anyone with a basic knowledge of coding. But linking all these different components together is still a lot of work.
The goal of Figment is to be the easiest tool to start using AI for creative purposes. After you download and run the tool, you can set up a simple drawing application that uses your body with a few clicks. The basic methodology is that of visual coding, which we also used in the NodeBox project based on previous research.
Figment was used in a one-day pre-master class in March 2020 with 10 students. Within a few hours, students, some with no prior programming skills, were able to create projects that used machine learning to do pose detection, collage generation and more.
Projects
The following projects were made using Figment:
Cyber Sensuality
AI dancer trained at LAbO 2021
Does AI Dream of Gender?
Interactive AI installation at WRO Biennale
Flesh to Foliage
Cyberfeminist AI dance performance
Hunger of the Pine
AI artwork for The Sustainist Gaze at Z33
Maureen
Real-time AI face and character by Alexandra Fraser
Memories of Care
Biometric AI self-portrait by Martina Menegon
The Next Generation
Synthesised faces for the academic opening
Workshops
Figment machine-learning workshops for art students