Marisa Olson on "OURS: Democracy In the Age of Branding"

This is another great article from Rhizome who talked to Marisa Olson, the co-curator of the new exhibition called, "OURS: Democracy in the Age of Branding." The exhibit has both a place in New York City at Parsons and an online segment, which has been a new way to explore so many things and now a new way to explore art. The exhibition, on a whole, looks at how democracy has become situated as a consumer brand in order to disseminate American values worldwide. The online portion of the show specifically examines subversive strategies emergent from network culture, and how these methods may produce and disseminate ideas that may work against the sway of branding. In light of the recent success of Barack Obama's campaign for presidency, largely due to Web-based grassroots organizing, the scope of "OURS: Democracy in the Age of Branding" seems to take on a whole new significance.

Overall, it's a further way of recruiting people's participation, faith, and responsibility. Saying "We" gets us all to buy in, while also making us all culpable for what happens to our country. This is hugely important. So it's a smart move and an exciting turn in a country that came to feel as if it had gone to the dogs.

Throughout this interview the topic of branding and participatory media is discussed in some detail. The co-curator talks about how she thinks art activism will change now that things have changed dramatically after the presidential election was decided. She thought that art will change in light of seeing things more positively through the campaign slogan "yes we can." However, the way that this exhibition decided to use the internet to portray some portions and to get people involved was the most interesting part of what they discussed. To me this is a very good idea for people to get involved and to become more active and personal with art as well as everything else.

~B~

POSING

Here are my images for part one of the POSING project.  I find this to be an interesting project so far.  I love photography and being able to photograph is the best so I can't wait for the second part of the assignment. 

 

The Future of Computer Art

"The use of computers in art leads to a compatibility of the instrumentarium - to a closer link between the different art forms which, owing to the different classical methods and instruments, have been separated and taught in different institutions. It is one of the decisive aspects of the new situation brought about by the introduction of the computer that there is no longer a reason for dividing art into different forms, be they classical or modern."

Herbert W. Franke, scientist and German artist, wrote a piece describing the future of computers in the arts in 1987. By all accounts he predicted almost everything precisely. Which is extremely interesting due to the fact that its quite hard for me to even imagine what the internet and computers will be doing for us even five or ten years from now.

The author explains that computer art is still in its initial stages of development, for it has been in existence but a short time and the underlying technology is not yet fully mature. He anticipates that high-resolution screens will lead to better images and that improved computer performance will permit real-time animation of photorealistic images. Three-dimensional representation will stimulate visual artists to work and think in new ways, for their concern will no longer be the problem of perspective, which will be handled by the computer, but rather the spatial design of objects and sceneries that can he expanded at will beyond the image on the screen. In its final stage of development, computer art might also be able to include elements of literature and to develop a plot in which the user, through interaction, can play a part.

~B~

Seeing all the News from Today

"All technology must move toward the way things were before humanity began changing them: identification with nature in the manner of operation, complete mystery. 

Art, once so elegant, has been transformed by representation into an object, cluttered and confused not only by operating systems and applications, its once-accepted inherited discourse, but by the words and the theories used to prescribe its very being.  these prescriptions are themselves shrouded in a language that, disconnected from the world as it is, is no longer

 useful.  To recapture that connection, it is necessary to find and use a tool that will leave no traces, that, in other words, will allow an unmediated relationship with the thing in itself. 

The problem is more serious: we must dispense with computers altogether and get used to working with tools.  It can be put this way too: find ways of using computers as though they were tools, ie, so that they leave no traces.  That's precisely what our computers, video cameras, amplifiers, web-servers, projectors, cameras, mobile phones, etc., and even the internet, are: things to be used which don't necessarily determine the nature of what is done." 

Martin John Callanan

Callanan began a project where he wanted to see what was going on in the world so he took the covers of newspapers and magazines from across the world and posts them daily on a webpage. I think this is a really awesome idea and its an interesting concept to be able to see all of this at once.  Literally scrolling through pages of headlines all at once is a great way to be able to compare what really matters all the way in Israel or China.  Its a great feeling to know that its possible to know whats going on across the world as well through a few major images and some text, which isn't even being read.  The images tell you what important. 

Callanan strikes an interesting conversation from his quote on top as well about how the internet takes away from art, yet he is using it as a tool to show his art.  Pretty ironic and interesting ... definitely something to think about. 

~B~