#Laugh (2017)

The Creators Project follows Israeli artist Eyal Gever on his mission to create a sculpture in space. We see how Eyal and his team, in collaboration with a NASA project team, explore what it means to be human through zero gravity and 3D computer technology, and what complications they face in selecting an artistic subject and in actually creating an art piece meant for space.

#Laugh is a global collaborative art project to be launched in 2016 that will result in the first piece of art to be created in space, when it’s printed on a zero-gravity 3D-printer aboard the International Space Station. 

The project began in 2014, when Eyal Gever, the renowned digital artist and entrepreneur with more than 18 years experience in developing proprietary 3D technologies, took a phone call from Made in Space - the NASA contractor founded in 2010 with the goal of “enabling humanity’s future in space” - in which he was offered the opportunity to become the first artist to make art in space.

‘What would you do if you could create art in zero gravity?’ was the challenge they set him.

If humanity is one day soon to thrive in space -- argue Made In Space Inc., then creating art and culture in space, is equally as important as sending out people and the technology to support them.

Gever knew that the project carried onerous responsibilities and that the subject he chose would have to have universal appeal, that was neither country nor culturally-specific. After working on a range of ideas, he settled on #Laugh -- a 3D sculpture fabricated from a sound simulation of crowd-sourced laughter.

On Feb. 10, 2017 - The first Sculpted Artwork in Space Printed Aboard International Space Station!

From the official press release MOFFETT FIELD, CA, Feb. 14, 2017:

'“A laugh-STAR, is born -- created by artist Eyal Gever and crowdsourced from more than 100,000 contributions.

Since its inception, mankind has embraced art in many forms. Through paint, sculpture, music, photography, dance, and thousands of others, humans have been able to employ talent and creativity to share experiences with one another. Israeli contemporary artist Eyal Gever is passionate about using art as a medium for social impact, that connect people from different backgrounds and nationalities, and now, solar systems. Through a partnership with Made In Space, Inc., Gever will be creating the first-ever work of art off of planet Earth. While many notorious artists such as Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, and Damien Hirst have created works of art that have subsequently been sent to space, Gever’s artwork is the first to be produced in space through sophisticated zero-gravity 3D printing technology.

Known for their expertise in on-orbit manufacturing capabilities, Made In Space, Inc. owns and operates the Additive Manufacturing Facility (AMF), which is the first and only off-Earth commercial manufacturing facility. The AMF is a gravity independent 3D printer, which supports the daily operations of the International Space Station by producing necessary parts, tools and assemblies, effectively eliminating the need to wait months for those parts and tools to be launched from Earth.

Gever thought it fitting that the first-ever piece of art created in space be laughter as it represents what humanity can achieve with positivity. Similar to art, laughter is a human expression which is universally understood. He explained, “We live in epic times, where continuous disruption and rapid change exists against a backdrop of extremely volatile cultural shifts constantly challenging our human conscience. A Laugh Star floating in space, above all our heads, is my attempt to create a contemporary metaphor for the hanging ‘Sword Of Damocles,’ a reminder that the beauty of human life is so fragile.”

Gever continues, “The earliest cave paintings were of human hands which were a way of proclaiming and celebrating the presence of humanity, #Laugh is the 21st century version of that -- a mathematically-accurate encapsulation of human laughter, simply floating through space, waiting to be discovered.”

#Laugh kicked off Dec. 1 with the launch of a mobile phone application that Gever and his team developed to record sounds of laughter from individuals and converts the sound waves into a digital 3D model, or “laugh star.” Able to see stars submitted by others, users were encouraged to view, listen to, and vote on their favorite laugh star. Throughout the month of December, over 100,000 people from around the world created their own laughstars. Last Friday the winner of the competition, Naughtia Jane Stanko of Las Vegas, Nevada, had her Laugh star 3D printed on Made In Space’s Additive Manufacturing Facility (AMF) aboard the International Space Station.

“It’s important for the world to see that technology and art are not independent of one another,” said Andrew Rush, Made In Space, Inc. President & CEO. “We’ve enjoyed being a part of this project, and hope that it communicates to the world that innovation and creativity are the driving forces behind humanity’s future in space.”

Eyal Gever and Made in Space, Inc. CTO Jason Dunn will showcase the winning laugh star during their session “#Laugh: Creating Art Among the Stars” during the South by Southwest Festival on 13 March 2017. More information about the session can be found here: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2017/events/PP96556 “.

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