Krisna Murti's article, New Media: Guerrilla Culture to Gadget Art, responds to the different modes of thought and benefits to new media in the face of criticism and fear or misunderstanding of the new medium. Murti talks about how people have viewed digital media as a danger and threat to society: many of these opinions remain strong today. For example, there is the fear that social interaction is a skill that is waning due to the distance created by technology, or that technology sets a bad example for the younger generations in terms of violence. Certainly, this fear is a cycle that will continue to be renewed with the introduction of something that has not been seen before; even comics were an art form that certain generations were skeptical of.
Murti illuminates the positive aspects and underlying messages of digital media even through examples of the more offensive or harmful products of digital media. The bombing in Indonesia set off by a cell phone ring, and cyber-hacking to release secret or censored information are two examples that might be seen as extremely dangerous, and exhibit a strong argument for why new media and technology is negative. However, Murti defines these examples by transforming their negativity into potential for the positive. The bombing in which the bomber did not need to be present is an example of alternative presence in real time- the person does not have to be present in the actual space to have an effect. This crosses into boundaries of social media like Skype, and even artistic interactive spaces where the art and program of a project can interact and change with the viewer and audience while they are viewing the piece. Cyber-hacking is a way of rebelling against overpowered authority and placing authority and clarity into the hands of the common person. Art does this by making the tools to make digital art readily available to anyone- such as the ability to create video, GIFs, websites, post photos outside of a gallery setting, etc.
While these examples may be controversial, there are important insights into these ideas. I was especially intrigued with the ideas of time and how digital media creates a flexible gallery space in which time and space can be flexible in terms of the presentation of the material. I also began thinking about the contradiction related to the sense of time and space in digital media and technology especially in relation to the website that I have made. While web spaces can be considered to be permanent and timeless spaces for a piece of work or information, and that this is a place where people can access the information on this site always, the way in which the industry and new media art grows means that there is consistent and rapid change. The access and viewership of these pieces transcend time, but they cannot always transcend interest and modern culture, which is something that has to be continually reconciled to make work, and even the medium relevant for an extended period of time.
Murti illuminates the positive aspects and underlying messages of digital media even through examples of the more offensive or harmful products of digital media. The bombing in Indonesia set off by a cell phone ring, and cyber-hacking to release secret or censored information are two examples that might be seen as extremely dangerous, and exhibit a strong argument for why new media and technology is negative. However, Murti defines these examples by transforming their negativity into potential for the positive. The bombing in which the bomber did not need to be present is an example of alternative presence in real time- the person does not have to be present in the actual space to have an effect. This crosses into boundaries of social media like Skype, and even artistic interactive spaces where the art and program of a project can interact and change with the viewer and audience while they are viewing the piece. Cyber-hacking is a way of rebelling against overpowered authority and placing authority and clarity into the hands of the common person. Art does this by making the tools to make digital art readily available to anyone- such as the ability to create video, GIFs, websites, post photos outside of a gallery setting, etc.
While these examples may be controversial, there are important insights into these ideas. I was especially intrigued with the ideas of time and how digital media creates a flexible gallery space in which time and space can be flexible in terms of the presentation of the material. I also began thinking about the contradiction related to the sense of time and space in digital media and technology especially in relation to the website that I have made. While web spaces can be considered to be permanent and timeless spaces for a piece of work or information, and that this is a place where people can access the information on this site always, the way in which the industry and new media art grows means that there is consistent and rapid change. The access and viewership of these pieces transcend time, but they cannot always transcend interest and modern culture, which is something that has to be continually reconciled to make work, and even the medium relevant for an extended period of time.
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