Reading Response #3
Look at this painting on the left. It seems as a drawing of a painter inspired by the masterpiece on the right. Surprisingly, the painting on the left was created by AI. People in the art industry initially did not feel worried about AI when it began to be commercialized. However, considering the current situation, it is the art industry that is facing the most crisis due to the emergence of AI and its creativity. The author of this reading defines a new medium, called “New Media,” as a kind of medium that uses new media technologies to convey cultural, political, or aesthetic intentions. In this field of art, the emergence of AI can be seen as the birth of another form of New Media, indicating that New Media is a continuously evolving medium in various fields.
As mentioned in the text, past New Media has developed passionately with the keyword “communication” at its core. It not only exhibited artworks at exhibitions but also effectively utilized the internet to communicate with people worldwide, saving time and costs and enabling individuals’ cultural and political activities. The current New Media has progressed one step further from the past. It is utilized in various fields such as commercial marketing, education, and regional development. For example, with the advancement of technology, professions like influencers and YouTubers have emerged, conducting commercial activities by advertising themselves. Furthermore, AI tools can educate elementary school students an art. Additionally, AI is utilized to quickly collect and organize data to assist in organizing festivals in local communities.
Articles about AI’s helping communities:
https://www.newscape.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=95194
The field of New Media is continuously evolving and expanding its scope. While it is good that new possibilities continue to arise in line with market trends, as the author suggests, there is a need to focus on audience interaction and communication as the driving force for further development.
Analysis of Artworks
Before 2000s:
TV Buddha(1974)
Nam June Paik(1932-2006)
Closed-circuit video installation with wooden sculpture, monitor and video camera
Video, single channel, 4:3 format, live feed
Dimensions variable
In this artwork, the Buddha statue is facing the TV, which broadcasts the image of the Buddha itself.
Nam June Paik, who had a strong interest in music and studied it, primarily focused on performance art and needed a way to document his activities. That is when he started filming videos, and he can be described as a significant figure who developed the genre of “video art,” creating art out of the technology of video.
This artwork had a significant impact on people of that time. In the 1970s and 1980s, video was not a common medium, and its primary purpose was to deliver information. However, Paik used the video as a tool of art. In this artwork, the image of the “mirror,” which has long been discussed in the history of art, is presented in a new way using the technology of TV, combining Eastern and Western cultures (Buddha & TV). This had a significant influence on the New York art scene at that time.
After 2000s:
Link to his gallery:
https://cclarkgallery.com/artists/works/ken-goldberg#slide2
Bloom(2012)
Ken Goldberg(1961~)
Custom software with live data feed
Size variable
This artwork visualizes seismic data, which refers to randomly generated earthquake data, using various colors.
Growing up under the engineer father, Goldberg had a strong interest in both art and engineering from a young age, eventually majoring in electrical and computer engineering. Unable to give up art, he further developed his knowledge of art during his study abroad, taking classes on artificial intelligence. Subsequently, he began creating works that harmonized engineering and art.
This artwork effectively demonstrates the direction in which New Media is progressing and the aspects it should strive for. By assigning colors to randomly generated numerical values extracted from seismic data, the artwork creates circular patterns. Through this, it encapsulates not only the theme of human life’s distraction but also the endurance of the Earth. Utilizing advancing technology to communicate one’s ideas, I believe this is a true “New Media”.