MeasureOn: great works of art in the cloud
His paintings are great works of art — in terms of quality as well as scale. With the aid of technology, Roberto Rivadeneira is able to use whole buildings as his canvas. The new MeasureOn app from Bosch has helped the artist take his creative process into a new dimension.
Art in the time of corona
It’s still gray and quiet in the courtyard of the former Monopol distillery in Berlin, now an arts and community center. Roberto Rivadeneira inspects a concrete wall some ten meters in height. Its surface is contoured by pillars, pipework, and cabling. Roberto grew up in Ecuador and went on to study design in Sydney. He is now active as a contemporary visual artist in Berlin, where his latest project is to create a bright and brash mural on this industrial facade. His work will form part of a project entitled “No art, no noise — saving culture in the time of corona.” The idea is for his art to bring a splash of color to counter the restrictions put on culture during these difficult times. “My plan for the mural is to create a movement from darkness to light,” Roberto explains. Covering an area seven meters by four, the work is to be executed in a single day. Not a lot of time, especially if you’re on your own. Luckily, he has digital assistance.
From darkness to light: Roberto Rivadeneira is using the MeasureOn app to create his latest work.
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50 meters
is the maximum distance captured by the GLM 50-27 CG Professional laser measuring device from Bosch.
The benefit of digital tools
Roberto’s journey from darkness to light begins with the fine green line of a laser beam. Using a pencil and the GLM 50-27 CG Professional laser measuring device from Bosch, he maps out the dimensions of the wall, marking any unusual surface features, and then undertakes a preliminary sketch of his design for the mural. He values the Bosch device with its shock-absorbing IP 65-certified case and rubber casing that can withstand falls from a height of up to 1.5 meters. Besides boasting a long battery life — another big plus for this type of project — it also delivers a tightly focused, easily recognizable green laser dot, meaning that he is able to measure out large areas even in very bright conditions.
In particular, Roberto benefits from the added functionality that comes with real-time connectivity. “I use digital tools a lot,” he says, “even when I’m painting.” Roberto’s design, which he describes as semi-graphic, has been done on the computer. Once measured, the dimensions of the wall in the former Monopol distillery are automatically uploaded, via Bluetooth and the cloud, to his smartphone and tablet. “The laser saves me a lot of work and helps eliminate the kind of mistakes you get when transcribing measurements that have been jotted down on paper,” says Roberto.
“The Bosch laser distance measurer and the MeasureOn app fill a gap I’ve been unable to close on my own until now.”
Fewer steps mean fewer mistakes and faster work
The MeasureOn app offers real-time connectivity across all devices via the cloud. The laser device first transmits the measurements to the app by means of Bluetooth. This data is then sent over an encrypted link to the MeasureOn cloud instance, where it is stored in encrypted form. The requisite cloud infrastructure is provided by a German data center. Thanks to a web app that runs on all standard browsers, Roberto can also access this digital workspace from a desktop computer. At the same time, he can call up any notes or photos he has taken of unusual features on the wall via any device. It usually takes considerable time to complete a mural over such a large area. Using these digital tools, however, he is now able to finish even projects on the scale of the Monopol artwork within a single day. “In combination, the laser and the app drastically reduce the number of steps involved — and therefore the amount of time I need,” Roberto enthuses.
The MeasureOn app is useful not only for artists but also for construction workers and tradespeople. Thanks to real-time connectivity, it can provide a clear overview of the status quo of a project via any device on-site, in the workshop, or at home. By means of the app, the laser device is also able to measure the surface area of walls interspersed with doors and windows. This in turn simplifies the calculation of required materials such as paint. The digital workspace also provides endless scope for the addition of further calculations, satellite projects, and sample images.
Following project completion, it’s also easy to document and share the final status via the app. MeasureOn can be downloaded free of charge from the Apple App Store and Google Play. There’s limited cloud capacity at no extra cost, with the full use of all cloud functions available via a subscription program. Roberto’s work on the Monopol mural is benefiting from the cloud function, which will soon be a standard feature with the MeasureOn app.
A great asset for art
Roberto has already made substantial progress; the gray concrete is progressively giving way to bright yellow and powerful blue. “The big challenge is to get the computer sketch onto a wall of this size,” he explains. “Scaling it up by hand takes a long time.” Using the app, however, he is now able to calculate the dimensions in the correct proportion and sketch out his design on the wall accordingly. “Each mural is different: the area, the setting, and the surface of the wall all have an impact on the design. For an industrial environment like this, my idea was to incorporate elements that are here anyway, such as the shape of the windows, which now reappear in the mural.” MeasureOn is ideal for measuring the dimensions of complex surfaces. “The laser and the app are a great asset for my art,” he says.
More time for creativity thanks to laser and app
Thanks to the laser and the app, Roberto is able to finish his mural in the former distillery within a single day. “My work evolves in the course of creation,” he explains. “The more time I have, the better it gets! Unfortunately, there’s always a limit. But MeasureOn saves me valuable time and gives me more scope to be creative.” Roberto reflects on a successful day and another accomplished artwork. Here, in the Monopol, the atmosphere is once again quiet. But it’s no longer gray, ever since a fine green laser first pointed the way toward the light, early this morning.