You Can Be a Bar Code – Madonna Bar Code Portrait

Bar codes are everywhere. While their main function is to encode the value of a product, they also have come to symbolize consumer culture itself. Artists have been using bar codes in their work since their advent in the late 60’s, and a growing number of sites play with, comment on and even generate them.

At www.barcodeart.com, Scott Blake, an Omaha artist, creates computerized portraits of celebrities in which each pixel is part of a bar code. The result is a sort of digital pointillism. His portraits play on the (rather well-trodden) idea that the famous have commodified themselves. For instance, his portrayal of Madonna uses bar codes from her CD’s and books. He also invites visitors to bar-code themselves by entering personal data like age and weight.

Source: New York Times/Barcodeart.com
Thanks to Memphis