Blog #14

This post focuses on New Media Art pages 80-94. The last leg of the book shows artist that take unique stances on software, they use it in a way that is often not intended or they do something unique with it. Anne Marie Scheliner, Joan Leandre, and Brody Condon Created Velvet Strike, a mod to the game Counterstrike, which itself is a mod for the game Half Life. Counterstrike puts players into two teams, terrorists and counter terrorists and has them complete objectives to thwart the other side. It creates a statement not only on the nature of war, but the nature of the game. It brings the real life ramifications into the game. It allows players to stage protests in the game. The idea of a game using war to create a means of fun makes an interesting statement on society, Velvet Strike brings the parts of war that are never seen in the game, creating deep points on the nature of games in our society. Alexi Shulgin claims to have created a cyberpunk band, which really just comprises of him and his computer. He creates digital versions of popular songs which sound as though they are being played through an old nintendo cartridge. It makes interesting statements on the idea of musical authenticity. Is it the same song when being played in that way? The idea is one that exists all over the creative industry, is digitally remastering Star Wars destroying its authenticity, or is it just improving the film? This debate has gone on for as long as people have been changing pre-existent art. Cornelia Sollfrank created Female Extension a program that created accounts on various email providers and sent them into a contest. The accounts created were all female which meant that the majority of the applicants were females, which led to only males winning the contest. The piece unearths a bit of sexism that existed unseen by everyone involved.
I feel that all of these pieces portray artist using technology in unique ways. The idea that technology is created for one single purpose, but can also be used in such unique ways to create art show a new view on originality. I think when most people think of computers they see very narrow things, a device that allows for very limited things which exists under many constraints. But in truth the computer can and will do anything and everything the user asks, given the right instructions. I think it is an interesting thing to see an artist using a piece of software meant to fulfill a specific task in another way entirely. It is as though they are working within those constraints to create something totally unintended, which only goes to show the nature creativity has taken on in the digital age.