Instruction and Instinct

Abstract

The chapter addresses the relationship of robotics to complex or unpredictable site conditions. Robotics is generally explored in controlled environments and lab spaces. RAVEN actively experiments with the interaction of robots and natural or external environments and the chapter discusses the testing phase for two robotic performance works, Pyro and Hydro—using UR10 robots as test rigs for designing choreographed events within spatially complex and environmentally dynamic conditions. It explores the poetics and logistics of robotic field operations and posits an artistic engagement with robotics in relation to landscape or other external environments beyond industrial or military applications. Raven seeks to create performance-based interactions which set up a discourse about place, site, and location. We design choreographies that explore notions of precision and repeatability in conversation with chaotic or unpredictable environments.