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Cardboard Universe

  • Writer: Corrina Crazie Espinosa
    Corrina Crazie Espinosa
  • Apr 7
  • 8 min read
“This is a cardboard universe, and if you lean too long or too heavily against it, you fall through.”

Make a thing.


Challenge your perceptions of reality by transforming digital expressions into physical embodiments. “AI art is not real art…”– A familiar notion– so, what is real art? What is reality anyway? This project invites you to explore the nature of art, truth, time, space, reality and existence through the lens of a digital analog collision! Bring something from the digital world into the analog world. We will explore a variety of processes and digital/analog techniques to make these worlds collide. Consider how the process of bringing digital creations into the physical world affects their "realness" and authenticity. Reflect on philosophical questions about what makes anything "real" and how the digital world influences our understanding of truth and reality.


Find inspiration in questions like these: 

  • What is reality? 

  • Are we living in a simulation? 

  • Do we have free will?

  • What is the nature of consciousness?

  • Can we ever truly know anything for certain?

  • Is there an objective reality, or is everything subjective?

  • What is the meaning of life?

  • Do we create our own destiny, or is it predetermined?

  • What is the relationship between mind and body?

  • Is there ultimate truth?

  • How do we know what is real and what is illusion?

  • Can artificial intelligence ever achieve true consciousness?

  • What is the nature of time? Is it linear or cyclical?

  • How do our perceptions shape our reality?

  • Is there a purpose to the universe?

  • Can we ever achieve true happiness or contentment?


 

Your Task:


Blur the lines between the digital and physical worlds.


  1. Concept: Start by diving into the big ideas about reality from philosophical, scientific, or artistic perspectives. Feel free to explore fictional notions too. Refine your findings into a concept for your artwork.

  2. Medium: Use digital tools to create or activate 3D objects that challenge or redefine what is considered "real." Decide which process(es) such as laser cutting, 2D/3D printing, CNC milling, augmented/mixed reality, holograms, etc. that you want to explore.

  3. Execution: Further research both your concept and medium and make your final product.


Your final product should be a tangible object that came from the digital realm. It should encourage viewers to question their perceptions of “realness,” existence, and reflect on the impact the digital realm has on our understanding of reality, truth, and illusion in our lives.


  • This is a complex & abstract theme, therefore all interpretations are welcome.



Labs:

  1. Laser Cut making 3D with subtractive method & 3D print additive method 

  2. AR AERO with interaction

  3. Follow your own path…


    🔧 Possible Approaches & Mediums for the Digital-to-Physical Collision

    1. Digital Fabrication

      • Laser cutting (2D to 3D assembly)

      • CNC milling

      • Vinyl cutting (for layered graphics or texture)

      • 3D printing (additive sculpting from digital files)

    2. Moving Images & Light-Based Media

      • Projection mapping (onto objects, spaces, or surfaces)

      • Screen-based installations (single or multi-monitor setups)

      • Augmented Reality / Mixed Reality (via AERO, Unity, WebAR)

    3. Interactive / Generative Media

      • Coding-based works (Processing, p5.js, TouchDesigner, Max/MSP)

      • Sensor-based interaction (Arduino, Raspberry Pi, cameras, microphones)

      • Real-time generative visuals or sound (connected to environment or audience input)

    4. Hybrid & Experimental Forms

      • Physical computing (objects that react, vibrate, light up, move)

      • Digital puppetry or avatars brought into physical performance

      • Embodied or wearable tech (AR filters, sensor-based costumes)

      • Printing data (e.g., turning biometric or algorithmic data into a sculptural form)


    What else can you think of?


 

Artist Examples:

Rachel Rossin is a New York–based multimedia artist and self-taught programmer whose work blends painting, sculpture, virtual reality, and code. She’s known for creating immersive, glitchy digital environments that explore the body, consciousness, and the collapse between physical and virtual worlds. Rossin often hacks video game engines and digital avatars, pushing the boundaries of how technology shapes perception and identity. Her work is both poetic and disorienting—like stepping into a decaying dream made of code.



Ian Cheng is an American artist best known for creating live simulations—digital ecosystems that evolve endlessly without human control. His work explores the nature of consciousness, storytelling, and change, often drawing from cognitive science and video game design. In projects like the Emissaries trilogy and BOB (Bag of Beliefs), Cheng builds virtual beings and worlds that learn, adapt, and surprise, blurring the line between art and artificial life. His simulations invite viewers to witness evolution in real time—unpredictable, alive, and constantly becoming.


Sondra Perry (b. 1986, Perth Amboy, New Jersey) is an interdisciplinary artist whose work critically engages with digital tools to explore themes of identity, technology, and representation. Utilizing video, computer-based media, installation, and performance, Perry examines the intersections of blackness, black femininity, and African American heritage, focusing on how blackness influences technology and image-making.  Her notable exhibitions include solo shows at the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland (2019), Serpentine Galleries in London (2018), and Squeaky Wheel Film & Media Art Center in Buffalo (2018).  Perry holds a BFA from Alfred University and an MFA from Columbia University. 


Gabriel Barcia-Colombo is a New York–based mixed media artist and educator whose work delves into themes of memory, identity, and the human digital imprint. His innovative creations encompass video sculptures, immersive performances, augmented reality, and large-scale projections. Notable projects include "New York Minute," a 52-channel video installation at the Fulton Center capturing everyday New Yorkers in slow motion, and "Platform," a video artwork commissioned by MTA Arts & Design featuring portraits of 40 New Yorkers in a moment of collective awe.  Barcia-Colombo is also an Associate Arts Professor at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, where he teaches Interactive Media Arts and Interactive Telecommunications.



Jake Elwes (b. 1993) is a London-based media artist whose work explores the intersections of artificial intelligence (AI), queer theory, and digital culture. A graduate of the Slade School of Fine Art, Elwes employs video, performance, and installation to investigate and subvert the biases inherent in AI systems. Notable projects include The Zizi Project, which integrates drag performance with AI to challenge normative data representations, and Closed Loop, a two-channel video where neural networks engage in continuous feedback. Elwes' work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the ZKM Center for Art and Media in Karlsruhe. 


AI Porn.... because, why not?!

💻 Other Artists Working with AI, Technology, and Digital/Physical Boundaries

1. Hito Steyerl

  • Medium: Video, digital media, and installations

  • Themes: The relationship between technology, the body, surveillance, and global networks.

  • Notable Work: How Not to Be Seen: A Fucking Didactic Educational .MOV File

  • Link: Hito Steyerl

2. Refik Anadol

  • Medium: AI, data visualization, immersive environments

  • Themes: Data-driven art, machine learning, and creating digital memories.

  • Notable Work: Machine Hallucinations

  • Link: Refik Anadol

3. Taryn Simon

  • Medium: Photography, video, and installation

  • Themes: Knowledge, power, and the concept of "truth" through data and imagery.

  • Notable Work: An American Index of the Hidden and Unfamiliar

  • Link: Taryn Simon

4. Zach Blas

  • Medium: Video, installation, performance, and digital fabrication

  • Themes: Queer theory, surveillance, and the political dimensions of digital technologies.

  • Notable Work: Facial Weaponization Suite

  • Link: Zach Blas

5. Karina Smigla-Bobinski

  • Medium: Interactive installations, kinetic art

  • Themes: Human interaction with technology, the boundaries between physical and digital realities.

  • Notable Work: ADA (a large interactive balloon that responds to human touch)

  • Link: Karina Smigla-Bobinski

6. Anicka Yi

  • Medium: Installation, scent-based art, and bio-art

  • Themes: Human and technological evolution, the senses, and artificial intelligence.

  • Notable Work: Life is Cheap

  • Link: Anicka Yi

7. Seth Price

  • Medium: Video, sculpture, and digital media

  • Themes: The relationship between contemporary art and the digital, exploring materiality and the internet.

  • Notable Work: How to Disappear in America

  • Link: Seth Price

8. Agnes Meyer-Brandis

  • Medium: Video, performance, and installations

  • Themes: Human relationships to nature and technology, blending science fiction and reality.

  • Notable Work: Moon Goose Colony

  • Link: Agnes Meyer-Brandis

9. Kelly Heaton

  • Medium: AI, animation, and video

  • Themes: Exploring consciousness and how artificial intelligence can mimic life and consciousness.

  • Notable Work: The Digital Soul

  • Link: Kelly Heaton

10. Manuel Beltrán

  • Medium: Video, installation, performance, and digital art

  • Themes: Data sovereignty, political resistance in the digital age, and the human-body relationship to technology.

  • Notable Work: Diario de un Extincto

  • Link: Manuel Beltrán

11. Alicia Eggert

  • Medium: Interactive installations and sculptures

  • Themes: Temporal perception, memory, and technology’s role in how we understand the world.

  • Notable Work: A Moment of Clarity

  • Link: Alicia Eggert

12. Cory Arcangel

  • Medium: Video, code, and digital manipulation

  • Themes: The relationship between digital culture, pop culture, and technology’s role in everyday life.

  • Notable Work: Super Mario Clouds

  • Link: Cory Arcangel

13. Simon Denny

  • Medium: Video, installation, and sculpture

  • Themes: Digital technology, corporate culture, and the intersection of tech and contemporary art.

  • Notable Work: The Personal Effects of Kim Dotcom

  • Link: Simon Denny

14. Pipilotti Rist

  • Medium: Video, installation, and immersive environments

  • Themes: The fusion of the digital and physical realms, bodily experience, and sensory overload.

  • Notable Work: Ever is Over All

  • Link: Pipilotti Rist

 

Resources


🔧 1. Digital Fabrication Tools


🪐 Laser Cutting

  • Software: Adobe Illustrator or Inkscape (Free)

  • Tutorial: Intro to Laser Cutting (Ponoko)

  • Project Ideas: Make 3D objects from flat slices, layered reliefs, or puzzle-style assembly.


🦾 3D Printing

✂️ Vinyl Cutting

🪚 CNC Milling

  • Software: Fusion 360 (Student License)

  • Tutorial: Fusion 360 CAM + CNC


🎥 2. Moving Images / AR / Projection


📽 Projection Mapping

📱 Augmented Reality (AR)

🧠 Mixed Reality

  • Unity Game Engine: Unity Hub

  • Tutorial: AR with Unity + Vuforia


💻 3. Interactive / Generative Code


🌈 Creative Coding

⚡ TouchDesigner (real-time visuals)

🔌 Arduino + Sensors

  • Download IDE: Arduino Software

  • Starter Kit: Arduino Uno Starter Kit

  • Tutorial: Arduino Project Hub


🎚 Max/MSP / Max for Live


💥 Your Greatest Resource is a Strong Community

Tap into the tools, people, and spaces that help your ideas grow weirder and wilder.


🏛️ CU Boulder On-Campus Resources


📚 Norlin Library Resources (CU Boulder)

  • Art & Art History Subject GuideCurated databases, journals, image archives, and art research tools.

  • Media Equipment Checkout: Cameras, tripods, audio recorders, even VR kits.→ Ask at the Norlin Circulation Desk or check out gear here.

  • 3D Modeling & AR/VR Support: Through Norlin's Center for Research Data & Digital Scholarship (CRDDS)

  • Librarian Contact for Art:


🧪 BTU Lab (ATLAS Institute)

  • A hybrid maker/tech/art lab that’s part fab lab, part dream vortex—perfect for this kind of experimental, reality-questioning work.

  • Equipment & Facilities:

    • Laser cutters

    • 3D printers (FDM & resin)

    • CNC router

    • Electronics & microcontrollers (Arduino, sensors, etc.)

    • AR/VR equipment

  • Community & Mentorship:

    • Drop-in lab assistants and tech mentors

    • Peer-to-peer skillsharing encouraged

  • How to Access:

    • Located in the ATLAS Black Box (1B29)

    • Visit BTU Lab Website or email current lab manager to get trained on equipment


🎨 Art & Art History Department Resources

  • Visual Arts Complex (VAC):

    • Digital Fabrication Lab (Laser cutter, CNC, 3D print)

    • Wood shop, metal shop, photo lab

    • VAC Digital Media Studio: Great for animation/video/sound work

    • VRC - tons of resources including equipment check out, 3rd floor


🌐 Online Communities & Learning Hubs


💻 Creative Coding & Art/Tech Spaces


🧠 Digital Fabrication + AR Communities

  • InstructablesHow-to projects across electronics, fabrication, wearables, and more.

  • Adafruit Learning SystemExcellent tutorials on Arduino, Raspberry Pi, sensors, LEDs.

  • Blender Artists ForumBlender support, sharing, and inspiration (3D modeling/animation).


🤖 AI, Tech Art, and Speculative Weirdness

  • RunwayML CommunityFocused on machine learning for artists and designers.

  • Are.naVisual research boards, often used by artists, curators, and theorists.




 

🚪 Conclusion: Make a Thing That Questions Everything


This isn’t just an art project. It’s a reality experiment.


You are the creator, the philosopher, the avatar, the ghost in the machine.


Lean too long against the cardboard and—yes—you’ll fall through. Good. That’s the point. That’s the art.




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