Blogger Skins

Have you ever randomly Googled a friend or person you might not know that well just to get to know them better?  Or even to find dirt on that person? I know that most people probably have, I know my friends and I do it for fun to see what comes up.  We can always seem to find something funny, even if its not about that person specifically.  Through my research and exploration I have found out that image Google searching has become an art form.  I would have never thought of it but the artist Marcin Ramocki did!  

He decided he wanted a project based on a time-specific capturing of images within Google image searches.  He was very interested in the art of blogging and bloggers.  So he chose five art bloggers, Tom Moody, Paddy Johnson, Regine Debatty, James Wagner and Joy Garnett.  He then began performing specific image searches on their names.  He then decided to take the first one hundred images and imported  them, in the order of their appearance, into an HTML editor and then continued to compile them into an image map.  It reflected the original Google layout and popularity of the searched items. 

This concept that Ramocki came up with is just really interesting to me.  I find it even more interesting because my own personal time that I have spent looking for images on Google often yields strange results that have nothing or little to do with what I have searched.  In Ramocki's searches it appears that he really is exploring this and how Google performs its searches.  For each person that he Googled the images that appear are all almost classified as random and unique and not pertaining necessarily directly with the people with whom he had originally searched.  I'm glad at least that I'm not the only one coming up with completely random searches and images.  But what does this say about Google?  It just means that its not a perfect source but an interesting one that will broaden your ideas and thoughts based on your search. 

~ B ~ 

Big Box Reuse

Have you ever wondered what happens to places like Costco or Target when they shut down? Well a lady by the name of Julia Christensen decided that she wanted to not only find out what happens but she was going to make it about art as well. Julia Christensen basically decided that she was unhappy with how communities were handling large pieces of corporate real estate. Places would shut down and then nothing would happen with them. She decided other things could go in their already built foundations.

I think that this concept is really innovative and economically smart. Why waste a good space when a church congregation or another store could use the space. It saves time and money and gives people a place that is recognizable and useful to whatever purpose they intend to use the space for.
I also really like how she is using the map above to show spots that people have done the big box reuse or are in the process of doing a big box reuse. It enables viewers to see if its going to happen in their neighborhood or if it hasn't happened and they want it to happen they will be able to see it.

This is an interesting an innovative thought process that is useful. I would love to see it happen more often instead of wasting time tearing down huge buildings just to rebuild another building. It does not make sense either for the building to just sit there and not be used. I just started thinking about how many buildings probably sit there for years abandoned without use when there are hundreds of thousands of homeless people who could be living there or at least have a shelter to go to.

~ B ~

Chain Reaction

While looking for an article for this weeks blog entry I went to Networked Performance as well as Rhizome and started exploring their sites for an article. I realized that both sites had information about a four day festival that Upgrade! International curates each year. This years theme is called "Chain Reaction".

I found it interesting that the theme really illustrates Upgrade! network. Chain Reaction is a place for all new media to be explored in a new and interesting form of a city-wide digital art and networked cultural festival. They have several exhibitions, screenings, and live local and streamed performances as well as other programs, lectures and workshops that explore facests in the field of digital art. This meeting is going to bring together artists, curators, and art producers from all over the world.

Chain Reaction illustrates and portrays Upgrade! International due to its creativity that gradually grew into a international group that influenced each other continually through permanent communication. Through the gathering of all the artists, curators, and art producers in Macedonia it will cause a positive chain reaction within the attendees and art in general. It explores the issues of international cultural development and growth worldwide and locally in the world of digital networks. Expectations for this event are high and Upgrade! wants it to be a catalyst for dialog, future collaborations and understanding of new cultures.

"The artistic program shows current tendencies in the use of hardware and software development for artistic means. The artists presented here are the emergent creative force on the international new media art scene. Some of the works have been part of other exhibitions and festivals, and others have been created exclusively for this event. One of the dominant principles that have emerged in this collection of works is the blurring of the boundaries between art, cultures, technology and physical surroundings. This blurring is not about fading out; it is about illuminating and distributing new kinds of practices. It is about multiple modes of participating, navigating and deconstructing."

The Chain Reaction festival seems like a place where all of these brilliant artists are able to come together and expand their knowledge of new media art and meet others who will enlighten them. I really like the idea of being able to come together with new people, it is a great opportunity for new inspiration, which could lead to a great piece of new art. Meeting people from all over the world is also a great way to make long lasting connections with different cultures and people that could help you out in the future with in an art career. I also find Upgrade! International to be an interesting corporation. They seem to have started out on a small creative spark that grew into an international phenomenon.

~ B ~

Absence/Presence: An Interview with Charles Cohen

After reading Interview: Absence/Presence: A Conversation with Charles Cohen and viewing some of his work, I decided I would focus my entry based on his series entitled The Buff Series. This is the first time I have heard of the artist Charles Cohen, however, what he explores through and in his art is something I think about all the time when viewing and making art. Being able to explore his work and reading his responses have helped me to reach a better understanding of this form of new media art and of Cohen as an artist.

At the beginning of the interview Cohen discusses how he uses "cut-outs" to create an effect where the viewer or audience of the piece recognizes a void and fills it with his or her thoughts or perceptions. He then goes into his next phase which he calls the "abstract effect" where the intellectual activity happens for the viewer while viewing his work. The viewer then experiences the "reflexive effect" of Cohen's work by having expectations from the art piece as well as Cohen having expectations from the viewer about his work.

Cohen then goes on to say how this in turn by involving the viewer in the decision of what the project is illustrating and proving creates co-authorship with the artist.

"The viewer dissects all viewing experiences to the degree where the subtleties of the construction of meaning are understood and, perhaps assumes co-authorship with the artist."

Although he makes an interesting point, I personally have never really thought of the viewer as a co-author, I believe Cohen take an extremist view on the viewers role of his art. Now that I do, I still don't know if I totally agree with what Cohen is saying because although the viewer creates assumptions about the artwork the artist is the one who creates the actual work of art. The viewer does not take part in the conceptualization or the actual creation. When Cohen goes as far as saying the viewer becomes a co-author I believe that statement to be a little extreme. Instead I view the viewer as more of an opinion holder and not always the artist.


Cohen goes on to say that the void in his series creates or opens a thought process for the viewer. This I completely agree with, for I believe that great art makes the viewer stop and really think about what is happening in the work. I also think that one of the greatest compliments that an artist can receive is hearing that their work make the viewer stop and stare and think. In Cohen's case he wants the viewer to stop and place themselves into his imagery and begin to think about what is going on in the piece and what they are identifying with not only as viewers but as part of the art work. Through this thought process Cohen discusses interactivity as an act of intimacy, distance, and alienation through his art towards the viewer.

Cohen says "co authorship is the standard for interactivity... the Silhouette draws attention to the process of making the image as well as the motivation, draws viewer into the equation, making the narrative relative to the present moment. This reflexivity with in the image, for the viewer and between the image and the viewer is interactivity"

Most people believe that interactivity has to do with technology, but Cohen truly believes that through technology the viewer just becomes alienated and distant from the world of art. Cohen wants to "alienate the viewer as well as highlight a form of beauty in the lack of knowledge" through his use of the cut outs in his work. It really allows him to explore the involvement of the viewer and their thought process of his works.

~ B ~

Platforms, Platforms, OMG Platforms!!!

As I was scrolling around some different art related websites, an article on The Aphrodite Project really caught my attention. If you have never heard of the project basically they design platform heels that include alarms, and LCD screen and even GPS devices, the shoes are intended for prostitutes and strippers. The creator of this project, Norene Leddy, named it after the Greek Goddess of Love, Aphrodite. The platforms come with imagery and sounds relating to the theme of Aphrodite. The unique and unmistakable design of these shoes as well as the over all concept are truly genius. Leddy describes her mission for the heels by saying,

"The shoes address creativity and art-making as well as practical issues of design and marketability. It is my hope that in addition to creating beautifully crafted objects, the project will contribute to the current international debate over the regulation, decriminalization, and legalization of prostitution."

The design aspect of this product may reach a small market but the ideas behind the product reach a limitless market. Although these shoes are intended for prostitutes, the idea behind the shoes seems to have created a huge buzz on the art scene. The thought of technology, safety, and style all coming together is how the concept is being discussed all over the design world. The layout of the buttons and screens allows for a flawless look and feel to the platform that doesn't protrude and does not add more weight and deformity to the shoe. The Platforms hold a familiar yet futuristic and trendy feeling due to the high tech technology used and the familiarity comes from the fact that these are shoes every woman and most men have seen or wore before. I think that these shoes are definitely adding to the safety to prostitutes and they speak a lot about where new media art is heading. Not only are the platforms pieces of beautiful art, the work of art itself has become useful, trendy, and technology savvy. I think that concept is a very important part of design and being a graphic designer myself I know how the concept can make or break a design. And as far as shoes go I love all kinds of shoes and these are the only ones that I have seen that can do anything remotely this awesome!

~ B ~