Internet rage

The Artwork

Title: Angry Woman

Artist: Annie Abrahams

There is a total of 5 videos in the series Angry Woman made by Annie Abraham. In the first two videos 24 women of different nationalities would express their anger on camera at home, in their own language. The next two videos feature the women expressing their anger on camera in a single language, number 3 in French and 4 in English, but this time for only 12 minutes. the last one the 5 was a sequence of women screaming into the computer.

The review

Social Broadcasting can be defined as

The broadcasting of video, text and pictures directly to an intended audience through social media channels such as facebook, Youtube, Instagram and other channels as opposed to traditional channels such as radio, TV and print.

So why would this be considered a good medium for art?

(Screenshot from the third video of Annie Abraham’s ‘Angry Woman’)

First and foremost, it is unpredictable. In the third video there is the silent woman at the top left corner that illustrates her anger through actions and not words. She creates this visual contrast with the others, whilst their tone rises and falls with the passion of their anger, she remains quiet showing hand gestures like shooting the screen and biting her hands, to show the actions that we so deeply want to take when we want to vent.

(Screenshot was taken from the fourth video of Annie Abraham’s ‘Angry Woman’)

This also leads to the idea of contrast, with various women speaking and a single person only creating gestures it forms a vivid difference in that single video screen which draws attention to it. Subsequently, in the fourth video, where everyone was speaking in English, there was a single person who was screaming, or making incoherent bemoaning sounds. this hence creates a different sound effect to latch onto amongst the waves of others talking.

(Screenshot taken from the fourth video of Annie Abraham’s ‘Angry Woman’)

It is also about negotiation, where in a broadcast, one would like to synchronise their actions. In the 4 video, after about 7 minutes, all seven women on screen started taking calming breaths almost as if all of them decide to cool down together. Abit like what we did for one of our micro-projects.

When the performers’ Webcams were succumbing to technical issues, she transformed this problem by directing the group to intentionally turn their cameras on and off, creating a shifting, evolving, changing collage of images in direct play with altered configurations of the online interface.

Whilst this idea of negotiating and cooperating is apparent in certain ways of her work, the idea of negotiation can play a key role in making the social broadcasting fun (and covering up glaring flaws to the system).

But why is this done on social media and not the television. In a way social media is like a platform for a two way connection, where the tv and advertisment is a single connection (radio in some cases you can call in, but its still mostly one way). Anyone with a social media has the ability to take part in these works of art, in a way it gives like minded individuals, in this case ‘angry women’, the ability to join in the work and contribute it.

In a society where authenticity and privacy become endangered it is important to find ways to access our vulnerabilities and doubts, to make them public, to cherish our messy side. We need to make space for the beast in the beauty, to go back to reality, to claim the human.

Social broadcasting becomes a way for people to share issues that they feel strongly for, and be empathised with by a like-minded crowd. In a way, it creates a safe community for all to share and be vulnerable without fear of being judged.

Credits

  • http://www.starlightmediahouse.co.nz/latest-news/what-is-social-broadcasting/
  • https://thirdspacenetwork.com/symposium2018/disentangling-the-entanglements/
  • https://www.researchcatalogue.net/view/18236/18237

The Ghosts only your Phone can see

The art work

 

Image result for until the end of the world carla gannis

(source is taken from: http://carlagannis.com/blog/)

Gallery name: Until the End of the World

Artist: Carla Gannis

Year:  2017

Carla Gannis’ “Until the end of the World’ exhibition is executed like the ancient Greek theater where the ‘actors will speak through a mask’. in this case the ‘mask’ is her virtual persona, one like our social media, and how we portray ourselves on that ‘third space’.

The exhibition consists of various art works, like multi-media installations and ‘selfie-paintings’. She makes use of new technology to create the work, where visitors can ‘hover over the static piece of work with their phone to see it move and interact with it’.

Her works have certain nuances that suggests that it is feminist in nature, commenting on a woman’s place in society, and also on how society is affected by technology and the possible changes across the centuries.

(source is taken from: https://www.artsy.net/show/dam-gallery-carla-gannis-until-the-end-of-the-world)

The review:

Digital Identity: A digital identity is information on an entity used by computer systems to represent an external agent. That agent may be a person, organisation, application, or device.

I mentioned Carla Gannis’ ‘Selfie-drawings’ and how you could interact with them when using a certain app. In a way this character in the app has assume the role of Carla, and it paints a picture of how she wishes the audience to view her.

Its funny, because you can only interact with her through an app, like how people communicate via social media.

Image result for until the end of the world exhibition carla gannis selfie painting

(source taken from: https://www.artsy.net/show/dam-gallery-carla-gannis-until-the-end-of-the-world)

But Facebook appeared to some
writers as angel, and some as demon; to some as an emerging
global village, and to others as isolation in disguise; to some as an
opportunity for maintaining relationships, and to others as broadcast
narcissism.

As quoted from D.E. Wittkower’s ‘A reply to Facebook Critics’, it is a form of charade, this idea of digital identity, and it becomes a tool that helps some people disguise themselve, a safe heaven of annoymity to discuss certain subjects or to be unbothered, sometimes to decieve others for their own gain.

In this case this annoymity also acts as a platform for relatability, to be placed in the shoes of this character, like what Carla Gannis is doing in her work. She places the audience in an almost intimate setting with her virtual persona and allow us to interact with it, as though we have been physically transported to the third space. 

Credits:

The Day that Cardillacs Stands up

Artwork Review

(Source taken from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Ranch#/media/File:Cadillac_Ranch.jpg)

Title: Cadillac Ranch

Artist: Chip Lord

Year created: 1974/1994

Medium: Installation

Overview

Cadillac Ranch is an installation of 10 Cadillac’s buried nose deep in a line, in the dirt along route 66 west of Amarillo.

Its almost as if they were droven off a cliff and plunged head first into the ground. Now useless, the owners wander off looking for help and the Cadillacs lay, left there buried with their tailfins in the air waiting for travellers to chance upon it.

After awhile, the work was subjugated to the whims of the travellers, meaning they were either defaced with graffitti or ripped apart as souvenirs. Whats left of these cars are but a line of rainbow coloured skins of their former selves, rebirth into comic relief for a travellers amusement.

Cadillac Fatality.

(Source taken from: https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2220)

Ant Farm

As mentioned by Constance Lewallen, in his writing ‘Still Subversive After all These Years’

Ant Farm — a collective of radical architects who were also video, performance, and installation artists but, above all, visionaries and cultural commentators — offers an intriguing look into the conceptual activity of the late sixties and seventies, a time that has proved to be seminal for succeeding generations of adventuresome artists.

Their work embraces ‘the latest technologies to disseminate its scathing criticism of American culture and mass media’.

In the case of the Cadillac Ranch it is a commentary about consumerism and maybe pop culture. What a car and a crashed car is in society. More interestingly is how members of the online communitty take to the idea of a crashed car.

Its almost Ironic, how one can act so indifferent and even gleeful of the idea of chancing upon a crashed car. How satirical their photos get when they interact with the car itself.

Decades have passed. The Cadillacs have now been in the ground as art longer than they were on the road as cars. They are stripped to their battered frames, splattered in day-glo paint splooge, barely recognizable as automobiles. Yet Cadillac Ranch is more popular than ever.

As quoted from roadsideamerica.com

The pink period was one of the most popular.

in an attempt to cover the grafitti

And in a way it is quite interesting as it changes in an unsual way with time.  The artwork evolves with evey added touch of a new tourist own creativity into the mix. It keeps conversations going, give people something new to talk about.

Sources:

  • https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2220
  • http://www.stretcher.org/features/still_subversive_after_all_these_years/
  • http://amarillo.com/stories/070404/fea_artbeat.shtml#.WpaDXK6WbIU
  • http://www.spatialagency.net/database/ant.farm
  • https://www.moma.org/collection/works/107284
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadillac_Ranch
  • https://www.eai.org/titles/cadillac-ranch-1974-1994
  • http://slide.ly/buzz/view/0753e05835bf697ae7eee5b1329f801f

 

Let us DIWO

DIWO and Maker Culture

During our Week 5 lesson we had the chance to have a lecture with Marc Garrett. He talks about the Furtherfield and how the idea of ‘Do-It-With-Others’ (DIWO) has allowed them to achieve greater heights.

What is so great about this idea of DIWO though?

Whilst many artist are able to create artworks by themselves, DIWO brings across this idea of community, a sort of shared experience that can be felt amongst others. It becomes a more accessible art, and even in the case they are almost like volunteery projects that help the community, or ‘Values-In-Action’ as we call it in Singapore.

Image result for furtherfield projects

(Source taken from: https://www.facebook.com/Furtherfield/)

On their website thery have various workshops like ‘Design 4 ACTION! Permaculture Course’ and exhibitions all aimed towards helping the community.

It explores the extent of which those who view and interact with work, including those from under-represented groups, becomes co-producers in the network, rather then the ‘audience’.

(Source taken from: http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/beuys-7000-oak-trees-ar00745)

When I think large scale community progects I think of this art project by Joseph Beuys, ‘7,000 oaks’. ‘7,000 oaks’ start with 7,000 basalt stone, each a pair to one of the 7,000 trees, were piled in front of the Museum Fridericianu. Everytime a tree was planted the pile was reduced. While the project idea was started by one man, it took a community to help make this project successful, and later the project spread further into other communities with this idea of wanting to change.

Maybe in a way, its because this issues are important to the community, which will eventually become the drive, all the call to action.

Subsequently there is this idea of pooling ideas together to create something better.

Furtherfield connects people to new ideas, critical thinking and imaginative possibilities for art, technology and the world around us. Through artworks, labs and debate people from all walks of life explore today’s important questions.

Similar to them, our Experimental Interaction lessons aim to nuture this idea of collaboration. In our micro-project the tele-stroll,  we made use of the idea of the third space to create a video where two people in two different locations could interact as either a single person, or keep the company of each other. It is playful and brings together the ideas of two individuals to create something  even better.

Even a bit more recently, there is the idea of our glitched art works, which is a combination of the ideas of various people. It comes out differently, sort of representing how different each and everyone of us thinks.

The Conclusion

Thinking about it now, two heads are always better then one, and thats because our ideas are different, the way we work is different, and thats probably why DIWO would be a good thing for the makers culture, as the ideas of many would result in something far more creative then just the ideas of one.

 

Together, a story of many

Week 3 Essay

Hello World! Or: How I Learned to Stop Listening and Love the Noise

Artwork title: Hello World! or: How I Learned to Stop Listening and Love the Noise

Artist: Christopher Baker

Medium: Multi-channel multimedia installation

Year created: 2008

The Review

Hello world is a video installation where 5,000 video diaries of various individuals are played along a wall. The people in the videos can be seen speaking in their rooms, kitchens, a space of comfort.

Walking into the gallery space, one is instantly immersed in layers of voices, overlapping to the point that the words blend and become noise. It is as though you are listening to them talk about something intimate, nd at the same time, their personal issues are made public. You hear everything but at the same time you hear nothing in a sea of voices.

His works is a visual representation of the modern lifestyle of being constantly interconnected despite being far apart.

The concept is similar to that mentioned in Randall Packer’s writing ‘The Third Space’ in regards to the art work ‘Hole in Space’. He mentions the idea of a ‘third space’ being created, or a virtual identity being transimitted from one party to another through technology.

Image result for hole in space art

(source taken from: http://www.medienkunstnetz.de/works/hole-in-space/)

In this case the works differ in the the sense that ‘Hole in Space’ is a live broadcast, which is ephemeral, it is ever changing depending on the people and how they interact. On the other hand, ‘Hello World!’ is a collection of pre-recorded videos, hence the interaction becomes one-way. That means that there would be a distinctive lack of communication between the people whose videos are put up.

When we were in class, we talk about how communication is important when working as a collective whole to make a work cohesive. So it is amazing to see the images contrast with each despite the lack negotiation.

Credits

  • Christopher Baker: Hello World! (n.d.). Retrieved February 07, 2018, from http://www.huhmagazine.co.uk/3200/christopher-baker-hello-world!
  • Gallery, S. (n.d.). Christopher Baker. Retrieved February 07, 2018, from http://www.saatchigallery.com/artists/artpages/christopher_baker_hello_world2.htm
  • Packer, Randall, Open Source Studio, IEEE Spectrum, 2015

A guide to Intimacy for Asexuals

Image result for Annie Abrahams the big kiss

(Source taken from: https://thirdspacenetwork.com/annie-abrahams/)

Title: The Big Kiss

Artist: Annie Abrahams

Medium: Webcam performance installation art

Year: 2008

The Review

On October 10 2008, Annie Abrahams set up a live video shoot of her and Mark River sitting on opposite ends of a partition, simulating a kiss over a split video screen.

(Source is a screen shot from: https://vimeo.com/2070207)

From the image we can see the two artists manuvering their faces in front of the camera while looking towards the screen to see if their faces were match up forming a ‘kiss’. The live video consist of the both of them sticking their tongues out and pressing kisses againgst each other as though they are making out with each other physically.

According to the website thirdspacenetwork, Abrahams’ works explores the ‘intimacy’ and even ‘sexuality’ of humans ‘in the “telematic embrace”‘ which is the internet, and the idea of ‘being alone but together’. It draws parallels to how the millenials of the 21st century have used their technology like snapchat, skype, etc to have real time conversations with each other despite being in different locations. It is almost as if conversing with an object and not an actual person.

As mentioned by Randall Parker in his writing ‘the third space’, people can assume their internet identities in a ‘reinvented world of their choosing’. They can take walks with each other, converse with each other, initate acts of intimacy, etc without actually touching. It becomes this invisible barrier between two people that keep them apart, but still together at the same time. As a result, this ‘portal’ which allows us to see each other in different locations has the potential to become surreal or fantasy like because it does not show the ‘utimate truth’.

If we cross reference this work, with Nam June Paik’s ‘Egg Grows’ we can see a similarity with this idea of the third space being ‘decieving’.

Image result for egg grows nam june paik (Source taken from: http://kmccarth.umwblogs.org/2015/01/26/nam-june-paik/)

From above we see an egg being broadcasted in real time ov various Tvs placed in different positions and of different sizes. As a result the images of the egg become distorted to fit the TV screens, making them bigger then usual, or positioned weirdly.

In conclusion this becomes an alternate reality that conincides with the actual reality we exist in, however, it has far more potential to be manipulated into something that we want to see of want others to see.

Sources:

  • http://bram.org/toucher/TBK.html
  • https://thirdspacenetwork.com/annie-abrahams/
  • Paker R. ,The third Space, http://www.randallpacker.com/third-space/
  • Video recording of ‘The Big Kiss’: https://vimeo.com/2070207

Week 1 Assignment

‘Open source as a Culture’ by Siva Vaidhyanathan highlights the positive effects of Open Studio, however the essay also focuses on the negative. Open Studio Practice ‘increases the creativity’ with idea sharing. However it also results in the issues of Copyright and increase in online hackers. The creation of the internet results in increased accessibility to ideas, images, information etc, it has been easier to steal them as well.

Image result for hakers

(source taken from: http://geekmexico.com/blog/hakers-genios-sin-merito/)

This leads many large companies like micro-soft, as mentioned in the essay, to protect their intellectual property with copyrights and trademarking.

On the other hand, ‘Open Source Studio’ by Randall Parker discuss several ideas regarding the evolution in the Art world with the birth of technology.

The first being the interconnectivity brought by the internet. With the creation of the web what has traditionally been isolated, for example the artist studio space, portfolios, etc, can be communicated to a global scale. Many people have taken to the internet to voice through social media (eg; facebook, Twitter), online forums have been created to share information with the communitty creating discussions without the need to congregate. Similarly, Open Source Studios takes advantage of the connectivity brought by the internet and becomes an online sharing platform that showcases artworks of various medias to a international audience.

Image result for interconnectivity

(Source is taken from: https://greenerideal.com/interconnectivity/)

Image result for art websites

(Source is taken from: http://conceptartempire.com/gathering-online-art-critiques/)

Secondly, the essay references Siva Vaidhyanathan’s ‘Open Source as a Culture’, which once again brings across the dilemma that follows open space practices, copyright.

Finally, the essay also highlights the works of artists that have embraced the idea of Open studio Practice. DIWO or do it with others is a concept that encourage sharing of ideas or Audience interaction.

Image result for diwo

(source take from: http://ruthcatlow.net/?page_id=27)