20012.1016 LISA Conference, Guggenheim NYC

The fuTILITY of medIA ArT IN A CoNTemporArY ArT worLd

provocations based on 17 years of experience with media art and the intimate knowledge of realities of life as a full-time media artist. marius watz http://mariuswatz.com http://twitter.com/mariuswatz

bACkGrouNd

me: Self-taught artist, educator and sometime curator. Involved in media art since 1995.

•1984: first computer (TrS-80)

•1993: Computer Science

•1994: end of Computer Science

bACkGrouNd

1996: Co-curator of electra, major media art exhibition at henie-onstad Art Center, oslo.

featured large-scale interactive installations, experimental design, historical works. Virtual reality, experimental hardware, interactive video etc. 42000+ visitors. Artists: Laurie Anderson, diller + Scofidio, ulrike Gabriel, perry hoberman, knowbotic research, Greg Lynn, Sommer + mignonneau etc. etc.

(Also: “Sense:less” - Vr installation by mork, pendry, Stenslie and watz)

Sense:less (1996)

mork, pendry, Stenslie, watz Vr installation

reLeVANCe?

due to art world politics and an unforgivable lack of documentation electra has been completely forgotten and might as well never have happened, despite being seen by 42000+ people.

furthermore: The artists in the show were considered highly successful at the time, but many have since stopped making work. As a result, most media artists I know have no knowledge of their practices or significant works.

bACkGrouNd, CoNT.

1997-2002: The Lost Years. web design, dotcom idiocy, experimental personal web projects, corporate identity consultancy.

2003: post-dotcom crash relocation to berlin, committing to making art full time.

2005: Curated Generator.x as a reaction to the media art establishment’s ignorance of generative art and formalist abstraction based on code.

2012: Still making art full time.

INITIAL ArTISTIC foCuS (2003-2008)

•Investigation of software processes as art objects in and of themselves

•Semi-autonomous generative systems producing visual abstractions based on constrained random parameters

•displayed on screens or as projections, often as ambient visual environments in public situations (festivals, public spaces etc)

System_C (2004)

realtime software

Illuminations (2006)

realtime software

Illuminations (2006)

realtime software

electroplastique (2005)

multi-screen video

TrANSITIoN To objeCT-mAkING

•frustration with screens as mediating mechanism, lack of physical presence combined with growing interest in spatial structures

•experimentation with digital fabrication processes to produce physical objects as the direct consequence of software processes

•product: 3d printed objects, drawings made with CNC tools, parametric sculpture, rule-based light installations, tape drawings based on projected images

Grid distortion (2011)

Laser on plywood

Grid distortion (2011)

Laser on plywood

Grid distortion (2011)

Laser on alumminum

wall exploder + form studies (2011)

Tape drawing, makerbot 3d prints

probability Lattice (2012)

parametric objects intended for lo-fi3Dprinting(Makerbot)

probability Lattice (2012)

parametric objects intended for lo-fi3Dprinting(Makerbot)

modular (2012)

3d printed objects (makerbot)

kbG - screentest (2012)

StandardVision test for facade at Taman Anggrek, jakarta

Arcs[rockheim] (2012)

public facade

reALITY CheCk, 2012

(Cheerleading not included)

•media art remains largely ignored by the mainstream art world as constituted by curators, critics, museums, galleries, biennials, art fairs, trade magazines and collectors.

•Contemporary art discourse continues to be remarkably clueless (or perhaps willfully ignorant) about the intersection of tech and culture, not to mention central concerns in media art.

•(open Source has gotten some traction, but usually liberally re-interpreted)

reALITY CheCk, 2012

•A small minority of media artists have successfully crossed over into the mainstream, showing in galleries, museums and art fairs and having their works collected. (examples: Cory Arcangel, jim Campbell, Claudia hart, ryoji Ikeda, rafael Lozano-hemmer, Carsten Nicolai, jennifer Steinkamp...)

•Increasingly, media artists are leveling up and playing the art market game with varying degrees of success. established art schools having media art programs is fuelling this trend. (examples: Aram bartholl, joanie Lemercier, eva and franco mattes, Casey reas, ubermorGeN...)

obviously, the examples given here are inexhaustive and completely subjective.

reALITY CheCk, 2012

•however: most media artists not only do not have access to galleries and fairs, they don’t even speak “contemporary art” or know how to approach a gallery.

•Several artists who have gained gallery representation have since been moved to “b” rosters or downgraded to dealer relationships, despite their status as movers and shakers in the media art world.

Caveat: It’s obviously not a birthright to have gallery representation or be collected, nor is it an indication of inherent artistic relevance. Still, it’d be nice to know that some of your work will survive if you get run over by a bus.

reALITY CheCk, 2012

Common denominators for crossover artists:

•practices with conceptual overtones combined with the production of spectacular (and collectable) objects using relatively stable technology.

•Conspicuous avoidance of media art terminology combined with knowledge of contemporary art world mechanics.

•produce works that can be understood as extensions of conventional art practices (video, sculpture, installation etc.)

reALITY CheCk, 2012

•A small number of galleries do specialize in media art (bitforms, [dAm]berlin etc.), participating in art fairs and educating a small if growing collector base.

•A somewhat larger number of commercial galleries representoccasionalmediaartiststhatfittheirrosters (often conforming to the crossover criteria described previously)

•Increasingly, media artists recognize the dangers of being boxed into the media art “ghetto”, adapting their work and terminology accordingly.

The medIA ArT “GheTTo”

•by which I mean the isolation of the media art scene from other contemporary art arenas, complete with a separate discourse and dedicated exhibitions and festivals (esp. in europe)

•Benefits:Accesstoearmarkedculturalfunding,freedom to develop ideas unique to media art, dedicated platform allowing emerging artists to produce and show work. Some media art events have achieved popular

•pitfalls: media art becomes irrelevant to contemporary art. media artists are marginalized andhavedifficultygainingrecognitionoutsidethe ghetto.

The medIA ArT “GheTTo”

furthermore:

•focus on integrated festival concepts is not always conducive to optimal presentation of art

•Such events are invariably group shows, limiting artists to a single spectacular gesture rather than a nuanced narrative

•“Alternative” art venues and integrated events are awesome, but contemplative works rarely do well next door to a glitchcore concert.

medIA ArT fALSehoodS

media art is immature and not capable of producing “great” works (fALSe)

media art is not collectable due to instability of technology (fALSe, mostly)

media art is only concerned with novelty and gadgetry (fALSe)

bTw: There’s plenty of bad art being made in all media. why discriminate?

proVoCATIoNS...

warning: Cynical observations incoming, many of them sadly true.

proVoCATIoNS...

The success of media art is NoT a matter of time. media art history is constantly being forgotten.

The current historical interest and “re-discovery” of media artists from the 1960’s does not significantly help artists working today.

The idea that future art history will vindicate the current generation of media artists is of very little comfort.

proVoCATIoNS...

The disparity between the proven popularity of media art with lay audiences and the willingness of art world gatekeepers to show / curate / write about it is telling.

proVoCATIoNS...

To say that art is “digital” or “made with computers” is meaningless.

Anthony Gormley is not considered a digital or generative artist, despite his use of custom parametric software systems.

wade Guyton’s solo show at whitney might be “painting, rebooted” (NY Times), but describing it as based on technology is trite in the extreme. printing press, anyone?

proVoCATIoNS...

To say that art is “digital” or “made with computers” is meaningless.

Anthony Gormley is not considered a digital or generative artist, despite his use of custom parametric software systems.

wade Guyton’s solo show at whitney might be “painting, rebooted” (NY Times), but describing it as based on technology is trite in the extreme. printing press, anyone?

...buT AT LeAST I’m NoT A pAINTer.

for all the moaning that can justifiably be done about the lack of recognition for media art, consider this:

media artists have skill sets that are supremely bankable. web dev might not be glamorous, but at least you’re not giving painting lessons to ladies on the upper east side.

fINALLY:

keep in mind that a successful artist is any artist who pays her bills.

bonus points: be able to afford health care.

(Thanks for your time. ) mariuswatz.com