In his essay, "Understanding Hybrid Spaces", Lev Manovich looks at the use of hybrid spaces in media by looking at the history of various pioneers in media hybridization.
Early hybrid media began with the fusion of text and video and as video technology improved, artists began to "remix" variations of what had already been. Over time, software innovations have allowed us to explore completely new ways of representing media.
Summing up his essay, Manovich concludes that the next step in all of this is to find ways to provide this hybridized media in aesthetically pleasing ways. That is, it's fine to be able to do "something", but does it make it worth watching?
What Manovich doesn't come out and say is that Art and Science often coexists in parallel. That is, they seem to be headed in the same direction, but rarely intersect. I don't mean to imply that they "never" intersect, but they very often go about acheiving their own goals without consulting each other.
Perhaps the biggest reason is due to the challenges of understanding technology and how to use it. Most artists, after all, aren't scientists. It takes awhile for art to catch up to science and what we see in the interim is art attempting to get to the next level, or catch up to science.
So what does all of this mean? Bottom line is that it's up to artists to take an active role in understanding and making use of technology. Technology, in and of itself, is rarely beautiful. It is artists who make technology useful, and in the realm of digital media, it's artists who make it worth watching.
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good summary & connections!
ReplyDeleteOk, so I'm kinda jealous that you're on team Manovich cause what little bit of study we did on him last semester was kind of intriguing. From what I understand, Manovich was formerly a film guy right? Who made a crossover into New Media, and has worked to try to change the way we talk, receive and respond to New Media Art? Well, I think so anyways, regardless, seems like you got a hefty dose of some of that "Two Cultures Theory" too.
ReplyDeleteNot trashing on my guy though, I thought Lessig was rad.
Oh, and btw, good blog Maurice. Well played sir.
Interesting summary. While I agree that Art and Science do not always work in tandem, I don't necessarily feel that art takes time to catch up to science.
ReplyDeleteIt seems to me that Art is the inspiration of science. Is it not in mans' nature to create (if for no other reason than for his own survival). Is Art not the expression of mans' creative energy.
I believe it is this artistic energy that ignites new ideas opening our minds to new ways of thinking. I feel that art and imagination are intertwined.
It has been said that life imitates art. What was once considered science fiction (based on one's wild imagination), may today be considered science fact.