A Human and a Robot Play a Drawing Game

Not all robots want to take over the world. Some just want to draw you a picture. D.O.U.G (Drawing Operations Unit: Generation 1) is the brainchild of Sougwen Chung in collaboration with developer Yotam Manri, who are conducting “an ongoing study examining human and robotic interaction as an artistic collaboration” known as Drawing Operations. At its core, it's a collaboration between an artist and a robotic arm. Future stages of the study will explore other aspects of the human/robot experience: memory, autonomy, and agency. This first stage investigates “automation, autonomy, and collaboration as an exercise in behavioral empathy,” according to the artists, by having the robotic arm mimic the movement of the artist’s hand with its own personal robotic touch, while the artist responds to that in her turn, creating a sort of visual improvisation. It’s mesmerizing to watch man and machine work in such synchronicity, each interpreting the other and depicting this relationship through art.

See for yourself:

See more of Sougwen Chung's work on her website.

Related:

High Tech Art Toys and Experiences Emerge at NEW INC

This Robot Draws Like a Human

Graham Fink Is Drawing with His Eyes