CHArt Computers and the History of Art CHArt 2000 Conference Paper Abstracts

VISUAL CULTURE AND THE NEW MILLENNIUM

Karen Wallis,
University of the West of England

Exhibiting Digital Art

The established method of mounting a gallery exhibition no longer fits the demands of digital art. Developing technology opens up new possibilities for presentation on the one hand, while complicating the issues of interpretation on the other.

This paper looks at the breadth of digital art forms and methods of presentation evident in three digital bursaries at Watershed, Bristol and examines the issues that have arisen to date.

The first bursary was a Hi-tech / Lo-Tech installation - a gallery based exhibition based on research gathered through an interactive web site. The second was the development of software as an art form - a free programme to download from the Internet, demonstrated in the gallery by artwork created by artists. The third, a series of interventions, currently being developed, will be revealed over the next year.

The experience of these bursaries has revealed issues, both practical and theoretical, for curation, presentation, and the relationship between the audience and the artwork.

The nature of a bursary, rather than a commission or a grant, recognizes the need for artists to develop their technological skills at the same time as developing a body of work. However in this situation the role of the curator shifts. Careful support and monitoring is required in a situation where artists are usually left to manage a project for themselves.

Practical problems are not restricted to keeping up with technology. The assembly and presentation of digital art requires a different and more time-consuming approach than the hanging of an exhibition of.