iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 16/10/2026

Good news everyone! It’s controller soldering day today! #OutputArts #InstallationArt

12 plastic takeaway trays arranged on the studio bench, each filled with an identical set of through-hole components, small daughterboards and a bare black PCB.

Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 29/09/2026

The last few weeks have been the repetitive tasks of marking, drilling, tapping, crimping, cutting and soldering endless multiples of cables, boards, boxes, tubes, strips and sticks

Piles of cut LED strip on rolls and bundles of short lengths of black cable with sockets and plugs on one end and stripped cores at the other.

Cut lengths of white silicone tubing hang against a wall and over the top of a step ladder with lengths of LED strip hanging beside.

Rolls of black heavy duty power cable piled on top of each other with blue and black connectors. Behind there are piles of grey boxes painted black on the outside with black cable glands fitted into them.

A pile of bundles of dark brown willow sticks secured with light brown tape.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 29/09/2026

Into the solid assembly end of this project now: we have 15 of these to finish this week #OutputArts #InstallationArt

A near shot of a jumble of LED “neon” tubes and willow structures. The tubes are all lit in a range of colours, but the space is otherwise dark. Careful study would discern that there are 6 stars hanging close to each other.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 27/09/2026

I didn’t have anything I needed to throw away, but the instruction was so insistent that I tore off some toilet roll to put in it

A steel bin in a white tiled toilet wall with the words “please use this bin” printed above.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 15/09/2026

Ta da! Taken longer than they should have, but… hey ho

15 black PCBs in a grid on the white worktop with components all soldered into them.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 14/09/2026

Still feeling crook today, but I really need to get on with some work, so I've decided to have an easy day soldering up control boards Yes, I am still doing through-hole soldering. No, I'm not sorry

Five plastic takeaway tubs lying on my studio workbench. Each has a black PCB and an assorted collection of components waiting to be soldered up into a LED controller.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 28/08/2026

I am on the holidays in lovely Croatia! First morning swim in the sea done. Now looking at maps and planning some hikes out to find more remote spots

A view over a rocky shoreline to crystal clear light cyan water. In the distance, a couple of near small green islands are visible and, beyond, a distant large, hilly island. The sky is clear and blue.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 25/08/2026

The structure comes together really well with these supports! Are you feeling xmassy yet? Come on! What's wrong with you? 😉

An open star frame shape hanging in the studio against a white partition wall. It has 14 points, although that's not apparent in the picture due to the angle. The frame is made from willow sticks and each tip contains a black 3D printed support.

The star part made, with just 6 points in place, standing on the studio floor.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 25/08/2026

New set of little support xmas trees ready for test willow build today

Fourteen more small black plastic, vaguely organic, cone shapes with various holes and indentations carved in them. They are arranged on the bed of a 3D printer.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 24/08/2026

This technique is great, but single-sticks are too fragile so I'm designing a new version with space for doubled-up sticks

A screenshot from the Rhino 3D design tool showing the new support structure as a shaded grey form. It now has wider indentations for the sticks to be bound against.

One of the original structural pieces in black PLA with two pairs of doubled-up sticks tied to it. The sticks are held together with short pieces of black heat-shrink at the ends, which the cable ties then bind around.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 06/07/2026

Well, the #EMFCamp phone still powers up, so that's one thing ticked off the packing list* [* Reader, I have not actually made a list yet…]

An old Gigaset DECT handset in grey and black plastic lying on the grubby surface of my MDF workbench. The phone is labelled with my orga handle "jonathanh" and my on-site phone number 4644. The screen says that the time is 00:00 and is complaining "No Base". So I'll not know if it actually works until I get on site next week.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 01/07/2026

I am basically working full time on #EMFCamp Art & Installations work now

The classic "My body…" meme featuring a skeleton lifting weights on a black background. In this case the text reads, "My body is a machine that turns biscuits into organisation".

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 25/06/2026

[Spider!] Picked up a passenger on my ride back from the climbing centre this morning…

The black, badly worn, left handlebar grip of my BMX bike against a tarmac background in the park. At the outermost edge of the grip, a small brownish spider sits motionless considering its options. It has spent the last kilometre scrabbling backwards and forwards across the handlebar and my hand in a panic – or perhaps thrilled excitement? Who knows the minds of spiders? Anyway, at this point I let it disembark.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 14/06/2026

Making deranged looking bugs today for charity. Raising money for repairs at The Old Church, our local arts venue in Stokey #OutputArts #StokeNewington #TheOldChurch

A vaguely bug like cardboard thing hanging from a piece of string tied to a leaning tree. There’s a lot of weeds behind. The bug has orange wings and legs, and a yellow body. Some crude scrawling on it with a black marker completes the half-arsed effect.

A significantly more terrifying pink and blue bug attached to an A Frame advertising the event. It has spotty wings and a stripey tail. The face drawn on it was a mistake in retrospect.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 27/05/2026

Still, look at all of these lovely charts going in the correct directions! It has taken weeks of reading websites and talking to people to get to this stage. After this project, I'm not sure that I'm going to want to touch machine learning again for a while…

Five line graphs arranged in two rows, white backgrounds, blue and orange lines marked "training" and "validation". The charts are labelled "accuracy", "distance", "false negatives", "false positives" and "loss". The first chart rises, the others all fall. Mostly they fall/rise pretty steeply to a level, except for the "false positives" chart, which reduces more slowly.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 26/05/2026

Garden bug! So smol and round and shiny and stripey!

A very round, very shiny, green bug with half a dozen purple stripes down its body. It is on the edge of a lemon balm leaf. The blurry background is my decking and the edge of a pot. It is apparently Chrysolina Americana, also known as the Rosemary Beetle. It should be in Southern Europe, so this may be the vanguard of an invasion…

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 26/05/2026

I regret to inform you that I am back on my shit again, making visuals for a gig… #FlitterLang #CreativeCoding

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 13/05/2026

I took a photo of it next to a correct fork – I hope that you’re impressed I was able to touch it

Two forks lying on a chopping board. Some spice jars and bags are visible behind. One of these two forks holds a terrible and fearsome shape.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 03/05/2026

Speaking of gardening. A few years ago, Hackney council announced that we’d have to start paying for garden waste collections. I thought, “bollocks to that”, and started piling up all my weeds and cuttings in a corner. Turned that pile over yesterday and […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

The raised herb bed that I made out of scrap wood, filled with earth that I made! Well… I can’t take all the credit since it was probably mostly bacteria, worms and bugs that made it. Anyways, there are a few woody herbs now gracing the bed. Lots of space to fill still.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 03/05/2026

I will never cease to be amazed at my ivy’s ability to turn just sunlight and water into work. I swear it doubles in size every year…

The aforementioned ivy, growing up and over a tall garden wall. It is at least a metre taller than the wall. Next to it is a tall stepladder, from which I have been attempting to tame it. Also visible is the pile of leftover wood bits from making the raised herb bed recently.

A large pile of formerly growing ivy on the decking. It looks smaller than it felt cutting it all off.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 26/04/2026

Finished! Well… pretty much. Just roughly plonked down for the moment to test how it fits. I gotta do some final tweaks and then fill it

The finished raised bed box lying on the decking. Mostly as it looked in the last picture except for a lip placed around the top edge. It’s mostly horizontal boards with small vertical pieces covering over where the boards meet and supporting the corners.

The same, but dropped in the garden next to an ivy-covered wall and an overgrown duckboard path. The garden is deliberately overgrown with weeds – also known as native plants. Though I probably need to do some thinning out.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 25/04/2026

Structurally there now, but gotta dash so I’ll finish in the morning!

Four completed walls leaning against each other to make a low, long box on the decking. It’s lined inside with white plastic. Low sun visible on the decking.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 25/04/2026

Step 2: lash bits of wood together haphazardly into walls (Also, yes, I am aware that pallets are typically treated with bad chemicals and that is why I will be lining the bed before filling)

The pallets are now all just piles of wood. Lying on the decking is a bunch of pieces arranged into a long, narrow wall shape. Lying next to it is an extended measuring tape.

The wall has been randomly screwed and nailed together and stands upright on the decking with a cordless drill, square and boxes of screws and nails behind. Sheets of white and transparent fluted polypropylene can also be seen in the corner. It is still sunny.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 25/04/2026

First deconstruct your pallets I cannot emphasise enough that this is an insane way to get pieces of wood. Don’t do it unless you enjoy a challenge.

One complete pallet lies on the back garden decking with a pair of work gloves, a cordless jigsaw and a hammer. Behind is piles of planks and lumps of wood, some still in pieces recognisably part of a sawn up pallet. The nearby black plant pot is slowly filling with rusty nails. The sun is hitting the meadow behind.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 25/04/2026

Today’s adventure is going to be turning these scavenged pallets into a raised bed in the garden for herbs

Four old shipping pallets of varying condition, standing on their ends, one in front of the other, on decking by a brick wall. The wall has a large ivy growing up it and a few plant pots are visible in the corner of the picture.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 31/03/2026

Wish I had more pictures from this gig, but it's hard to take any when you're also pushing all the buttons… Still, here's one of the gang lit up more so you can see them all. Can't remember everyone's name, but Ilā and Coda were definitely performing that night.

A brighter shot of the stage showing the performers a little more clearly. The screen is now dominated by a large pink, blue and white glowing amorphous circular shape. The significance of the colours is left as an exercise for the reader.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 31/03/2026

Celebrating Trans Day of Visibility by remembering doing live visuals for BISHI x Trans Voices choir at Brighton Festival in 2023 – still probably my favourite gig I've performed at #TransDayOfVisibility #Bishi #TransVoices #LiveMusic #LiveVisuals

A view of the stage at The Old Market in Hove from the lighting desk at the back, where I was set up with my visuals kit. BISHI is slightly right-of-centre in a red latex dress; she is flanked on both sides by 6 members of Trans Voices choir with music stands in front of them. Behind the performers is a huge screen showing vivid green visuals made up of a mass of large, overlapping, outlined blobs. The silhouetted heads of the crowd can be seen below in front.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 27/03/2026

Here's a few of the kites in shop windows around the local area – I've worked with the local business association to use 20 shop windows as a gallery for the young people's work #OutputArts

Four paper cut-out decorated kites in the window of shop Rouge. They show: a small tree against a blue sky and green grass; a colourful bird with the word "Fly"; an abstract stained-glass-style pattern with the word "Bloom"; and a pair of butterflies next to flowers.

Five paper cut-out decorated kites in the window of shop Kitchen Provisions. They show: a sun, pink clouds and a flower with the word "Fun"; a flower with the words "Grow your plants"; an abstract Rennie-Mackintosh-style pattern; another blocky abstract pattern that suggests a sky and grass; and a bleating goat on a mountain top.

Five paper cut-out decorated kites in the window of shop Metal Crumble. They show: a pink flower with the word "Love"; a pair of flowers with the word "Spring"; a slightly-abstract blocky design that suggests a tree with pink blossom against grass and sky with a yellow sun peeking into the corner; and the words "Grow a garden" surrounded by a sun, flowers, a bee and the Teletubbies!

Five paper cut-out decorated kites in the window of shop Prep. They show: a pink rose; a blocky patterned design of a green-and-blue Easter egg against a blue-and-pink background; a rainbow, the sun, a heart and a cat; a tree, a bee, the sun and clouds with the word "Happy"; and a person with spiky black hair and the letters "KR".

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 27/03/2026

105 Spring-themed kite designs ready for display around the local community. Now I just need to go distribute them… #OutputArts

Two light green trays sitting on the workbench in the studio. Each is filled with around 50 kite shapes that have been brightly decorated by local primary school pupils using paper cutouts. They have curly ribbon tails in yellow, silver, gold and rose-gold.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 18/03/2026

Just been doing kite-design workshops with two classes of 9/10 year olds locally – equal parts exhausting and brilliant, as ever. Some of the designs are incredibly sophisticated. #OutputArts

A pile of light blue sheets of paper lying on the workbench in the studio. They have kite shapes drawn on them in pencil and then are decorated with pieces of cut- or torn-out coloured paper. There are two particular images featured, one shows an ice-cream cone at the bottom, white clouds, a yellow sun and the word "ENJOY!". The other is a more abstract arrangement that fills the kite shape with blue, pink, green and brown overlapping polygons. The picture might be a tree with light pink blossom against a sky and grass, with a sun in one corner. Perhaps the darker pink around the trunk is flowering bushes?

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/03/2026

Woo! Llamatron hates the 2.04 ROM, but is happy with 1.3 so I'm upgrading this to an unqualified success now and getting on with some *actual* work

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/03/2026

I mean… it's a promising start, but sadly this is as far as I get

A loading screen for Jeff Minter's Llamatron running from a flux scan of an October 1991 Amiga Computing cover disk (issue 41 if you're into that sort of thing).

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 04/03/2026

Exciting news, people! I have purchased the very latest in compact, removable, encased-ferrite storage technology

A freshly opened, original Samsung 3.5" PC floppy disk drive lying on my studio bench, it's antistatic bag beneath it. This baby has a beige plastic front and an anodised aluminium case. It's the 90s all over again.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 02/03/2026

Also, I regret to inform you that I am prototyping a new art…

A three-dimensional willow structure standing on the workbench in the studio. It’s a sort of pointy star-like thing. There’s a bundle of dark brown willow lying under it, along with brown tape and cutters. The ugly blue carpet makes an appearance as well as a mysterious red crate on the floor.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 16/02/2026

"Ketchup, Catsup…?" Speaking of accessibility: after eleventy-million years using Ubuntu, I still hesitate over which of these does what

Two almost identical icons in the Ubuntu apps launcher, one titled "Software & Updates" the other "Software Updater".

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 07/01/2026

I'm also attempting an install of Elite Dangerous on the Deck; it is properly wild seeing a Windows installer running on it

A black Steam Deck handheld games console lying on a wooden table. The bright screen is filled by a blue and grey Windows installer window headed, "Completing the Elite Dangerous Launcher Setup Wizard"

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 05/01/2026

No, that's not how date arithmetic works

A screenshot of a small element of a website that says "Last login: 1 year ago from United Kingdom". What it should, of course, say is "1 week ago" or possibly "last year" at an absolute stretch.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 23/12/2025

Finished! What do you think? I was trying to go for an Art Deco sort of feel

Back view of me in the studio showing my bald head. I am wearing a grey t-shirt, blue painters dungarees and a pair of fairy wings that reach roughly from my lower back up to the top of my head. The wings are made of willow and are covered in thin white paper so that the curving sticks are visible through them.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 22/12/2025

Quite tricky making the second wing the same shape as the first, but I reckon this is close enough

There are now a pair of, mostly symmetrical, wings lying on the work bench. Some spare sticks lye nearby and, unrelatedly, a spool of rough brown string resting on some green bubble wrap.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 22/12/2025

Less xmassy, but just as much fun, I’m also having a go at a new idea for making fairy wings…

A shape reminiscent of one butterfly wing lies on the white studio work top. It is made from bent pieces of willow and brown paper tape joins. The top and bottom tips of the wing are elegant points and the surface is divided up into curving sections. A roll of tape, a sharp knife and a pair of clippers lies nearby.

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 22/12/2025

Further experiments: more, smaller snowflakes and many more, more colourful spotlights #FlitterLang

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Jonathan Hogg @jonathanhogg.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 21/12/2025

Adding small paper sections to the sun/star lamp shade now. This is requiring me to use very smol bits of paper and so is taking me ages!

A willow ball shape with twisted conical protrusions sits on the studio work bench. Next to it is a silver tray of PVA glue with a brush, a carton of glue, a white plastic pasting board, a sharp knife and a pile of smallish bits of wet strength tissue paper.

A better view of the shape sitting on the grey/blue carpeted studio floor. The willow form is made up of dozens of twisted, curving, overlapped sticks. In some of the gaps formed, bits of tissue paper have been applied to fill in parts of the structure. Hopefully these will catch the light when there is a bulb inside.

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