New Media Art

1. Time Period: New Media Art

You'll be looking at art from between 1968 and 2008.

2. Fluxus

Fluxus is identified as an attitude or philosophy rather than a particular movement. It shares many similarities with an earlier movement of the 20th century called Dada in how it questions the idea of art itself. It is an intermediary discipline, meaning that artists look to see what develops from mixing different forms of media. In many cases, like the examples below, it relies on assemblage.

An example of Fluxus work:

This example is from an artist who is considered a pioneer in the field of new media art:

Wolf Vostell was the first artist to incorporate the use of a television in a work of art. This electronic assemblage piece from 1968 was actually a fully-functioning collection of contraptions set upon a bed of broken glass.

Nam June Paik is considered the founder of video art. His Electronic Superhighway is a video installation and assemblage work of televisions and neon lights, in the form of a map of the United States, with each state displaying a different video loop.

In both examples, we can see important elements of Fluxus art, such as simple designs and the integration of humor. Fluxus works of art are intended to be fun.

terms to know

Fluxus

A word that literally means “flow”; it is a conceptual artistic practice that finds intersections between media and other disciplines and often includes humor.

New Media Art

Artwork characterized by the use of computers, animations, or other technology generated medium.

Video Art

Art that uses the medium of video and that is often considered experimental.

Video Installation

A method of making art that uses technology to create an environment and experience.

3. Bio Art

Bio art is an art form that really developed within the last 20 years. One of the landmark moments in genetic manipulation, which plays a role in Bio art, was the birth of the first cloned mammal, Dolly the sheep, in 1996. The artist known as Stelarc has been using his body as an experimental tool for many decades in the name of art and science.

One example that's not shown here is a work called Ping Body, in which electrons were hooked up to muscles in his body and remote users could activate the different muscles over the internet.

The project we see here goes by a number of different names, such as Ear on Arm, Extra Ear, or Third Ear:

It's a surgically-grafted cell-grown ear, meaning it's grown on a type of bio scaffolding, as opposed to donated from a cadaver, that's attached to his lower left forearm. He's had it for some time and has used it in several different projects, one of which involved the insertion of a microphone behind the ear and then wirelessly feeding the recordings over the internet so people could hear what his extra ear heard.

This is GFP or Transgenic bunny:

Her name is Alba; she's 100% real bunny, or close to it. She's an albino bunny with a neat trick. She fluoresces green in the right light, due to scientists injecting a fertilized albino rabbit egg with a green fluorescent protein of the Pacific Northwest jellyfish.

term to know

Bio Art

A technique of making art using science and mediums of biological or living materials.

4. RMB City

With the advent and expansion of the internet into almost every aspect of our lives, it was only a matter of time before people had the option of actually living their life in a virtual environment. Second Life is an online virtual world that was launched in 2003. It's an ongoing development constructed by users and experienced vicariously through virtual avatars or people.

The Chinese artist, Cao Fei, developed a city within Second Life called RMB City, which opened to the public in 2009:

It is very much a virtual social experiment. Cao Fei acts as a guide of sorts and documents and captures people's desires, ideologies, and experiences within the context of this city, as well as explores the discrepancy between dreams and reality.