Information art, which is also known as informatism or data art, is an art form that is inspired by and principally incorporates data, computer science, information technology, artificial intelligence, and related data-driven fields. The information revolution has resulted in over-abundant data that are critical in a wide range of areas, from Internet to healthcare systems. Related to conceptual art, electronic art and new media art, informatism considers this new technological, economical, and cultural paradigm shift, such that artworks may provide social commentaries, synthesize multiple disciplines, and develop new aesthetics.[Edward A. Shanken has argued that little scholarship has explored the relationship between technology and conceptual art. He also claimed that there was an art-historical impetus to artificially distinguish information art from conceptual art. Edward A. Shanken, 'Art in the Information Age: Technology and Conceptual Art,' in Michael Corris (ed.), Conceptual Art: Theory, Myth and Practice Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004.] Furthermore, physical and virtual installations involving informatism often provide human-computer interaction that Generative art artistic contents based on the processing of large amounts of data.[See Charlie Gere Art, Time and Technology: Histories of the Disappearing Body (Berg, 2005). This text concerns artistic and theoretical responses to the increasing speed of technological development and operation, especially in terms of draws on the ideas of Jacques Derrida, Bernard Stiegler, Jean-François Lyotard and André Leroi-Gourhan, and looks at the work of Samuel Morse, Vincent van Gogh and Kasimir Malevich, among others.]
Background
Information art has a long history as visualization of qualitative and quantitative data forms a foundation in science, technology, and governance. Information design and
Infographic, which has existed before computing and the Internet, are closely connected with this new emergent art movement.
An early example of informatism the 1970 exhibition organized called "Information" at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City (curated by
Kynaston McShine). This is the time when
conceptual art has emerged as a leading tendency in the
United States and internationally.
[See Lucy R. Lippard, Six Years: the Dematerialization of the Art Object From 1966 to 1972 (1973. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1997).] At the same time arose the activities of Experiments in Art and Technology known as E.A.T.
[E.A.T. followed from the event Nine Evenings: Theatre and Engineering, organised by Robert Rauschenberg and Billy Klüver at the Armoury Building, New York City, 13–22 October 1966 to promote the collaboration between artists and engineers. They also organised the Pepsi Pavilion at the World's Fair, Osaka, in 1970. For a detailed discussion of the project see Bijvoet, Art as Inquiry, ch. 2.]
Contemporary practices
Information art are manifested using a variety of data sources such as
,
census data,
video clips,
search engine results,
digital painting, network signals, and others.
Often, such data are transformed, analyzed, and interpreted in order to convey concepts and develop aesthetics. When dealing with
big data, artists may use
statistics and
machine learning to seek meaningful patterns that drive audio, visual, and other forms of representations. Recently, informatism is used in interactive and
Generative art installations that are often dynamically linked with data and analytical pipelines.
See also
Examples
Related subjects
Further reading
-
Alan Liu (2004). "The Laws of Cool: Knowledge Work and the Culture of Information", University of Chicago Press
-
Kenneth R. Allan, "Understanding Information," in Michael Corris (ed.), Conceptual Art, Theory, Myth, and Practice (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004), 144-68.
-
Roy Ascott (2003). Telematic Embrace. (Edward A. Shanken, ed.) Berkeley: University of California Press.
-
Barreto, Ricardo and Perissinotto, Paula “the_culture_of_immanence”, in Internet Art. Ricardo Barreto e Paula Perissinotto (orgs.). São Paulo, IMESP, 2002. .
-
Jack Burnham, (1970) Beyond Modern Sculpture: The Effects of Science and Technology on the Sculpture of this Century (New York: George Braziller Inc.
-
Bullivant, Lucy (2007). 4dsocial: Interactive Design Environments (Architectural Design). London: John Wiley & Sons.
-
Bullivant, Lucy (2006). Responsive Environments: architecture, art and design (V&A Contemporary). London:Victoria and Albert Museum.
-
Bullivant, Lucy (2005). 4dspace: Interactive Architecture (Architectural Design). London: John Wiley & Sons.
-
Oliver Grau, Virtual Art, from Illusion to Immersion, MIT Press/Leonardo Book Series (Leonardo/ISAST), 2004, pp. 237–240,
-
Paul, Christiane (2003). Digital Art (World of Art series). London: Thames & Hudson.
-
Peter Weibel and Shaw, Jeffrey, Future Cinema, MIT Press 2003, pp. 472,572-581,
-
Wilson, Steve Information Arts: Intersections of Art, Science and Technology Information Arts: Intersections of Art, Science, and Technology, MIT Press/Leonardo Book Series (Leonardo/ISAST)
-
Kynaston McShine, "INFORMATION", New York, Museum of Modern Art., 1970, First Edition. ISBN LC 71-100683
-
Jack Burnham, 'Systems Esthetics,' Artforum (September, 1968); reprinted in Donna de Salvo (ed.), Open Systems: Rethinking Art C. 1970 (London: Tate Publishing, 2005)
-
Edward A. Shanken, 'Art in the Information Age: Technology and Conceptual Art,' in Michael Corris (ed.), Conceptual Art: Theory, Myth and Practice (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004).
-
Marga Bijvoet, (1997) Art as Inquiry: Toward New Collaborations Between Art & Science, Oxford: Peter Lang
-
Frank Popper (1993) Art of the Electronic Age, Thames and Hudson Ltd., London, and Harry N. Abrams Inc, New York,
-
Pavilion: Experiments in Art and Technology. Klüver, Billy, J. Martin, B. Rose (eds). New York: E. P. Dutton, 1972
-
Dick Higgins, 'Intermedia' (1966), reprinted in Donna De Salvo (ed.), Open Systems Rethinking Art c. 1970 (London: Tate Publishing, 2005)
-
Nicolas Bourriaud, Relational Aesthetics (Dijon: Les Presses du Réel, 2002, orig. 1997)
-
Charlie Gere Digital Culture (Reaktion, 2002)
External links
