Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Cadre Art Gallery Critique


Cadre Art Gallery Critique:

 
The Cadre Art Gallery to me functioned around a number of different aspects of art but the most significant of which had to be the diversity of the digital media world as displayed by the multitude of unique pieces in the exhibit. Whether it be through the complexity of programming or the simplicity of some pieces, all were significant in their own aesthetically pleasing way. In this way I believe the Cadre Art Gallery was able to effectively show the true nature of a rather new and untapped art medium: the diversity of the Digital Media world.

To compare two similar yet resoundingly different pieces Geri Wittig’s 1994 game titled Papal Propagation is effective in its own unplayable nature whereas John Bruneau and James Morgans’ piece titled Cooperative Gaming Co-op is effective in its playable nature. Both pieces are gaming consoles yet the interactive nature of each piece compliments the main idea being expressed by the artists. Whereas Cooperative Gaming Co-op focuses on the “death of the arcade” and the potential growth of a new future for the arcade through a new interactive style of gaming, Papal Propagation focuses on a differing concept, that there is no potential for a democratic or majority rule concerning the direction and rules of the Catholic church. Both are highly effective in their own specific functions within the realm of Digital Media and in so, display the numerous possibilities within this medium even when both are concerning an arcade gaming console.

Another exemplary piece of diversity within Digital Media is the piece Siena by Vera Fainshtein. In this simple piece there is a camera focused on a building through the eerie fog with normal life events occurring around it such as people simply walking or cars being driven past. There is also quite a cacophony of noise coming from somewhere in the image leaving it up to the viewer to decipher the rather abrupt sounds in this peaceful setting. The displayed diversity of Digital Media through this piece comes through the brilliant simplicity of it. Whereas other mediums would only be able to capture a glimpse of that foggy day in Siena this medium allows an over-scrutiny of that day to really grasp a full appreciation of the multitude of sensory information this scene provides. Along the lines of simplicity within Digital Media is the piece Pixelboard by DC Spensley and Peter Spangler. As displayed throughout this gallery the theme of less being more within this medium is very common due to the nature of the medium itself being very complicated.

Throughout this gallery the variety within the Digital Medium art world was shown immensely and effectively through environmental interaction and inaction, simplicity and over-scrutiny, and the multitude of differing pieces exhibited. Together these elements created a very interesting and complex gallery that mimicked the complex and unpredictable world of Digital Media itself.

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