katherine behar
katherine behar: this.construction();

Title: Knock Knock
Media: Amazon Echo devices with custom Alexa Skills
Year: 2019.
Exhibited:

  • "Arts, Culture, and Digital Transformation Summit" Group exhibition. The Banff Center. Banff, Alberta, Canada. November 2019.
  • "Katherine Behar: Backups," solo exhibition. Mazmanian Gallery, Framingham State University, Framingham, MA, USA. September 3&150;25, 2019.

Credits:

Special thanks to Stream Gao, Ellie Krakow, and David Cecchetto

Programming: Stream Gao

art: Knock Knock
click to enlarge:
Knock Knock - Katherine Behar Knock Knock - Katherine Behar

Description

Two Alexas entertain each other in a cryptographic guessing game that exceeds human intelligence, as well as human patience.

Statement

In Knock Knock, two speech-enabled smart devices go head-to-head when one Alexa tries to guess a cryptographic key known only to the other. Their guessing game begins like the familiar children's game prompt, "I'm thinking of a number..." However, this number relies on SHA-256, the same encryption used by blockchain technology. The only way to win is through "brute force," that is, by trying random 64-digit combinations until luck prevails.