A Nosey Monkey
A Nosey Monkey is an interactive installation that invites participants to draw a monkey with their nose. Using a webcam, Raspberry Pi, and Axidraw pen plotter, the system tracks nose movements and translates them into digital drawings.
Participants choose from ten reference images and begin—no preparation, no undo, no erasing. The challenge demands focus on process over product, using body and perception in completely novel ways. You must accept imperfection, commit to your marks, and yes, you will laugh.
Upon completion, the Axidraw immediately plots the drawing on paper, replicating the exact mark-making sequence. Press a button for a second copy to take home. The program also records videos of both the drawer and their sketch.
One must ask what is the art here? The monkey drawings, the experience of doing, or the recorded videos? A Nosey Monkey is destabilizing, joyful, and rooted in how drawing is learned: by focusing on the doing, not the outcome.
