Quasi-Monte Carlo

Quasi-Monte Carlo (QMC) is an algorithm used in photo-realistic CGI rendering as well as artificial intelligence. It is a digital means of producing sense. QMC is a controlled form of randomness, built from vast probability trees, incorporating every possible outcome in a given situation. It was devised by French statisticians in the 19th century working in Monaco, who operated a gambling syndicate, aiming to win at roulette. I am producing an episodic video work for online dissemination, which draws from QMC’s foundational concepts: randomisation and repetition. The videos I produce are entirely made in photo-realistic CGI, rendered using QMC. Each of the videos draw from repetitious dreams. The first, which I made for Nile Sunset Annex, a project space in Cairo, was set in a posh bathroom, it was 2:42 mins duration. During the Schlosspost residency I will produce another instalment of the QMC video and an online essay, which will develop my work on the relationship between the QMC algorithm, imagination and intimacy. The algorithm works in a similar way to libidinal fantasy, in that, a fantasy, or a memory is a space that one returns to repeatedly and one can invest in unconditionally, adding detail and contour to that space, until it has palpable dimensions and atmosphere. The QMC algorithm is relatively slow and expensive in terms of computer processing because it explores every cm of the imaginary space, millions of times per frame, 25 frames per second.

During the Schlosspost residency, Paul Simon Richards will produce a new chapter of his ongoing video series Quasi-Monte Carlo and an online essay which relates to Quasi-Monte Carlo, intimacy and imagination. He will post images throughout the residency, which relate to the process of making the works. The project page will be online soon here.