Op Art and More 

The videos shown here were produced using self-developed software that simulates certain forms of swarm intelligence. The movements and behavior of the swarm members (so-called boids) are then the consequence of the interactions between the boids, which apply their swarm rules and thereby lead to the overall picture of the swarm with its swarm movements, formation of sub-swarms and dissolution of sub-swarms.

Some of the videos are in the style of Op Art. The video "Playing with Nails" also uses structures that are supposed to be reminiscent of Günther Ueker’s nails. The high dynamics in this video is a result of the emergence and decay of structures in the style of futurism, reflecting the interaction of the swarm members.

The swarm rules used in these videos are based on an untimed Java applet released in 2015. The videos show short excerpts from this. The use of rules for swarm intelligence means that the flow of movement of the swarm members is not predictable, but always arises dynamically through the interaction of the boids with each other.

From the perspective of some monistic philosophies, boids can be considered to have a limited type of consciousness. In the schools of Tibetan Buddhism, the so-called 5 Skandha are described as the basis for the presence of consciousness and the so-called Dharmakaya for unconscious, spontaneous action.

The 5 Skandha describe the experiences of humans and animals:

• 1. Skandha: Color and form
• Perception of colors and shapes (in the sense of sight) without recognizing or determining the associated objects in consciousness


• 2. Skandha: emotional assessment
• Assessment of what is perceived as positive/negative or dangerous arising from the unconscious


• 3. Skandha: Recognize, identify
• Verbal or non-verbal recognition/identification of what is perceived as an object


• 4. Skandha: Construct, remember
• What is recognized/identified is linked to memories, assessments, personal opinions, so that a constructed object/construct is created in the mind, combined with basic emotions


• 5. Skandha: Integrate
• The results of the 4 Skandha are integrated into a unity in the mind, whereby one's own self can identify with the object combined with a variety of emotions or, alternatively, self-reflection can be triggered

The following examples make the scope of the 5 Skandha clearer:

• 1. Skandha: Color and form
• Perception of colors and shapes in animals directly after the transmission of nerve impulses from the eyes to a central brain with the subsequent emission/generation of a mental, tangible image
• Tactile sensation of touch of an object by a single-celled organism with the distinction between the perceiving self (the single-celled organism) and the other (touched object)


• 2. Skandha: emotional assessment
• Reflex-like reaction following a perception and the creation of a tangible mental image by a person or animal
• Chemical reaction of a single-celled organism after contact with another object


• 3. Skandha: Recognize, identify
• Recognition of a predator by an animal
• Identifying the previously touched object as food by a single-celled organism


• 4. Skandha: Construct, remember
• An animal recognizes the behavioral patterns of its object - for example, a dog recognizes its caregiver and reacts by releasing oxytocin
• A single-celled organism combines with other single-celled organisms to form a swarm, for example in the form of a bacterial slime


• 5. Skandha: Integrate
• A being identifies itself with its observed object as its own self
• A being recognizes its own self as an illusion - e.g. via Plato's allegory of the cave

The skandhas themselves are also linked to forms of attunement:

• 1. Skanda: Rejection/aggression <<>> clarity
• 2. Skanda: Pride/arrogance <<>> equanimity
• 3. Skanda: Attachment/greed/desire <<>> compassion
• 4. Skanda: Envy/jealousy/intention/impulsivity <<>> Spontaneity/swarm intelligence with superconscious action
• 5. Skanda: Tightness/fear/ignorance <<>> Spatial awareness/freedom from ego/presence/awareness

The Dharmakaya, on the other hand, is synonymous with the emptiness of the natural state of reality and corresponds to a spontaneously self-completed primordial awareness. In Western usage, this can be roughly expressed by the term "unconscious".

With regard to the swarm intelligence used here, the boids can be considered to have a slight degree of consciousness, since the boids meet some of the requirements for the presence of consciousness as defined above. The Boids fulfill the conditions of 4 of the 5 Skandha and also the criterion of a spontaneous selection of a decision:

• 1. Skandha: Direct vision of other objects (boids) in the area of one's own field of vision
• 2. Skandha: Perceiving the distances of these other boids and forming a feeling level (e.g. too close or too far away)
• 3. Skandha: Detecting and identifying the other boids (here as neighbors, but in other contexts, for example as predators)
• 4. Skandha: Constructing your own future direction of movement based on an assessment of the overall situation (e.g. through gradient formation)


• Dharmakaya: Specification of a priority movement decision based on the inherent swarm rules in analogy to Libet experiments

Also the definition of consciousness by the evolutionary biologist Eva Jablonka indicates the presence of a rudimentary consciousness of the Boids:

• Perception of objects in their entirety and in parts even as they change
• Acting towards a specific goal
• Formation of a mental map that is linked to the perception of events and associated reactions
• Flexible value system combined with context-dependent behavior changes
• Distinguish between your own body and external objects

The boids described here are not independent living beings, but they contain essential mental and sensory aspects of swarm creatures. On this basis, the videos show a similar behavior of the boids to that of real swarm creatures. The representation of these boids and the associated other parameters as well as the underlying swarm rules were chosen in such a way that the swarms in the video form moving, unpredictable structures as an overall artistic installation that the artist can only partially influence.

However, only a simulation of swarm creatures has been realized here, in which properties of consciousness have been mathematically depicted. From the perspective of the monistic philosophy of Cittamatra: "Everything is consciousness. One consciousness!". It is important to note that partial aspects of the above definitions of consciousness must themselves be viewed as consciousness, even if it is a consciousness that does not recognize itself and is not self-reflective. A single-celled organism also meets the above-mentioned criteria for consciousness. This now leads to the philosophical question of whether the simulations carried out here in a computer must be recognized as real, rudimentary consciousness, similar to that of single-celled organisms, or must they be viewed as a surreal mathematical gimmick only?