An Algoliterary Publishing House
This project by Anaïs Berck proposes to explore the notion of a publishing house in which the authors are algorithms, presented with their contexts and codes; and in which the content of the books seeds with trees and nature.
By putting the tree and its representations at the center of their works, and by welcoming algorithms not at the service of extracting resources or value towards a commercial objective, but for making kin with nature, these intelligences create narratives which speak about trees and also challenge colonial views of classification, methods of standardization, and might speak critically about the effects of dominant cultures. While doing so, they put trees at the center of the creation, and therefore decenter the perspective of the human being.
The project looks into formal narratives generated by algorithms, question the form of the book as an object and authorial product, explore the concept of a ‘decolonial publishing house’ and experiment with the influence of ‘forest baths’ on the writing of code and the communication with trees.
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Tree(s) sort(ed)
Algorithm
Tree sort
Trees
beeches, oaks, maples, chestnuts in Bois de la Cambre/Ter Kameren Bos and Sonian Forest
Humans
6, 0, , s, t, u, d, e, n, t, s, , o, f, , E, S, A, , S, a, i, n, t, -, L, u, c, , B, r, u, x, e, l, l, e, s, ,, , J, a, r, a, , R, o, c, h, a, ,, , O, u, t, i, , L, a, i, t, i, ,, , S, t, e, p, h, a, n, , K, a, m, p, e, l, m, a, n, n, ,, , N, a, t, h, a, l, i, e, , G, r, a, n, d, j, e, a, n, ,, , L, o, r, e, n, , R, e, n, , B, r, i, t, t, o, n, ,, , G, u, i, l, l, a, u, m, e, , S, l, i, z, e, w, i, c, z, ,, , G, i, j, s, , d, e, , H, e, i, j, ,, , A, n, , M, e, r, t, e, n, s, .
Language
English
Published
2022
License
Collective Conditions for (re-)use (CC4r), June 2021
Read the book online ⤤
Read the tree : sorted by date , sorted by colour , sorted by natural element , sorted by image description .
The generator of this poster is the tree sort algorithm, the subject are all the trees, algorithmic exercises and human beings involved in the residency of Anaïs Berck at the Villa Empain and ESA Saint-Luc Bruxelles in October 2021. The images and texts are srted following different criteria: time, colour and the natural element in the alt-text description of the images.
Tree sort or binary search tree allows for fast lookup, addition, and removal of data items, and can be used to implement dynamic sets and lookup tables. The basic operations include: search, traversal, insert and delete.They are used in relational databases, data compression code, in Unix kernels for managing a set of virtual memory areas, and more. The binary search tree algorithm was discovered independently by several researchers, including P.F. Windley, Andrew Donald Booth (UK), Andrew Colin (UK), Thomas N. Hibbard (US), and attributed to Conway Berners-Lee (UK) and David Wheeler (UK), in 1960 for storing labelled data in magnetic tapes.
URL
Repository
https://gitlab.constantvzw.org/anais_berck/trees-sorted
With the support of
These posters are a creation for the exhibition in the framework of the Open Door Days in ESA Saint-Luc Bruxelles with the support of FRArt .
Paseo por arboles de madrid
Algorithm
Markov Chain
Trees
collection of trees in the neighbourhood of Barrio de Las Letras in Madrid, retrieved from Un Alcorque, un Arbol
Humans
Emilia Pardo Bazán, Benito Pérez Gáldos, Jaime Munárriz, Luis Morell, An Mertens, Eva Marina Gracia, Gijs de Heij, Ana Isabel Garrido Mártinez, Alfredo Calosci, Daniel Arribas Hedo
Language
['Spanish', 'English']
Published
2021
License
Collective Conditions for (re-)use (CC4r), June 2021
Read the book online ⤤
In this book, the Markov Chain algorithm simultaneously generates a poem and a walk along trees in the neighbourhood Las Letras in the centre of Madrid. Despite the impression that there are few trees in the neighbourhood, the algorithm counts 460 of them. Markov Chain was designed in 1906 by Andrey Markov, a Russian mathematician who died in 1992. This algorithm is at the basis of many softwares that generate spam. It is used for systems that describe a series of events that are interdependent. What happens depends only on the previous step. That is why Markov Chains are also called "memoryless".
URL
http://paseo-por-arboles.algoliterarypublishing.net
Repository
https://gitlab.constantvzw.org/anais_berck/paseo-por-arboles-de-madrid
With the support of
This book was created as part of the residency of Anaïs Berck in Medialab Prado in Madrid, granted by the Government of Flanders as part of their 'Residency Digital Culture' program. The creation happened in company of collaborators of Medialab Prado, who assisted to various workshops.
Levenshtein Distance
Algorithm
Levenshtein Distance
Trees
eucaliptus + found species in Spanish on the internet
Humans
Julio Cortázar, Gijs de Heij, An Mertens
Language
['Spanish', 'English']
Published
2021
License
Collective Conditions for (re-)use (CC4r), June 2021
Read the book online ⤤
The author of this book is the Levenhstein Distance algorithm, the subject is the eucalyptus tree in "Fama y eucalipto", an excerpt from Historias de Cronopios y de Famas by Julio Cortázar , published in 1962 by Editorial Minotauro. Levenshtein distance , edit distance or word distance is an algorithm that operates in spell checkers. It is the minimum number of operations required to transform one word into another. An operation can be an insertion, deletion or substitution of a character. The algorithm was an invention of Russian scientist Vladimir Levenshtein in 1965.
URL
http://anaisberck.tabakalera.eus/
Repository
https://gitlab.constantvzw.org/anais_berck/levenshtein-distance-lee-a-cortazar
With the support of
This book is a creation for ÁGORA / CEMENT / CÓDIGO , an online exhibition curated by Lekutan , within the programme of Komisario Berriak supported by Tabakalera in Donostia/San Sebastián, Spain.
Levenshtein Distance
Algorithm
Levenshtein Distance
Trees
eucaliptus + found species in Spanish on the internet
Humans
Julio Cortázar, Gijs de Heij, An Mertens
Language
Spanish
Published
2021
License
Collective Conditions for (re-)use (CC4r), June 2021
Read the book online ⤤
'The author of this book is the Levenhstein Distance algorithm, the subject is the eucalyptus tree in "Fama y eucalipto", an excerpt from Historias de Cronopios y de Famas by Julio Cortázar , published in 1962 by Editorial Minotauro. Levenshtein distance , edit distance or word distance is an algorithm that operates in spell checkers. It is the minimum number of operations required to transform one word into another. An operation can be an insertion, deletion or substitution of a character. The algorithm was an invention of Russian scientist Vladimir Levenshtein in 1965.
URL
http://anaisberck.tabakalera.eus/
Repository
https://gitlab.constantvzw.org/​anais_berck/​levenshtein-distance-lee-a-cortazar
With the support of
This book is a creation for ÁGORA / CEMENT / CÓDIGO , an online exhibition curated by Lekutan , within the programme of Komisario Berriak supported by Tabakalera in Donostia/San Sebastián, Spain.
Thanks to
Andrea Estankona, Jaime Munárriz, Esther Berdión
Paseo por arboles de madrid
Algorithm
Markov Chain
Trees
collection of trees in the neighbourhood of Barrio de Las Letras in Madrid, retrieved from Un Alcorque, un Arbol
Humans
Emilia Pardo Bazán, Benito Pérez Gáldos, Jaime Munárriz, Luis Morell, An Mertens, Eva Marina Gracia, Gijs de Heij, Ana Isabel Garrido Mártinez, Alfredo Calosci, Daniel Arribas Hedo
Language
Spanish
Published
In development
License
Collective Conditions for (re-)use (CC4r), June 2021
Read the book online ⤤
In this book, the Markov Chain algorithm simultaneously generates a poem and a walk along trees in the neighbourhood Las Letras in the centre of Madrid. Despite the impression that there are few trees in the neighbourhood, the algorithm counts 460 of them. Markov Chain was designed in 1906 by Andrey Markov, a Russian mathematician who died in 1992. This algorithm is at the basis of many softwares that generate spam. It is used for systems that describe a series of events that are interdependent. What happens depends only on the previous step. That is why Markov Chains are also called "memoryless".
URL
paseo-por-arboles.algoliterarypublishing.net
Repository
https://gitlab.constantvzw.org/​anais_berck/​paseo-por-arboles-de-madrid
With the support of
This book was created as part of the residency of Anaïs Berck in Medialab Prado in Madrid, granted by the Government of Flanders as part of their 'Residency Digital Culture' program. The creation happened in company of collaborators of Medialab Prado, who assisted to various workshops.
Grafted trees
Algorithm
Oulipo constraint 'Littérature définitionnelle'
Trees
collection of quotes about trees taken from onetreeplanted.org
Humans
Marcel Bénabou, Gijs de Heij, An Mertens and all the gardeners
Language
Spanish
Published
In development
License
Collective Conditions for (re-)use (CC4r), June 2021
Read the book online ⤤
'Grafted trees' takes quotes about trees from existing works. Each graft is defined by its gardener, who is present with a short biography scraped from Wikipedia. The reader chooses the amount of seasons the graft will grow. A random noun is picked and defined as a 'bud' from which a new branch grows by replacing the word by its definition. The algorithm is inspired by Oulipo's constraint of 'Littérature définitionnelle', invented by Marcel Bénabou in 1966: in a given phrase, one replaces every significant element (noun, adjective, verb, adverb) by one of its definitions in a given dictionary; one reiterates the operation on the newly received phrase, and again.
URL
grafted-trees.algoliterarypublishing.net
Repository
https://gitlab.constantvzw.org/​anais_berck/​grafting_trees
With the support of
This book was first shown as an installation in the exhibition Data Workers in Mundaneum , financed by Communauté Wallonie-Bruxelles/Arts Numériques; it was then published by Andreas Bülhoff as a pdf as part of the online magazine about digital literature sync (nr 37) . The French version of the installation was part of the exhibition 'Littérature et Numérique' in La Maison du Livre in Brussels.