Mark Chalmers
Mark Chalmers trained as an architect and found his inspiration in the study of religious spaces such as Cathedrals ranging from the traditional to the kitsch such as inflatable chapels. In his talk, he spoke about coming to the realization that the cross is the symbol of one of the most widely accepted and recognizable brands in the world. He talked about popular brands in consumer culture, what they seem to do and what they actually stand for. According to Chalmers, H&M, though one of the hippest retail brands in the world, is basically a large distribution house; Ikea is a big warehouse selling street food (50c hotdogs is the reward to a tired shopper who has spent hours browsing through the store) and Amazon is essentially one of the largest software development companies in the world.
He took the audience through the Canvas Experiment. This was a hugely successful creation of screens where Converse shoes were the pixels that were animated through a series of simple mechanics and machines. They experimented with the mechanics of animating these screens responding to various sounds such as that of drums and guitars, motion sensing of people moving, walking and dancing in front of the screens and even programmed the screen of shoes to be an interface for video games. Once the idea was established and the technology resolved, the possibilities were endless.



























