Conceptual typewriter types colors

Artist Tyree Callahan hacked conceived of hacking an antique typewriter so it types colors instead of letters. "Tyree Callahan's Chromatic Typewriter" (Hi-Fructose)

UPDATE: At Callahan's site, he explains that it's actually a "conceptual art piece."

• [the lurch]

  I would imagine the “ribbon” element depletes itself of colour fairly quickly.  Typewriter ribbons rely on the fact they are a long spool that contains a fairly large amount of ink. In this case, the ink supply is “static”.   I wonder what the equivalent chromatic “e” is?   

• [jarmstrong]

  Oh. Oh my. Yes.

  That is a simply wonderful thing. My day just got much better.

• [IamInnocent]

  It was worth it if only for that photo.

• [Sequoia M.]

  Has it occurred to anyone that none of this makes any sense?  The colors are on the keys, but the ribbon has a spectrum… so does the ribbon move drastically based on what to the key you press?  I actually shared this pic when it came across imgur, I think it’s awesome, but if that piece works as suggested and actually made those paintings, I’ll eat my hat. :)

  • [the lurch]

    Yeah, I have the same concern. Clearly, there is a separate ‘ink element’ for each key, but the mechanism for aligning it with the key would have to be rather clever.   My old typewriter has has a black/red ribbon…two colours in parallel.  Here, you’d have to swing that “collection of elements” back and forth for each key stroke…  I’m beginning to think this is only a concept piece…..

  • [CharredBarn]

    “As far as technicalities, the artist states “I also tried to incorporate things that would offer a significant suspension of disbelief to the piece. The ribbon, for one. At the moment, it is a slice of a stellar spectrum analysis of our sun.”

    It’s a slice of art-major gobbledygook, is what it is. If this works as suggested, I’ll see your hat, and raise you my shorts. (So to speak.)

  • [Ben Bonnell]

    Perhaps you’re not familiar with this kind of typewriter but I grew up within one very much like this (pre-hacked of course).  I’m not sure how the color is replenished, but it appears that the strikers (which can be seen as the colorful arc nearest the keyboard) transfer the color directly.  Before the hack, each of the strikers had letters arranged in the arc until the associated key was struck.  This old model also hints at why the arrangement of the keys was not optimal (the awkward layout was intended to slow down the typist so the strikers would not hit the page at the same time/space and get stuck).  Although admittedly, I don’t know why there’s also a similar argangment of colors near the paper (where you’d expect the ribbon to be).

• [the lurch]

  Ok, I’ve decided. Concept piece only.  Anyone casting a vote the other way?

  If you *really* wanted something like this to work, you’d do away with the ribbon concept entirely.  I’d replace the key elements with small felt/foam bits. Above each, I’d implement some sort of “replenisher”… a small reservoir of pigment fed to the felt/form by capillary action once the element came back down.  Likely have to reduce the number of keys to get enough room.   Hmmm…I suppose all you’d need is 4 keys for CYMK process?  

  • [Chris Perriman]

    I don’t think it matters if it works as advertised, it’s very clever either way.

    • [the lurch]

      I think the BB post implies that the device functions, while the article itself makes no direct proclamation of working as it appears.   I think it’s interesting to look at, as an art piece. Perhaps it will inspire someone to make a *real* one.  But to me, it would have to actually do something to be “clever”.  

  • [Jesseham]

    You’d need more than 4 keys unless you could manage to get them to print less than 100% each time they hit, otherwise you’d only end up with 16 color possibilities, right?

• [Ari]

  The typewriter IS the art – it didn’t produce the painting

  • [wrybread]

    Agreed.

    But it’d be super cool to see something it did produce, even if it meant re-applying color to each key after every 3rd keystroke… Ascii art gets another dimension.

  • [the lurch]

    Well said.

• [blueelm]

  It is kind of neat as a sculpture, but I want to see it in action.  Or rather, I wish I could believe it would work even a little bit.

• [secretagent214]

  I think it could work though.  I mean, it isn’t that far from the idea of a modern ink jet printer.  Get rid of the ribbon.  Put a sponge on the end of each “letter” where it would normally strike the ribbon.  Work a bunch of dry watercolors into each sponge that are the correct color.  Wet the paper and/or the sponges.   Load the paper, and type/paint away.  You would probably get some color fading and mixing from top to bottom, probably some splattering, but maybe that would be part of the fun.  Or you could attach blocks of dry watercolor and use with a pre-wetted page.

• [Ipo]

  I want to receive a letter written on it. 

• [the lurch]

  From: http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/colour-typewriter  

  “with color pads and hue labels to create a functional painting typewriter, dubbed the Chromatic Typewriter” 

  Suggests that this device actually works.  Likely they forgot to do fact-checking. 

• [Marktech]

  A real typewriter would never have got anywhere near the margins of the paper.  It’s beautiful, but it’s a concept piece.

  Edit: And I thought to go to the artist’s link in the original article:

  Although it does not paint, I’ve decided I can at least re-type my artist statement with the thing, so long as I can limit it to a paragraph. It ought to be equally decipherable as any other statement I’ve read lately.

• [Clemmer]

  Wow, I didn’t realize there could be so much concern trolling over a nice art piece like this.

• [David Pescovitz]

  Updated to reflect that this is conceptual art. Thanks to you all!

• [Antinous / Moderator]

  Say, Bill. Would you rub some of this cadmium yellow on my lips?

  • [Clemmer]

    Get the paperwork in order, and we’ll film it in Switzerland at Polanski’s place.  As is said in poker, it’s only gambling if you don’t know what you’re doing…

• [bridgham]

  Takes finger painting to a whole new level.

• [patrick hassell]

  If you really wanted to make a working model, making the bottom of the gizmo a water reservoir would allow the medium to stay wet, but you’d have to be quick no matter what. As long as you didn’t expect bleed(printing) and were willing to fill in the details later by brush, this could be one of the most fun ideas ever.

  Perfect for the android who is bored with cat related poetry.

• [nesnora]

  Moar art created with robotics, pluz!