8520 south west 27th place version 2

fernando orellana brings us this great installation:

This process of free will is what 8520 south west 27th place speaks of. Within this installation, there exists six double headed robotic-rodents. They live within their transparent houses, differing only in the numerical address of each house. Each robot, comprised of two reconfigured Gemmy Corporation Dancing Hamsters toys, has the ability to walk forward or backward on a track in its house. The robots have been programmed with a unique set of eight numbers. These numbers are then used to determine what type of kinetic behavior the robots demonstrate. Some robots might appear to be confident in their decision, by walking valiantly back and forth in the house. While others, might exhibit what seems to be hesitation, staying in one place for a long period of time, or fidgeting between each decision. In the end, the decision is random, but it serves as a metaphor for the overall redundancy of our decisions. The seed used to generate the random sequence of numbers is derived from a small infrared sensor installed at one end of each house. Like our decision process, the sensor allows for external forces to influence the outcome of each verdict the robot makes. The robots pause at every new assessment, pulsing a small light installed in theirs heads, which makes them appear to be contemplating future action. The robotic-rodents scurry about, seemingly with a purpose, only too bump their heads on the extremes of their houses.

[thanks we make money not art]