Between the Stars

Commissioned by MKIAC, Between the Stars was an interactive animation produced in collaboration with creative technologist and animator Pete Cleary as part of the Digital Light: Code Makers event at Bletchley Park. The work included patterns created with the local Milton Keynes and Bletchley community through a number of family-friendly pattern-making workshops. Between the Stars included 80+ community contributed artworks resulting in over 240 tiled iterations of classic isometric grid patterns. These were programmed to appear in a randomised rotation, placing tiles in an ordered grid to demonstrate the foundations of Islamic pattern-making.

The project explored concepts of mathematics, patterns and digital coding in reference to the large part this has played in Bletchley’s history. Patterns, albeit in coded format, were a means to decrypt communications during World War Two. The various software we used to create this work is a constant reminder that the advances in digital and computing technologies enables artists, scientists and mathematicians to explore complex ideas in easier and more accessible ways.

The installation included drawings created by members of the Milton Keynes community and visitors to Bletchley Park. The participant designs were digitised to be incorporated as part of the projected animation unveiled for the Digital Light: Code Makers event in March 2020. This was an exciting project as it allowed the community members to understand that creativity is not just for artists but something that can be enjoyed and practiced by all. The resulting artwork therefore forms a collaborative and shared experience whilst encouraging audiences to better understand the connection between art, maths and technology.