In 2001 MIT scholar Henry Jenkins wrote: “Part of the confusion about media convergence stems from the fact that when people talk about it, they’re actually describing at least five processes” (Jenkins, 2001). He lists these types of convergence as technological, economic, social or organic, cultural, and global, concluding that “these multiple forms of media [...]
Some medieval paintings are like webpages, with writing and images, rich in stories and symbols. The painting has to be ‘read’ and one has be familiar with its symbolism in order to understand the meaning. Many interpretations have been given, and for Bosch’s contemporaries it must have been one of the rare opportunities to see [...]
The text below is an image. It is easy to ‘capture’ text. The act of copying, here through the snipping tool, means I do not have to type these words any longer in order to get the writing on the screen. Writing and typing can be replaced by taking images. Where previously words were keyed [...]
In this week I started to look at the concept of digitally mediated ‘space’ in the context of sound and aesthetic experiences. I had a stimulating blog exchange with one of my fellow students regarding the challenge of representing works of art online, reflecting on the pushing of boundaries, outside the artists’ intentions. The idea of [...]
On many occasions I take photos with my camera, mobile phone. This time, however, I thought I would just focus on sound. It is a (poor quality) recording of a cantering lesson my daughter had… (thanks Phil and Jen for the technical support!)
WARNING: this is not science fiction… Professor Kevin Warwick Brain gates in 2020: time to start ‘becoming technology’…
from Google Art Project: Starry Night, Vincent Van Gogh (from the Rebecca Johnston article) Metaphors … are lenses which refract current cultural beliefs and values. They not only provide a prism through which to understand consumption behavior but, in their use/instantiation by individuals, are creative ways of seeing. I think that is a good starter [...]
The French artist Yves Klein 1928-1962 produced a set of monochrome paintings – a photo of one of them is shown on the left (downloaded from the Tate website) and is entitled IKB 79 1959 Following Amy’s post ‘What is real‘, I thought I would like to ask a number of related questions. Some of [...]
I was thinking a little bit more in the context of Sterne’s article and how he laments how little ‘sound’ has been considered as a topic of research in the context of digital cultures. The manipulation of sound, sound sampling for instance, is turning sound into a physical or ‘measured’ object therefore giving it a [...]
The “WAG” is a mini 3-dimensional, single room gallery that fits into your pocket ’cause I’ve developed it for IPhone, IPod Touch and I Pad. Every month, directly on your mobile, The “WAG” hosts a solo digital art exhibition related to the dynamic site-specific contest. So, the Widget Art Gallery works both as a sort [...]
Amazonian tribe use Google Earth: http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2012-06/18/amazon-tribe-google-earth If we consider what is digital culture and what isn’t then I feel it is hard to draw a line between what one could consider a-digital, non-digital or ex-digital, I am struggling with the linguistics here… For example the Amazon tribe using Google Earth, would have their cultural map [...]
Sterne questions why so little has been researched on sound in a cyberculture context? My guess is that cyberculture is rooted in a computer mediated environment in which we usually deal with an ‘inter-face’, and how we interact is mainly directed by visual input. The use of sound is therefore in relationship to the image. [...]
The clip World Builder very much reminded me of the Steven Spielberg film ‘Artificial Intelligence’. Both narratives explore the idea of dying and keeping memories. The idea that in a SF world, we could re-create life, or make life better would be linked to our technological progress. Mankind invents, and these inventions contribute to the world’s ‘advancement’. [...]
My main challenge for the week was getting to grips with the WordPress platform. Looking at a blank digital canvas is always a creative delight to me, intuitively exploring the features and graphics of the environment.This piecing together is like digital tapestry, a patchwork of choices which are constantly evaluated and evolving. Martin Hand (2008) [...]
Act only on the maxim whereby thou canst at the same time will that it should become a universal law (from Emmanuel Kant, quoted in Mark Poster,2006′ The Good,the Bad and the Virtual’). Poster explains that Kant believed that individuals (i.e. the bourgeoisie) could choose autonomously how to act and in which the consequences of [...]
Here are 3 clips that illustrate the idea of language and communication within a cyberspace culture:
I came across this animation in the Samsung future shorts series. Another dystopian vision of pointless consumerism controlled by media. The main characters have monitors strapped in front of their eyes and are constantly fed images and information. The evil clown (= bad person pretend good) is in charge of a pointless shopping parade, [...]
I was struck by the visual similarities between a picture of Google servers and the (symbolic) spaceship in Stanley Kubrick’s movie.There are a number of ideas emerging from this, all relating to juxtapositions of utopian/distopian. The (simulated) experience Hal verbalises, is perhaps resonating among these servers, with similar anxieties expressed by Google users. Google is trying to [...]
Today in the UK another company went into administration, Blockbusters, the video/game/film rental company. This follows HMV, Jessops and Comet, all within a few weeks. Journalists on the radio were explaining that all these companies were doomed since they did not embrace the online retail model. It seems to me that commentators focus on the [...]
Views are expressed as part of a distance learning course on Digital Education Jan-April 2013
Powered by WordPress. Designed by 
