[splash image]
MTAA-RR:
Nov 19, 2003
The Tooth
posted at 15:20 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Yep, that’s me in that pic at the top of the page there. M.River told me that I should explain about the tooth (as you can see, it’s brown) and since I do everything that M.River tells me to do the explanation follows.
The photo above is a ‘before’ picture which I took to document the teeth-whitening and eventual replacement of the brown tooth with a glistening white veneer. Perhaps I’ll put the ‘after’ pic up in a bit.
But how did the tooth get brown in the first place you ask?
The short explanation is that I had a root canal performed on that tooth in my early twenties and with all my coffee-drinkin’ and smokin’ it became brown.
The long answer is much more interesting.
While in college, I was visiting my hometown of Elyria, Ohio on spring break. My brothers (Eric, the oldest, Mark, the middle child) and I went out drinkin’ at the local bars. We got a little bit drunk.
Anyway, we were at a bar called the Train Station (it was indeed right next to the train station) a female patron had a beef with my brother Eric’s wife (she wasn’t there though). The female patron was trying to get some guys to rough-up Eric but failed.
Things progressed and it finally became closing time and my brothers started jeering at the woman, making fun of her, and I joined in as well. My first mistake was not noticing that my brothers had walked out of the bar behind me and the second mistake was not seeing the guy leaning on the jukebox until after he had punched me in the mouth.
He knocked my tooth back; not out, but angled back. I went outside and showed my brothers. Mark pushed it back into place (the dentist would later compliment his effort) and then we tried to get back into the bar to beat-up the guy who had punched me. The bouncers, for some reason, wouldn’t let us back in so we angrily left the bar.
That’s not the end of the story really. But it’s the end of the story of the tooth. The damage to the bar, my later arrest, and other details I’ll save for a later post. permanent link to this post
The photo above is a ‘before’ picture which I took to document the teeth-whitening and eventual replacement of the brown tooth with a glistening white veneer. Perhaps I’ll put the ‘after’ pic up in a bit.
But how did the tooth get brown in the first place you ask?
The short explanation is that I had a root canal performed on that tooth in my early twenties and with all my coffee-drinkin’ and smokin’ it became brown.
The long answer is much more interesting.
While in college, I was visiting my hometown of Elyria, Ohio on spring break. My brothers (Eric, the oldest, Mark, the middle child) and I went out drinkin’ at the local bars. We got a little bit drunk.
Anyway, we were at a bar called the Train Station (it was indeed right next to the train station) a female patron had a beef with my brother Eric’s wife (she wasn’t there though). The female patron was trying to get some guys to rough-up Eric but failed.
Things progressed and it finally became closing time and my brothers started jeering at the woman, making fun of her, and I joined in as well. My first mistake was not noticing that my brothers had walked out of the bar behind me and the second mistake was not seeing the guy leaning on the jukebox until after he had punched me in the mouth.
He knocked my tooth back; not out, but angled back. I went outside and showed my brothers. Mark pushed it back into place (the dentist would later compliment his effort) and then we tried to get back into the bar to beat-up the guy who had punched me. The bouncers, for some reason, wouldn’t let us back in so we angrily left the bar.
That’s not the end of the story really. But it’s the end of the story of the tooth. The damage to the bar, my later arrest, and other details I’ll save for a later post. permanent link to this post
Nov 17, 2003
Currin is an asshole
posted at 21:25 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
I’m talking about John Currin, or Mr. Bodacious as the NYTimes calls him in the recent article.
I’ve never liked his work. It’s always seemed too illustrative and market-pandering to my eye, but the article linked above makes clear that not only are his paintings horrid and stupid but he is an ignorant, arrogant ass.
Here are some telling quotes: “I wish I could find more to love about it,” he recently observed, “but it’s hard. I have not seen the will to make a masterpiece in American art. What’s here? Albert Bierstadt? He’s small beer compared to the Europeans.” Ever heard of a little painter called JACKSON POLLACK you ignorant boob!? “I know Warhol is a great artist,” Currin said, “but I don’t like him. It’s the kind of art that advertises that he knows the doorman at the club.” I can’t even go into the awesome ignorance embodied in that one.
Blackhawk of The Thing gave a concise crit of this super-doofus on Thingist recently: …you will plainly see that the guy does not have a single original idea in his head, merely rips off everyone from Holbein to Botero to Ed Ward. Because he doesn’t disguise this, the work is supposed to be “referential”; it’s not, it’s just fraud. No hand, no eye, no mind. What are we supposed to do w/ him then? He remains an idiot’s idea of “intellectual painting”, & therefore anathema. My advice? If you want to go see some truly great American painting and have only one afternoon, head over to the Met and check out the Philip Guston retrospective instead of visiting The Whitney. permanent link to this post
I’ve never liked his work. It’s always seemed too illustrative and market-pandering to my eye, but the article linked above makes clear that not only are his paintings horrid and stupid but he is an ignorant, arrogant ass.
Here are some telling quotes: “I wish I could find more to love about it,” he recently observed, “but it’s hard. I have not seen the will to make a masterpiece in American art. What’s here? Albert Bierstadt? He’s small beer compared to the Europeans.” Ever heard of a little painter called JACKSON POLLACK you ignorant boob!? “I know Warhol is a great artist,” Currin said, “but I don’t like him. It’s the kind of art that advertises that he knows the doorman at the club.” I can’t even go into the awesome ignorance embodied in that one.
Blackhawk of The Thing gave a concise crit of this super-doofus on Thingist recently: …you will plainly see that the guy does not have a single original idea in his head, merely rips off everyone from Holbein to Botero to Ed Ward. Because he doesn’t disguise this, the work is supposed to be “referential”; it’s not, it’s just fraud. No hand, no eye, no mind. What are we supposed to do w/ him then? He remains an idiot’s idea of “intellectual painting”, & therefore anathema. My advice? If you want to go see some truly great American painting and have only one afternoon, head over to the Met and check out the Philip Guston retrospective instead of visiting The Whitney. permanent link to this post
GoogleRace
posted at 16:15 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/politics
Found this over at Andrea Harner’s blog:
GoogleRace
It was created by the interesting folks over at Eyebeam’s R & D department. Parts of Eyebeam R&D have also given us the Nike Sweatshop Email and the ever popular BlackPeopleLoveUs.com. Their new idea is fairly brilliant and should get them lots of traffic.
But how does this effect MTAA you ask? Well, MTAA did a project at Eyebeam called Endnode (AKA Printer Tree) and Eyebeam continues to host the informational site, www.Endnode.net, on one of their servers. When Jonah and his crew release their enormously popular projects on this server they usually kill every other site hosted on it due to all the bandwidth being eaten. (At least that’s what happened with the release of BlackPeopleLoveUs.com).
I’m not complaining though. I wish I could get the kind of traffic Jonah seems to be able to draw. Let’s just be happy that he uses this gift for good instead of evil. permanent link to this post
GoogleRace
It was created by the interesting folks over at Eyebeam’s R & D department. Parts of Eyebeam R&D have also given us the Nike Sweatshop Email and the ever popular BlackPeopleLoveUs.com. Their new idea is fairly brilliant and should get them lots of traffic.
But how does this effect MTAA you ask? Well, MTAA did a project at Eyebeam called Endnode (AKA Printer Tree) and Eyebeam continues to host the informational site, www.Endnode.net, on one of their servers. When Jonah and his crew release their enormously popular projects on this server they usually kill every other site hosted on it due to all the bandwidth being eaten. (At least that’s what happened with the release of BlackPeopleLoveUs.com).
I’m not complaining though. I wish I could get the kind of traffic Jonah seems to be able to draw. Let’s just be happy that he uses this gift for good instead of evil. permanent link to this post
Nov 14, 2003
Piece2piece: online collaboration
posted at 17:05 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
File this under “Actual News” from MTAA.
Here is the official release for the exhibition: A six month online collaboration of artists inviting other artists
November 15, 2003 - May 15, 2004
Official online launch: November 15, 2003
Opening reception: January 15, 2003
Hours: 6 - 9 PM
Hosted and sponsored by:
Postartum
Director:
Lora McPhail
946 Daisy Ave Studio 5
San Pedro, CA 90813
Current Artists:
(Alphabetically)
Antoni Abad
Annie Abrahams
Amy Alexander
Soo Yeun Ahn
b-l-u-e-s-c-r-e-e-n
John Cabral
Arcangel Constantini
d-i-r-t-y.com
Andy Deck
Intima.org
Jimpunk
Josh Larios
Peter Luining
Brian Mackern
MTAA
Eduardo Navas
Randall Packer
Roc Parez
Pavu.com
Eugenio Tisselli
Who In Lee
Organized by Eduardo Navas Note the official launch is the 15th, the site will be live tomorrow.
This is an interesting curatorial idea from Eduardo Navas. He invited 2 artists to be included in the show and invited them to invite 2 and so on creating a truly networked curatorial experiment.
In case your curious, MTAA was invited by Pavu.com and we plan to invite Cory and Cary. We included the Creative Commons licensed image from Manual Zoom Mirage in the exhibition. permanent link to this post
Here is the official release for the exhibition: A six month online collaboration of artists inviting other artists
November 15, 2003 - May 15, 2004
Official online launch: November 15, 2003
Opening reception: January 15, 2003
Hours: 6 - 9 PM
Hosted and sponsored by:
Postartum
Director:
Lora McPhail
946 Daisy Ave Studio 5
San Pedro, CA 90813
Current Artists:
(Alphabetically)
Antoni Abad
Annie Abrahams
Amy Alexander
Soo Yeun Ahn
b-l-u-e-s-c-r-e-e-n
John Cabral
Arcangel Constantini
d-i-r-t-y.com
Andy Deck
Intima.org
Jimpunk
Josh Larios
Peter Luining
Brian Mackern
MTAA
Eduardo Navas
Randall Packer
Roc Parez
Pavu.com
Eugenio Tisselli
Who In Lee
Organized by Eduardo Navas Note the official launch is the 15th, the site will be live tomorrow.
This is an interesting curatorial idea from Eduardo Navas. He invited 2 artists to be included in the show and invited them to invite 2 and so on creating a truly networked curatorial experiment.
In case your curious, MTAA was invited by Pavu.com and we plan to invite Cory and Cary. We included the Creative Commons licensed image from Manual Zoom Mirage in the exhibition. permanent link to this post
Nov 13, 2003
Actual News
posted at 21:40 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
It looks like YOUR favorite artists (wannabes? slackers?) MTAA are probably (most likely? hopefully?) going to be featured (mentioned? slighted?) in an article written by Valerie Lamontagne for the Canadian art magazine Parachute.
I have an idea that French speakers like MTAA for one reason and one reason only. This is the reason: MTAA’s 99 Steps to Contemporary Art in Your Bedroom. Why? Well, if you follow the link you’ll see that the text is in english and french. I think that we’ve tricked the french speakers into thinking we’re fellow travellers where the fact of the matter is that I was kicked out of my high school french classes on an almost daily basis and M.River, well, lets just say that he speaks the “international language” if you know what I mean—wink, wink.
Hopefully Parachute will include some full-color repros of our brilliant web work. Sources tell us it will be in the January/February issue so get you subscription now! permanent link to this post
I have an idea that French speakers like MTAA for one reason and one reason only. This is the reason: MTAA’s 99 Steps to Contemporary Art in Your Bedroom. Why? Well, if you follow the link you’ll see that the text is in english and french. I think that we’ve tricked the french speakers into thinking we’re fellow travellers where the fact of the matter is that I was kicked out of my high school french classes on an almost daily basis and M.River, well, lets just say that he speaks the “international language” if you know what I mean—wink, wink.
Hopefully Parachute will include some full-color repros of our brilliant web work. Sources tell us it will be in the January/February issue so get you subscription now! permanent link to this post
AIOTD - Rightstarter
posted at 17:20 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
In a dream last night, MTAA made the following work. In each room of an empty house, pair of speakers are installed. All the speaker wires go back to one room that contains a small a wooden table with a computer hooked into the speakers. The computer sends, in a random order and with a somewhat random delay, a small sound sample. The sample is from Public Enemyıs Rightstarter (Message to a Black Man). The sample is just half of the first line - Mind over matter…
permanent link to this post
Nov 11, 2003
AIOTD
posted at 10:09 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Actually, I have two AIOTDs, but they run along similar lines. So, here is the wind up.
For the Pirated Movie, Twhid and I took a pirated version of a pirate movie and showed it black and white without sound. We asked 5 artists to create a new, live, soundtrack for the work. Simple. We are still working on the final DVD that mixes the performance documentation with the found bootleg material. As we work on this DVD, two other ideas for film projects have surfaced.
AIOTD 1 Tiny Diva (Peggy) suggested using the docu-drama DC911 for another film. I think we should follow the same basic methods as the Pirated Movie by again rendering the material black and white without sound. We should then have Peggy score the entire film.
When we show our new version of the film, renamed DC911 - The Big Dance Remix (note: The Big Dance was the working title used while filming DC911 in Canada), we should project it on a mirrored disco ball. This projection effect would, in a way, shatter the film. It will also create an environment in which the audience can dance within the film. (see c. peppermintıs work for more on this thought)
As for the politics of this, my line of thought has been…if you take our pain as a community for your propaganda, we then have the right to claim your film for our art.
AIOTD 2 - Refilm all 8 hours of Warholıs 1964 film Empire from Twhidıs office window. Show it, with live music, in a warehouse this coming July for the filmıs 40th anniversary. Film performance and create new DVD to be called Empire 40. permanent link to this post
For the Pirated Movie, Twhid and I took a pirated version of a pirate movie and showed it black and white without sound. We asked 5 artists to create a new, live, soundtrack for the work. Simple. We are still working on the final DVD that mixes the performance documentation with the found bootleg material. As we work on this DVD, two other ideas for film projects have surfaced.
AIOTD 1 Tiny Diva (Peggy) suggested using the docu-drama DC911 for another film. I think we should follow the same basic methods as the Pirated Movie by again rendering the material black and white without sound. We should then have Peggy score the entire film.
When we show our new version of the film, renamed DC911 - The Big Dance Remix (note: The Big Dance was the working title used while filming DC911 in Canada), we should project it on a mirrored disco ball. This projection effect would, in a way, shatter the film. It will also create an environment in which the audience can dance within the film. (see c. peppermintıs work for more on this thought)
As for the politics of this, my line of thought has been…if you take our pain as a community for your propaganda, we then have the right to claim your film for our art.
AIOTD 2 - Refilm all 8 hours of Warholıs 1964 film Empire from Twhidıs office window. Show it, with live music, in a warehouse this coming July for the filmıs 40th anniversary. Film performance and create new DVD to be called Empire 40. permanent link to this post
Nov 09, 2003
eyebeam in ny times
posted at 13:00 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
eyebeam is sounding spunkey in this nyt story.
or as eyebeam insiders now call it…THE eyebeam. permanent link to this post
or as eyebeam insiders now call it…THE eyebeam. permanent link to this post
Some updates on some of our Pirated Movie friends…
posted at 09:09 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
PSI goes on musical rampage across Mid-West. Check here for dates near
you.
After staring as the poster-boy on the mtaaRR last month, Jackmaster Archangel (Cory) has been selected into the 04 Whitney Biannual Cory tells us that he owes it all to high level of buzz generated as Mr. October on the mtaaRR. Congrats Cory!
And last, but certainly not least, Tiny Diva and askROM tie the knot this Sunday. Yeah! permanent link to this post
After staring as the poster-boy on the mtaaRR last month, Jackmaster Archangel (Cory) has been selected into the 04 Whitney Biannual Cory tells us that he owes it all to high level of buzz generated as Mr. October on the mtaaRR. Congrats Cory!
And last, but certainly not least, Tiny Diva and askROM tie the knot this Sunday. Yeah! permanent link to this post
Nov 05, 2003
Postcard Show Catalog
posted at 11:24 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Last summer, MTAA may or may not have sent you a postcard for our sculpture “In Preparation For An Attack By Mobs Of Hideously Deformed Radioactive Mutants On 31 Grand (AKA Cage Match)” which was featured in the group show “Dealers Choice” at 31Grand in Brooklyn.
Or a postcard for our solo show at Rome Arts in Brooklyn entitled “IN PREPARATION FOR THE SUMMER AIR IN BROOKLYN TO RISE FROM THE CONCRETE IN A MANNER WHICH DISTORTS ONE’S ABILITY TO JUDGE DISTANCE AND MEANING (AKA MANUAL ZOOM MIRAGE)”
Or even one for our one-night performance “Pirated Movie” at Postmasters in New York.
You may have even heard about our unofficial solo show at IALA, Louisiana in which the curator, much to our surprise and delight, hung all our summer of 2003 postcards as a show.
But now, if you missed any of this, IALA brings it all home to you in the form of an exhibition catalog chapbook. Yes, six bound and full color pages, encompassing MTAA’s long hot summer of fun and hi-jinx. You can get yours today by following this link.
MTAA’s general art context note: the above-mentioned show at IALA and chapbook created from it are a good example of what happens when you decide to release your art with a Creative Commons license so that others can play with it. Hint. Hint…and enjoy permanent link to this post
Or a postcard for our solo show at Rome Arts in Brooklyn entitled “IN PREPARATION FOR THE SUMMER AIR IN BROOKLYN TO RISE FROM THE CONCRETE IN A MANNER WHICH DISTORTS ONE’S ABILITY TO JUDGE DISTANCE AND MEANING (AKA MANUAL ZOOM MIRAGE)”
Or even one for our one-night performance “Pirated Movie” at Postmasters in New York.
You may have even heard about our unofficial solo show at IALA, Louisiana in which the curator, much to our surprise and delight, hung all our summer of 2003 postcards as a show.
But now, if you missed any of this, IALA brings it all home to you in the form of an exhibition catalog chapbook. Yes, six bound and full color pages, encompassing MTAA’s long hot summer of fun and hi-jinx. You can get yours today by following this link.
MTAA’s general art context note: the above-mentioned show at IALA and chapbook created from it are a good example of what happens when you decide to release your art with a Creative Commons license so that others can play with it. Hint. Hint…and enjoy permanent link to this post
Oct 29, 2003
Panther Rocks!
posted at 13:14 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/geek
I’ve updated my work machine (1.25GHz G4 sp) to Panther and it was almost pain-free.
Problems:
Needed to re-install Palm software and Logitech mouse software (no big deal). Still having problems browsing the Windows network (but can connect if I know the IP number via Samba) and a problem I’m having where a Lacie external firewire drive refuses to mount persists (must be a hardware issue).
Good things:
Much more polished and fast UI! Everything is much zippier! The updated BBEdit (7.0.4) works like a charm, Photoshop flies, Safari marches on, Eudora? No problems. NetNewsWire works too.
Overall, very, very pleased and the update and it was (almost) totally painless to upgrade (I did an archive and install while saving user settings after I backed up my important files to a network server).
I reccomend to all Mac users. permanent link to this post
Problems:
Needed to re-install Palm software and Logitech mouse software (no big deal). Still having problems browsing the Windows network (but can connect if I know the IP number via Samba) and a problem I’m having where a Lacie external firewire drive refuses to mount persists (must be a hardware issue).
Good things:
Much more polished and fast UI! Everything is much zippier! The updated BBEdit (7.0.4) works like a charm, Photoshop flies, Safari marches on, Eudora? No problems. NetNewsWire works too.
Overall, very, very pleased and the update and it was (almost) totally painless to upgrade (I did an archive and install while saving user settings after I backed up my important files to a network server).
I reccomend to all Mac users. permanent link to this post
Oct 28, 2003
Critical Minds Think Alike?
posted at 16:10 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
I referenced J. Marshal in yesterday’s post and look what pops-up on his blog today:
Fresh from the Department of Sublime Understatement …
"Experts in public opinion said it would be difficult for Bush to convince Americans that the violence was a byproduct of success."
From Dana Milbank’s and Thomas Ricks’ article on Bush and the bombings in Tuesday’s Post. If we weren’t so desperate for legitimate leadership in the White House and the news wasn’t so grim, perhaps we could laugh?
A Link For Howard Dean permanent link to this post
"Experts in public opinion said it would be difficult for Bush to convince Americans that the violence was a byproduct of success."
From Dana Milbank’s and Thomas Ricks’ article on Bush and the bombings in Tuesday’s Post. If we weren’t so desperate for legitimate leadership in the White House and the news wasn’t so grim, perhaps we could laugh?
A Link For Howard Dean permanent link to this post
Oct 27, 2003
More Random Stuff
posted at 10:00 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
I’m glad the Yankees lost; too bad the Mariners and the Yankees couldn’t both lose. It would have been better if they had simply decided to strike in the middle of the world series.
++
From the front page of the NYTimes as of 9:22AM today: NEWS ALERT: Bush Says U.S. Progress in Iraq Is Making Insurgents More Desperate, Fueling Attacks How stupid does he think we are? As J. Marshall says, "up-is-downism” at it’s worst." It’s very sad, especially for the families of those killed, but also for the world; that we have such an immoral and destructive individual leading the USA is very depressing.
++
Speaking of Iraq, Steve Mumford’s show at Postmasters is a must-see. He’s showing a series of sketches he created in Iraq. You can see some JPEGs at artnet.com (go to magazine>features and click on the Baghdad Journal entries). This work shows that he’s undoubtedly a very skilled draftsman. The exhibition raises many questions regarding traditional graphic arts’ place in the global mediascape. Tamas Banovich (co-director of Postmasters) is thinking of having a panel to discuss the work and it’s implications and I’m sure hoping he decides to do it. permanent link to this post
++
From the front page of the NYTimes as of 9:22AM today: NEWS ALERT: Bush Says U.S. Progress in Iraq Is Making Insurgents More Desperate, Fueling Attacks How stupid does he think we are? As J. Marshall says, "up-is-downism” at it’s worst." It’s very sad, especially for the families of those killed, but also for the world; that we have such an immoral and destructive individual leading the USA is very depressing.
++
Speaking of Iraq, Steve Mumford’s show at Postmasters is a must-see. He’s showing a series of sketches he created in Iraq. You can see some JPEGs at artnet.com (go to magazine>features and click on the Baghdad Journal entries). This work shows that he’s undoubtedly a very skilled draftsman. The exhibition raises many questions regarding traditional graphic arts’ place in the global mediascape. Tamas Banovich (co-director of Postmasters) is thinking of having a panel to discuss the work and it’s implications and I’m sure hoping he decides to do it. permanent link to this post
Oct 20, 2003
Till Tuesday
posted at 21:02 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Itıs come to my attention that more people look at this page on Tuesday than any other day. So , seeing that itıs Monday night and I have not posted in a bit , (way busy until Nov. 1…tell ya all about it then…) I thought Iıd take a second and say hello Tuesday people. I love you and your Tuesday blog reading ways.
permanent link to this post
Oct 19, 2003
I hate Verizon
posted at 15:04 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Verizon, until yesterday, provided me with DSL service. They cut it off on Friday.
Why?
Because they are incredibly stupid idiots. They made a mistake and it was going to take them a week to fix it. Problem is, I’m moving in about two weeks. That is where the trouble started actually.
I needed to change my phone service for the move. I wanted to call early and get an appointment close to my move date and I did. The phone will be turned on in my new place on the day of the move. But some dipshit I talked to also put the cancellation order in for the DSL and as the morons on the phone kept robotically repeating yesterday, “Once the order goes in it can be cancelled at anytime.” Well, why didn’t the asshole I spoke to tell me that? “They should have.” Yeah, no shit.
After lot of yelling on the phone I was no better off than when I started. They could turn it on in a week, turn it off a week after and then we could wait another week to have it turned on in the new place. Talk about great customer service; golly what a deal, how could I pass that up? Well, fuck you Verizon. I’m switching to cable. Time Warner sucks too but I don’t see how they could suck as bad as you.
So, I’m stuck on dial-up at home until Nov 1st. And it sucks. But at least Time Warner can turn the service on the day after we move instead of 8 days later. Verizon is a joke, they didn’t even seem to want to keep me as a customer. STAY AS FAR AS YOU CAN FROM VERIZON! permanent link to this post
Why?
Because they are incredibly stupid idiots. They made a mistake and it was going to take them a week to fix it. Problem is, I’m moving in about two weeks. That is where the trouble started actually.
I needed to change my phone service for the move. I wanted to call early and get an appointment close to my move date and I did. The phone will be turned on in my new place on the day of the move. But some dipshit I talked to also put the cancellation order in for the DSL and as the morons on the phone kept robotically repeating yesterday, “Once the order goes in it can be cancelled at anytime.” Well, why didn’t the asshole I spoke to tell me that? “They should have.” Yeah, no shit.
After lot of yelling on the phone I was no better off than when I started. They could turn it on in a week, turn it off a week after and then we could wait another week to have it turned on in the new place. Talk about great customer service; golly what a deal, how could I pass that up? Well, fuck you Verizon. I’m switching to cable. Time Warner sucks too but I don’t see how they could suck as bad as you.
So, I’m stuck on dial-up at home until Nov 1st. And it sucks. But at least Time Warner can turn the service on the day after we move instead of 8 days later. Verizon is a joke, they didn’t even seem to want to keep me as a customer. STAY AS FAR AS YOU CAN FROM VERIZON! permanent link to this post
Oct 17, 2003
Random Thoughts
posted at 14:10 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Maybe I should post more random thoughts to the blog, ie, this page which is known officially as the homepage of the MTAA Reference Resource.
I lost 40 bucks at poker last night. But Devin, who won it all, was kind and paid for a cab back to good ole Brooklyn. The kid was unstoppable last night. Beat me a few times in very close hands. Especially painful was a hand of Texas Hold ‘Em when his nines and fives beat my nines and fours. I hate anything with the word Texas in it these days (thx GWB) but I like this game, so I created a new game which added a ‘follow the queen’ rule (if the queen is in the flop then fourth st. becomes wild) and referred to it as ‘Big Hair’. It was kinda fun but resulted in two hands with four-of-a-kind on the table and the winner becoming the holder of the highest in the hole. Kinda dumb. But it was fun referring to a ‘hairy flop’ as we played.
M.River is overseeing the install and construction of the Eyebeam Beta Launch ‘03 show. AND he just finished working on the Rosenquist show at the Gug. He’s working too hard.
PS. fuck the yankees. permanent link to this post
I lost 40 bucks at poker last night. But Devin, who won it all, was kind and paid for a cab back to good ole Brooklyn. The kid was unstoppable last night. Beat me a few times in very close hands. Especially painful was a hand of Texas Hold ‘Em when his nines and fives beat my nines and fours. I hate anything with the word Texas in it these days (thx GWB) but I like this game, so I created a new game which added a ‘follow the queen’ rule (if the queen is in the flop then fourth st. becomes wild) and referred to it as ‘Big Hair’. It was kinda fun but resulted in two hands with four-of-a-kind on the table and the winner becoming the holder of the highest in the hole. Kinda dumb. But it was fun referring to a ‘hairy flop’ as we played.
M.River is overseeing the install and construction of the Eyebeam Beta Launch ‘03 show. AND he just finished working on the Rosenquist show at the Gug. He’s working too hard.
PS. fuck the yankees. permanent link to this post
Oct 11, 2003
Random Comments
posted at 09:59 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Two posts in one day.. WOW!
I’m destroying M.River in the “Who Can Post The Most To The Blog Contest”. That’s right M.River, it’s a contest and I’M WINNING! HAHAHAHA!
Like everybody else says, the new Outkast, Speakerboxxx/ The Love Below is great. There is a Wal-Mart (‘clean’) version on iTunes, but they must have had to censor half the lyrics. Don’t buy the Wal-Mart version whatever you do.
I’m really hoping my company is successful because I’ve been working there very diligently for over 3 years and if we are successful I’ll make lots of money.
I realized while editing the Pirated Movie video last night that I’ve become a Pee In My Face With Surgery fan. Devin Clark is actually doing the editing, MTAA is just looking over his shoulder and buggin’ him. permanent link to this post
I’m destroying M.River in the “Who Can Post The Most To The Blog Contest”. That’s right M.River, it’s a contest and I’M WINNING! HAHAHAHA!
Like everybody else says, the new Outkast, Speakerboxxx/ The Love Below is great. There is a Wal-Mart (‘clean’) version on iTunes, but they must have had to censor half the lyrics. Don’t buy the Wal-Mart version whatever you do.
I’m really hoping my company is successful because I’ve been working there very diligently for over 3 years and if we are successful I’ll make lots of money.
I realized while editing the Pirated Movie video last night that I’ve become a Pee In My Face With Surgery fan. Devin Clark is actually doing the editing, MTAA is just looking over his shoulder and buggin’ him. permanent link to this post
So Long Williamsburg
posted at 09:26 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
If everything goes well tomorrow I’ll no longer be a Williamsburg hipster. It looks like I’ll become a Cobble Hill yuppie instead. Tomorrow my gal and I should be signing a lease for an apartment on a beautiful block of Pacific St. in Cobble Hill. The rent is 200 bucks cheaper then our current place (ah, soft rental market, thank you), the block is about 10 billion times more attractive then our current block on Grand St., and, hopefully, it will be roach-free.
We’re leaving our current place in the middle of our two-year lease. Our landlords were cool and let us out of the lease. But we needed to get out because, due to the ownership of the building by complete idiots, basic maintenance isn’t being done. The hallways are filthy and there is a roach problem. My gal and I have battled them for months using professional grade poison we acquired from the web. But the morons who own the building won’t exterminate the entire building (though, by law, they must) so even when we get them killed in our apartment they eventually find their way back.
It’s just not something we feel we need to live with. The landlord won’t help, so, we decided to leave. Word to the wise: if you’re thinking about moving to a ground-floor space on Grand St. between Bedford and Berry, ask about the roaches.
And now, Cobble Hill, thought to be the upscale ‘hood, is cheaper than junky, old Billsburg. Ain’t that strange? permanent link to this post
We’re leaving our current place in the middle of our two-year lease. Our landlords were cool and let us out of the lease. But we needed to get out because, due to the ownership of the building by complete idiots, basic maintenance isn’t being done. The hallways are filthy and there is a roach problem. My gal and I have battled them for months using professional grade poison we acquired from the web. But the morons who own the building won’t exterminate the entire building (though, by law, they must) so even when we get them killed in our apartment they eventually find their way back.
It’s just not something we feel we need to live with. The landlord won’t help, so, we decided to leave. Word to the wise: if you’re thinking about moving to a ground-floor space on Grand St. between Bedford and Berry, ask about the roaches.
And now, Cobble Hill, thought to be the upscale ‘hood, is cheaper than junky, old Billsburg. Ain’t that strange? permanent link to this post
Oct 07, 2003
PIMFWS MP3 download
posted at 16:34 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
For those of you who attended MTAA’s Pirated Movie a few weeks ago I’m sure you haven’t forgotten the ear-splitting performance of Pee In My Face With Surgery.
If you’re a sucker for more aural abuse then you won’t hesitate to download an MP3 of PIMFWS’s performance.
This is a direct link to the MP3 (11.4 MB)
And, just for reference, we also have a short quicktime video online which summarizes the night’s audio and visual delights. This is a direct link to the video (8.3 MB). permanent link to this post
If you’re a sucker for more aural abuse then you won’t hesitate to download an MP3 of PIMFWS’s performance.
This is a direct link to the MP3 (11.4 MB)
And, just for reference, we also have a short quicktime video online which summarizes the night’s audio and visual delights. This is a direct link to the video (8.3 MB). permanent link to this post
Oct 05, 2003
DYHAP anniversary approaching.
posted at 22:17 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Below, some MTAA memorabilia, that is, the very first Direct To Your Home Art Project ever mailed. I’ve included it exactly as it first appeared on Rhizome in November of 1997. I’ve decided to post it now because it being posted on 11/01/97 means that M.River and I were working on it in October of ‘97.
+++
Mriver & T.Whid Art Associates proudly present:
The Direct to Your Home Art Projects!
Tired of waiting around for your new paintings from Germany to clear customs?
Sick of not knowing how that installation of dead bunnies will look in the bedroom?
Wondering if it is worth fighting off the repo man over a stack of welded scrap iron?
We at Mriver and T.Whid want to ease your pain with our new line of Direct to Your Home Art Projects. All you need to do is follow the easy to install instructions found below, then send us a documentation of your results. Upon receiving your documentation of the project, we will send you a signed certificate of authenticity. It’s simple and better yet, it’s FREE!
*Direct to Your Home Art Project #1 (Nov. 97):
Using a #2 graphite pencil, write the phrase “Johny Appleseed slept here” on your wall. The text should be placed near the floor in small ( no larger then 1") cursive letters.
Documentation may be in hard or digital form. Please include name, address, and label your documentation Project #1 Nov. 1997.
Send hard copy documentation to:
Mriver & Twhid Art Associates
39 Ainslie 2L
Brooklyn, New York 11211
digital documentation:
mriver102@aol.com or twhid@spacelab.net
NEW ART PROJECTS TO FOLLOW EVERY MONTH!!!!!!!!!!
all documentation becomes the property of Mriver & T.Whid Art Associates, to be used for their somewhat suspect activities. permanent link to this post
+++
Mriver & T.Whid Art Associates proudly present:
The Direct to Your Home Art Projects!
Tired of waiting around for your new paintings from Germany to clear customs?
Sick of not knowing how that installation of dead bunnies will look in the bedroom?
Wondering if it is worth fighting off the repo man over a stack of welded scrap iron?
We at Mriver and T.Whid want to ease your pain with our new line of Direct to Your Home Art Projects. All you need to do is follow the easy to install instructions found below, then send us a documentation of your results. Upon receiving your documentation of the project, we will send you a signed certificate of authenticity. It’s simple and better yet, it’s FREE!
*Direct to Your Home Art Project #1 (Nov. 97):
Using a #2 graphite pencil, write the phrase “Johny Appleseed slept here” on your wall. The text should be placed near the floor in small ( no larger then 1") cursive letters.
Documentation may be in hard or digital form. Please include name, address, and label your documentation Project #1 Nov. 1997.
Send hard copy documentation to:
Mriver & Twhid Art Associates
39 Ainslie 2L
Brooklyn, New York 11211
digital documentation:
mriver102@aol.com or twhid@spacelab.net
NEW ART PROJECTS TO FOLLOW EVERY MONTH!!!!!!!!!!
all documentation becomes the property of Mriver & T.Whid Art Associates, to be used for their somewhat suspect activities. permanent link to this post
Oct 02, 2003
A new interface to exhibit digital art
posted at 22:26 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
I posted this to Rhizome, but figured I’d post it here too.
+++
http://www.designinteract.com/features/
I’ve been thinking a lot recently on how to marry net/web/new media art with more of a friendly interface when exhibited in galleries.
The article above describes an interactive poster which uses new tech to display video output on a window and have the window act as a touch-screen.
I can’t help but wonder how much more impact works like Napier’s p-Soup and other simple and lovely aesthetic interfaces would have if ported over to this sort of display instead of the computer monitors on which they now reside.
Even projects like They Rule when exhibited in a physical location could be strengthened by this sort of display.
The display, being close in size to the viewer, would cause a much more visceral response IMO. Something large interacting to one’s touch is a much more intriguing physical interaction then mousing about.
And since it’s displayed on a window, it even keeps the democratic nature of net art intact, you don’t have to go into the museum to interact with the work. Folks happening by who have no idea what net/web/nm art is can see and touch the work.
Also, you could easily exhibit an entire show on one display. permanent link to this post
+++
http://www.designinteract.com/features/
I’ve been thinking a lot recently on how to marry net/web/new media art with more of a friendly interface when exhibited in galleries.
The article above describes an interactive poster which uses new tech to display video output on a window and have the window act as a touch-screen.
I can’t help but wonder how much more impact works like Napier’s p-Soup and other simple and lovely aesthetic interfaces would have if ported over to this sort of display instead of the computer monitors on which they now reside.
Even projects like They Rule when exhibited in a physical location could be strengthened by this sort of display.
The display, being close in size to the viewer, would cause a much more visceral response IMO. Something large interacting to one’s touch is a much more intriguing physical interaction then mousing about.
And since it’s displayed on a window, it even keeps the democratic nature of net art intact, you don’t have to go into the museum to interact with the work. Folks happening by who have no idea what net/web/nm art is can see and touch the work.
Also, you could easily exhibit an entire show on one display. permanent link to this post
Sep 29, 2003
Are version numbers dying or dead?
posted at 15:43 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/geek
It’s an industry trend, version numbers for the consumer products are disappearing. We have Macromedia’s MX group (including Flash, Dreamweaver and etc), Cleaner XL (the version after 5), and now, Adobe announces Creative Suite which includes Photoshop CS (no version number) and the other usual suspects.
I’m sure the developers aren’t canning versions in their production processes. That would be nuts. I wonder why the marketers have decided to cut them from the names for the boxed versions? Were the numbers simply getting to high? I mean, Photoshop 8 or Illustrator 11 ain’t so bad. Is it?
Also, does this signal that Macromedia has finally surpassed Adobe as the premier graphic and design arts software company now that Adobe is being forced to follow the lead of Macromedia in tieing their flagship products together in a more recognizable bundle? (Allowing of course that Macromedia followed MS and it’s Office line.)
I’m just wondering. permanent link to this post
I’m sure the developers aren’t canning versions in their production processes. That would be nuts. I wonder why the marketers have decided to cut them from the names for the boxed versions? Were the numbers simply getting to high? I mean, Photoshop 8 or Illustrator 11 ain’t so bad. Is it?
Also, does this signal that Macromedia has finally surpassed Adobe as the premier graphic and design arts software company now that Adobe is being forced to follow the lead of Macromedia in tieing their flagship products together in a more recognizable bundle? (Allowing of course that Macromedia followed MS and it’s Office line.)
I’m just wondering. permanent link to this post
Sep 27, 2003
‘r0un Db ack’
posted at 16:11 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
okay, we at MTAA have been asked to do some performance this weds with the net artist - pavu and doron. we have no idea what is going on but we are showing up with a laptop and a printer ready to drink wine and eat soup. Please join us in the fun.
pavu.com at computerfinearts.com
http://www.computerfinearts.com/collection/pavu/r0unDback/
OPENING RECEPTION:
Wednesday, October 1st, 6-8 PM
AT: La-Casalinga Restaurant,120 First Avenue, at 7th street, East Village, NYC, http://www.la-casalinga.com
SPECIAL MENU: soup, wine and happening will be served !!
‘r0un Db ack’ was conceived by the pavu.com team.
http://www.pavu.com/summerm0uss0ngs/pisSmuGgirl/index.html
dear friends and colleagues
this very first day of october is a PURCHASE!!! day and a GO-TASTE day 2 !!
in response to computer fine arts’ invitation, pavu.com has combined why-fi flavour flaves of net art european crème in the captain Cook marine tradition and therefore added a r0un Db ack soup to the menu to support doron golan’s net art collecting venture.
Taste the blAck beAn flAvourish while listening to “PURCHASE!!!”, the collectoring Rockers II audioCD, featuring Famous International Net Artists ShoutSongs covers.
Discover SPrInT n°1, pavu.com’s tHe genHuine onHline papHer magazine latest issue and learn all about the howtos of net art fame roundTables!
Enjoy and support! pavu.com gives You the mike and MTAA shoots the picture !
Venue nombreux
wishing you the best always
LA pavu.com TEAM
http://pavu.com
-/ the next route plining! /-
doron golan
computerfinearts.com
permanent link to this post
pavu.com at computerfinearts.com
http://www.computerfinearts.com/collection/pavu/r0unDback/
OPENING RECEPTION:
Wednesday, October 1st, 6-8 PM
AT: La-Casalinga Restaurant,120 First Avenue, at 7th street, East Village, NYC, http://www.la-casalinga.com
SPECIAL MENU: soup, wine and happening will be served !!
‘r0un Db ack’ was conceived by the pavu.com team.
http://www.pavu.com/summerm0uss0ngs/pisSmuGgirl/index.html
dear friends and colleagues
this very first day of october is a PURCHASE!!! day and a GO-TASTE day 2 !!
in response to computer fine arts’ invitation, pavu.com has combined why-fi flavour flaves of net art european crème in the captain Cook marine tradition and therefore added a r0un Db ack soup to the menu to support doron golan’s net art collecting venture.
Taste the blAck beAn flAvourish while listening to “PURCHASE!!!”, the collectoring Rockers II audioCD, featuring Famous International Net Artists ShoutSongs covers.
Discover SPrInT n°1, pavu.com’s tHe genHuine onHline papHer magazine latest issue and learn all about the howtos of net art fame roundTables!
Enjoy and support! pavu.com gives You the mike and MTAA shoots the picture !
Venue nombreux
wishing you the best always
LA pavu.com TEAM
http://pavu.com
-/ the next route plining! /-
doron golan
computerfinearts.com
permanent link to this post
Sep 25, 2003
Hot off the press
posted at 21:12 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
A sneak peek for all you “Pirated Movie” fans with fast internet conections - yeah, all two of you. Here is a short preview of the final DVD edit
check it out permanent link to this post
check it out permanent link to this post
Sep 22, 2003
MTEWW is at risk of running out of VDE resources
posted at 10:20 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
XO SUCKS! That’s the hosting company this website runs on.
They are called XO and they SUCK! Stay away from them! If you were shanghaied into their service like we were, get off them quick!
My complaint? Every time you run a script on their service they CHARGE YOU FOR IT! Does anyone know of any other hosting service that does this? I don’t. They have this little scam called VDE resources and they basically charge you for every frickin’ CPU cycle you use. It’s ridiculous! Just to run this blog we need to pay them 12 bucks more a month (on top of the monthly charge)! I’ve found other hosts that charge LESS for the ENTIRE SERVICE! AND give you more disk space AND more bandwidth. And it seems to go up every month though the hits to the site DON’T increase! HOW THE HELL DOES THAT WORK? I don’t know, they don’t have a clear policy and they don’t answer the phone either. But it’s a VERY LARGE pain to move, so I continue to take the abuse. I’m an idiot, or I don’t have the time, or both.
STAY AWAY FROM XO!
Anyway, that’s why I haven’t been posting much. I feel like every time I look at the blog I’m going to be charged a dollar. permanent link to this post
They are called XO and they SUCK! Stay away from them! If you were shanghaied into their service like we were, get off them quick!
My complaint? Every time you run a script on their service they CHARGE YOU FOR IT! Does anyone know of any other hosting service that does this? I don’t. They have this little scam called VDE resources and they basically charge you for every frickin’ CPU cycle you use. It’s ridiculous! Just to run this blog we need to pay them 12 bucks more a month (on top of the monthly charge)! I’ve found other hosts that charge LESS for the ENTIRE SERVICE! AND give you more disk space AND more bandwidth. And it seems to go up every month though the hits to the site DON’T increase! HOW THE HELL DOES THAT WORK? I don’t know, they don’t have a clear policy and they don’t answer the phone either. But it’s a VERY LARGE pain to move, so I continue to take the abuse. I’m an idiot, or I don’t have the time, or both.
STAY AWAY FROM XO!
Anyway, that’s why I haven’t been posting much. I feel like every time I look at the blog I’m going to be charged a dollar. permanent link to this post
The Darker Side of 35
posted at 10:20 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
M.River’s B-day party was fun but I’m a jerk and didn’t take any photos.
Notable attendees include: Carol Stakenas, Kevin McCoy, Taketo Shimada, Cary Peppermint and Inka Essenhigh. I’m sure M.River apreciates the ‘thanks, couldn’t make it’ emails; he told me that he scratches you off his ‘death list’ when he gets ‘em. permanent link to this post
Notable attendees include: Carol Stakenas, Kevin McCoy, Taketo Shimada, Cary Peppermint and Inka Essenhigh. I’m sure M.River apreciates the ‘thanks, couldn’t make it’ emails; he told me that he scratches you off his ‘death list’ when he gets ‘em. permanent link to this post
Sep 15, 2003
Misleader.org">Misleader.org
posted at 14:20 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/politics
A new site exposing the Bush Admin’s lies and distortions looks to have come online today:
http://www.misleader.org/
Misleader was created by moveon.org.
Also, more on the Bush Admin lies at TalkingPointsMemo.com.
I keep assuming that the assholes running the executive branch of our federal government will learn that the US public isn’t as stupid and complacent as they seem to think we are. But, they obviously haven’t caught on. Yet.
I hope I’m right. permanent link to this post
http://www.misleader.org/
Misleader was created by moveon.org.
Also, more on the Bush Admin lies at TalkingPointsMemo.com.
I keep assuming that the assholes running the executive branch of our federal government will learn that the US public isn’t as stupid and complacent as they seem to think we are. But, they obviously haven’t caught on. Yet.
I hope I’m right. permanent link to this post
Sep 07, 2003
AIOTD - Back to School Special
posted at 11:04 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
The Learning Access gives classes such as Wicca Workshop: Creating Magikal Spells and Powerful Potions and Become a Celebrity Personal Assistant. I have been told that all you need to do is pitch them an idea for a class and if ten or so people sign up — you’re a teacher. So, I think MTAA should pitch a class about teaching a class on improv computer-based and real-world performance art as an artwork.
permanent link to this post
Sep 02, 2003
New MTAA Art Documentation Posted
posted at 10:07 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Just a note that to let everyone know that we’ve added documentation of two recent pieces to the offline art section of this web site:
In Preparation For An Attack By Mobs Of Hideously Deformed Radioctive Mutants On 31 Grand
(AKA Cage Match)
IN PREPARATION FOR THE SUMMER AIR IN BROOKLYN TO RISE FROM THE CONCRETE IN A MANNER WHICH DISTORTS ONE’S ABILITY TO JUDGE DISTANCE AND MEANING
(AKA MANUAL ZOOM MIRAGE) permanent link to this post
In Preparation For An Attack By Mobs Of Hideously Deformed Radioctive Mutants On 31 Grand (AKA Cage Match)
IN PREPARATION FOR THE SUMMER AIR IN BROOKLYN TO RISE FROM THE CONCRETE IN A MANNER WHICH DISTORTS ONE’S ABILITY TO JUDGE DISTANCE AND MEANING (AKA MANUAL ZOOM MIRAGE) permanent link to this post
Sep 01, 2003
AIOTD - Abandonment Plan
posted at 14:59 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
MTAA has used a few distribution methods for our artwork. Sometimes we sell the work, sometimes we give it away for free. After the show at Team, we took the HTML plywood sign and left it out on the street. Yesterday we deinstalled the 6 x 10 metal cage from 31 Grand and again left it on the street for someone to scoop up. Just like, as a friend pointed out last night, a little boy is given some quarters and ditched in a mall video arcade.
Yes, itıs MTAA new abandonment plan for art distribution.
So here is the idea - Make a good size painting of a couch, a mattress, a puppy, and a little boy in a video arcade. Leave them out on the street. Watch via a Web cam? Follow them to their new home? If you love something let it go?
permanent link to this post
Yes, itıs MTAA new abandonment plan for art distribution.
So here is the idea - Make a good size painting of a couch, a mattress, a puppy, and a little boy in a video arcade. Leave them out on the street. Watch via a Web cam? Follow them to their new home? If you love something let it go?
permanent link to this post
Pirated Movie Photos
posted at 13:25 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
the performers, from top right: tinydiva, Fritz Welch (Pee In My Face With Surgery), Jaime Fennelly (Pee In My Face With Surgery), Taketo Shimada, Naval Cassidy, and Jackmaster Arcangel.
Pirated Movie (MTAA’s pirated screening of Disney’s Pirates of The Caribbean) seems to have gone fairly well. Click on the thumbs above and you can see some photos of the evening.
My one regret is not getting any photos of all the people running out with their hands over their ears during Pee In My Face With Surgery’s set.
In the beginning it was very crowded, but it cleared out as the heat, Pee In My Face With Surgery, and nicotine addictions got the better of people. There were a few hearty souls who stuck it out through the entire night (meaning that they didn’t go and hang around outside the gallery) some of whom I’ll name here: Heather Stephens, Jeff Wyckoff, Dyske Suematsu, Joseph McElroy, and Bogyi Banovitch. Thanks guys! permanent link to this post
Mumford in Baghdad 2
posted at 12:17 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Steve Mumford’s new journal entry is online in the artnet.com features section.
My previous post in which I expressed confusion regarding the the absense of any images of the US occupation in Baghdad was a bit hasty. His newest batch of sketches, all of the National Guard’s 3rd Battalion, 124th Infantry, show a very different view of Baghdad then the previous batch which showed mostly scene’s of local residents.
Also, it’s important to remember that Steve is creating this work and journal from a subjective view, from the POV of himself. I’m so used to seeing coverage by journalists who attempt objective viewpoints and by commentators (left and right) who use selective facts to bolster their political arguments that I was almost bewildered by someone who’s simply expressing his own experiences as he sees them, day to day.
Some links to especially strong sketches:
Spcs. Robert Jacques and David Em
Night Patrol
Spc. Travalious Campbell permanent link to this post
My previous post in which I expressed confusion regarding the the absense of any images of the US occupation in Baghdad was a bit hasty. His newest batch of sketches, all of the National Guard’s 3rd Battalion, 124th Infantry, show a very different view of Baghdad then the previous batch which showed mostly scene’s of local residents.
Also, it’s important to remember that Steve is creating this work and journal from a subjective view, from the POV of himself. I’m so used to seeing coverage by journalists who attempt objective viewpoints and by commentators (left and right) who use selective facts to bolster their political arguments that I was almost bewildered by someone who’s simply expressing his own experiences as he sees them, day to day.
Some links to especially strong sketches:
Spcs. Robert Jacques and David Em
Night Patrol
Spc. Travalious Campbell permanent link to this post
Aug 28, 2003
Talking Points Memo
posted at 14:25 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/politics
I’m feeling very political this week. Perhaps its my rage at seeing the Chimp swagger around in his little cowboy outfit while he and his buddies FUCK UP the US more than any other administration in a long, long time.
So, I wanted to point out a great political and foreign policy analysis blog by Joshua Micah Marshall called Talking Points Memo.
If you oppose the current disaster of an administration in The White House this blog is definitely a daily must-read. He is especially adept at skewering the neo-con’s lies, distortions, untruths, and waffling. And he provides great logical anaylsis of the spin coming out of the chimp’s admin and certain segments of our ‘free’ press.
Check it out! permanent link to this post
So, I wanted to point out a great political and foreign policy analysis blog by Joshua Micah Marshall called Talking Points Memo.
If you oppose the current disaster of an administration in The White House this blog is definitely a daily must-read. He is especially adept at skewering the neo-con’s lies, distortions, untruths, and waffling. And he provides great logical anaylsis of the spin coming out of the chimp’s admin and certain segments of our ‘free’ press.
Check it out! permanent link to this post
Aug 26, 2003
Dean in NYC tonight!
posted at 16:28 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/politics
Howard Dean, front-runner in the democratic presidential primary race, is coming to NYC tonight!
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP TO ATTEND
It’s in Bryant Park at 8:30PM. Bryant Park is behind the New York Public Library, one block west from Grand Central Station, and one block east of Times Square, on 42nd Street.
I’m really excited about Dean and my company (me) has been doing a lot of work for his campaign in the form of HowardDean.tv and I encourage you to check that site out as well. But, my real baby at HowardDean.tv is our little Darwin Streaming Server that I set up on an old G4 450. Here are direct links to some of the streams (they should open in your quicktime player, download quicktime here):
Dean in Falls Church, VA on August 23
Dean’s Join Us ad. (Dean bought lots of television time in Texas while Bush was vacationing at this ranch. har har) permanent link to this post
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP TO ATTEND
It’s in Bryant Park at 8:30PM. Bryant Park is behind the New York Public Library, one block west from Grand Central Station, and one block east of Times Square, on 42nd Street.
I’m really excited about Dean and my company (me) has been doing a lot of work for his campaign in the form of HowardDean.tv and I encourage you to check that site out as well. But, my real baby at HowardDean.tv is our little Darwin Streaming Server that I set up on an old G4 450. Here are direct links to some of the streams (they should open in your quicktime player, download quicktime here):
Dean in Falls Church, VA on August 23
Dean’s Join Us ad. (Dean bought lots of television time in Texas while Bush was vacationing at this ranch. har har) permanent link to this post
Big News!
posted at 10:11 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Today, August 26th, 2003, if you go to Google and type in:
Williamsburg hipster
What is the NUMBER 1 returned hit? Could it be this? Indeed it could be.
Why do I care? Because if someone is looking to reify their mistaken beliefs regarding Williamsburg and the hipsters therein, then my post, being at the numero uno spot on Google will serve it’s purpose of smashing that meme all the better. permanent link to this post
Why do I care? Because if someone is looking to reify their mistaken beliefs regarding Williamsburg and the hipsters therein, then my post, being at the numero uno spot on Google will serve it’s purpose of smashing that meme all the better. permanent link to this post
Aug 25, 2003
Very Bad Painting
posted at 16:40 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
I’ve been bitchin’ about this over on thingist so I figured I might as well bitch about it here too.
I’m lazy, so I’m going to cut-n-paste the original post from thingist:
First, Read this NYTime’s article. When this inspiration struck Mr. Forbes in 1989, he turned to a painter named James Childs, whose work Mr. Forbes’s father, Malcolm Forbes, had collected with interest. Up until then Mr. Childs had been painting mainly landscapes or classical motifs with models—that is, models he had to pay, instead of the kind who pay him. this would be disgusting as is, but look at the paintings! they’re not even good! they suck! the colors get muddy in the shadows, the drawing is wobbly, there is no dimension, everything seems flat, and the motifs are ridiculous and contrived!
what a bunch of assholes! they pay 10s of thousands of dollars for a VERY, VERY BAD painting of themselves, what a joke! the fucking rich people don’t even have taste anymore! or they’ve forgotten that they’re supposed to pay someone to tell them what is good and what isn’t. it’s a sad state, a sorry state, i tell ya.
check here for reproductions of this bad art.
a particularly tasty atrocity.
what sort of dumbass would paint this? seriously? is this a joke? this is satire, right? i mean—you gotta be kiddin’ me!
if anyone replies to this with a “these aren’t so bad” I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN AND KILL YOU! permanent link to this post
I’m lazy, so I’m going to cut-n-paste the original post from thingist:
First, Read this NYTime’s article. When this inspiration struck Mr. Forbes in 1989, he turned to a painter named James Childs, whose work Mr. Forbes’s father, Malcolm Forbes, had collected with interest. Up until then Mr. Childs had been painting mainly landscapes or classical motifs with models—that is, models he had to pay, instead of the kind who pay him. this would be disgusting as is, but look at the paintings! they’re not even good! they suck! the colors get muddy in the shadows, the drawing is wobbly, there is no dimension, everything seems flat, and the motifs are ridiculous and contrived!
what a bunch of assholes! they pay 10s of thousands of dollars for a VERY, VERY BAD painting of themselves, what a joke! the fucking rich people don’t even have taste anymore! or they’ve forgotten that they’re supposed to pay someone to tell them what is good and what isn’t. it’s a sad state, a sorry state, i tell ya.
check here for reproductions of this bad art.
a particularly tasty atrocity.
what sort of dumbass would paint this? seriously? is this a joke? this is satire, right? i mean—you gotta be kiddin’ me!
if anyone replies to this with a “these aren’t so bad” I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN AND KILL YOU! permanent link to this post
Aug 22, 2003
Mumford in Baghdad
posted at 10:36 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Artist Steve Mumford has returned to Baghdad. You can read his Baghdad Journal and check out some JPEGs of his sketches at artnet.com.
Steve is a very good painter who shows at Postmasters (you can see some of his work by clicking here). His work is generally oriented towards nature or natural imagery, sometimes with hints of nature harming humans or humans harming nature.
Steve and his wife, the painter Inka Essenhigh, are old friends of mine (I met Inka as a freshman in college) and I have enormous respect for Steve’s nerve in going to Iraq at this dangerous time.
In the the current Baghdad Jounal, Steve’s sketches show a Baghdad which seems peaceful and calm. The sketches look like they could have been done in any arab city. It was confusing to me that Steve wouldn’t include any hint of the American occupation in the sketches. In the current batch of sketches there are no signs of the military, war damage, demonstrations or any other sign of the war or occupation.
I understand that Steve may be wanting to show the people of Iraq or to show us something which is an alternative to what the media shows us. But, it seems strange to me that there aren’t any images which reflect the reality of the occupation and war.
Regardless, it’s great to see and read an artist’s POV. I wish Steve good luck and a safe trip. permanent link to this post
Steve is a very good painter who shows at Postmasters (you can see some of his work by clicking here). His work is generally oriented towards nature or natural imagery, sometimes with hints of nature harming humans or humans harming nature.
Steve and his wife, the painter Inka Essenhigh, are old friends of mine (I met Inka as a freshman in college) and I have enormous respect for Steve’s nerve in going to Iraq at this dangerous time.
In the the current Baghdad Jounal, Steve’s sketches show a Baghdad which seems peaceful and calm. The sketches look like they could have been done in any arab city. It was confusing to me that Steve wouldn’t include any hint of the American occupation in the sketches. In the current batch of sketches there are no signs of the military, war damage, demonstrations or any other sign of the war or occupation.
I understand that Steve may be wanting to show the people of Iraq or to show us something which is an alternative to what the media shows us. But, it seems strange to me that there aren’t any images which reflect the reality of the occupation and war.
Regardless, it’s great to see and read an artist’s POV. I wish Steve good luck and a safe trip. permanent link to this post
Aug 19, 2003
More on IALA
posted at 16:24 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
as mentioned a few post back, we are in a show at THE premier gallery for new media in baton rouge. And now, the website is up. Check it.
permanent link to this post
Aug 17, 2003
The Incredibly Tardy Blackout Story
posted at 14:34 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Right? I mean—damn! It’s Sunday for cryin’-out-loud!
I’m sure you may have read some heart-warming or hair-raising stories already so I would like to bore you with a story of pettiness.
Friday, late morning, I’m standing in line at a pay phone on the corner of Grand St. and Bedford Ave. in Brooklyn attempting to contact my mother in Cleveland. There is a guy in line who claims to be conducting audio interviews for the BBC’s website and he interviews another guy in front of me in the pay phone line.
The guy being interviewed was the biggest idiot I’d ever heard. First, he’s going on about how he’s “trapped” in Brooklyn! WTF? Man, have you ever heard of these cool new things called BRIDGES? There are a bunch of them which span the East River. In fact, there is one of these amazing structures only FIVE BLOCKS south of here! Walk your lazy-ass OVER the bridge and back to Manhattan because we don’t need you in Brooklyn.
THEN, this dolt goes on about how the power is back on in Manhattan and spouting off about how everyone needs to be patient. At this point, I wanted to grab the mic and tell the BBC that not all New Yorkers have such a generous attitude towards the energy companies which allowed this bullshit to happen. I wanted to scream how we demand accountability, we demand punishment for those responsible, we demand our electric service RETURNED!
Obviously, I didn’t do anything like that, I simply waited patiently in line and still couldn’t get through to my mother and grandmother in Cleveland. permanent link to this post
I’m sure you may have read some heart-warming or hair-raising stories already so I would like to bore you with a story of pettiness.
Friday, late morning, I’m standing in line at a pay phone on the corner of Grand St. and Bedford Ave. in Brooklyn attempting to contact my mother in Cleveland. There is a guy in line who claims to be conducting audio interviews for the BBC’s website and he interviews another guy in front of me in the pay phone line.
The guy being interviewed was the biggest idiot I’d ever heard. First, he’s going on about how he’s “trapped” in Brooklyn! WTF? Man, have you ever heard of these cool new things called BRIDGES? There are a bunch of them which span the East River. In fact, there is one of these amazing structures only FIVE BLOCKS south of here! Walk your lazy-ass OVER the bridge and back to Manhattan because we don’t need you in Brooklyn.
THEN, this dolt goes on about how the power is back on in Manhattan and spouting off about how everyone needs to be patient. At this point, I wanted to grab the mic and tell the BBC that not all New Yorkers have such a generous attitude towards the energy companies which allowed this bullshit to happen. I wanted to scream how we demand accountability, we demand punishment for those responsible, we demand our electric service RETURNED!
Obviously, I didn’t do anything like that, I simply waited patiently in line and still couldn’t get through to my mother and grandmother in Cleveland. permanent link to this post
Aug 15, 2003
Flashlight
posted at 18:33 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Well, I try to stay away from the day in the life blog posts but I have had an odd week. So here, dear blog, is my run down. First off, beach camping. Take the Long Island Rail Road about one hour East, get off the train, walk across a parking lot past the bowling alley, get on a ferry, travel South for about a half hour, get off the ferry, check in with the ranger station for wilderness camping, hike East on the beach for about a mile and a quarter and there you are. My camp in the dunes. Not a person in site. Not a thing to do except watch the ocean. After two days out, the sky started to look a bit black. I broke camp and headed back to NYC. Went straight to bed when I got home. Got up early the next day and drove to Long Beach in NYC. Goal - just watching suffers and reading. Came home from the beach around 3, turned on my computer and…Blackout 03. Believe it or not, I had a good time in the blackout. No AC, dark, nothing to do but watch the stars. It was just like camping. So now, it is off to Texas for a few days. Goal - look at the back of large paintings. Yee-haw
permanent link to this post
Aug 13, 2003
New Yorkers are rude!
posted at 12:21 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Well, no they’re not and I hate this meme more than the Williamsburg hipster thing.
Some folks are attempting to put this meme to rest as well.
While others are propagating it.
This is my attempt to dispel the stereotype.
Riding the L train to work the other day an unfortunate young woman became unconscience. I was reading and minding my own business as we pulled into the Union Square stop when a woman at the back of the car started pushing the emergency call button and frantically telling the conductor to call EMS. A young woman had fainted and fallen to the floor but I couldn’t see what was happening through the packed rush-hour train.
At Union Square, the majority of the riders left the train except for a core of 4 or 5 people gathered around the young woman. They laid her down using someone’s shoulder bag as a pillow, someone donated their bottled water for her, an older lady was holding her hand and telling her everything would be OK. Everyone seemed genuinely concerned. And it was a mix of black and white folks too.
So, that’s rude New Yorkers for you. One would think that after 9/11 the meme would have disappeared when the nation saw the incredible outpouring of volunteerism on the part of everyday New Yorkers, but it seems to still linger. permanent link to this post
Some folks are attempting to put this meme to rest as well.
While others are propagating it.
This is my attempt to dispel the stereotype.
Riding the L train to work the other day an unfortunate young woman became unconscience. I was reading and minding my own business as we pulled into the Union Square stop when a woman at the back of the car started pushing the emergency call button and frantically telling the conductor to call EMS. A young woman had fainted and fallen to the floor but I couldn’t see what was happening through the packed rush-hour train.
At Union Square, the majority of the riders left the train except for a core of 4 or 5 people gathered around the young woman. They laid her down using someone’s shoulder bag as a pillow, someone donated their bottled water for her, an older lady was holding her hand and telling her everything would be OK. Everyone seemed genuinely concerned. And it was a mix of black and white folks too.
So, that’s rude New Yorkers for you. One would think that after 9/11 the meme would have disappeared when the nation saw the incredible outpouring of volunteerism on the part of everyday New Yorkers, but it seems to still linger. permanent link to this post
Aug 11, 2003
vacation
posted at 10:34 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
everyone now, sing-a-long - vaction , all i ever wanted…
going on tues be back on thurs or fri
beach camping permanent link to this post
going on tues be back on thurs or fri
beach camping permanent link to this post
Aug 10, 2003
I like to watch TV
posted at 21:43 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Many artists and intellectuals either don’t like or don’t like to admit they like TV.
I’m coming out of the closet: I like to watch TV. TV is entertaining. TV gives me something to do when I’m bored. TV can be informative. And there can even be some things that approach very good art on TV. The HBO series Six Feet Under is one example of great TV.
Unfortunately, for Americans, to get good TV you need to pay for it. You absolutely must have cable or satellite TV to get good TV. It’s a good thing that it’s very easy to steal cable TV. Me? I pay for it. And it ain’t cheap. But I like it and I think it’s worth it. permanent link to this post
I’m coming out of the closet: I like to watch TV. TV is entertaining. TV gives me something to do when I’m bored. TV can be informative. And there can even be some things that approach very good art on TV. The HBO series Six Feet Under is one example of great TV.
Unfortunately, for Americans, to get good TV you need to pay for it. You absolutely must have cable or satellite TV to get good TV. It’s a good thing that it’s very easy to steal cable TV. Me? I pay for it. And it ain’t cheap. But I like it and I think it’s worth it. permanent link to this post
Aug 07, 2003
The Pirated Movie
posted at 09:52 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Looks like our plan to screen a pirated version of The Pirates of The Caribbean is going to become a reality.
Postmasters Gallery has been kind enough to allow us to use their back gallery to screen it and we’re busily confirming musicians and DJs who will provide the audio for the silent screening. We’re also going to screen it in black and white. We’re going to video tape the entire thing and burn it onto a DVD as well (which could present problems as consumer grade DVD-burning solutions top out at an hour don’t they?). Well, whatever, we’re doing it.
We’re calling it simply “The Pirated Movie” and we’re thinking of it as a protest piece. permanent link to this post
Postmasters Gallery has been kind enough to allow us to use their back gallery to screen it and we’re busily confirming musicians and DJs who will provide the audio for the silent screening. We’re also going to screen it in black and white. We’re going to video tape the entire thing and burn it onto a DVD as well (which could present problems as consumer grade DVD-burning solutions top out at an hour don’t they?). Well, whatever, we’re doing it.
We’re calling it simply “The Pirated Movie” and we’re thinking of it as a protest piece. permanent link to this post
Aug 04, 2003
The “SUMMEr oF HTML” Tour
posted at 12:41 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
MTAA’s M.River provided the 8 foot tall HTML letters hand-crafted from plywood that adorned the front entrance to TEAM Gallery for the kick-off of the “SUMMEr oF HTML” tour. The tour includes performances and stuff by EXTREME ANIMALS/8-BIT CONSTRUCTION SET/BEIGE PROGRAMMING ENSEMBLE and PAPERRAD.
T.Whid was tired and sweaty and left early so these photos aren’t of the whole show unfortunately. It was highly entertaining, informative and fun and If I wasn’t so lazy I could have enjoyed the entire thing. I’ll be regretting it for some time I’m sure.
Click here for the photos permanent link to this post
T.Whid was tired and sweaty and left early so these photos aren’t of the whole show unfortunately. It was highly entertaining, informative and fun and If I wasn’t so lazy I could have enjoyed the entire thing. I’ll be regretting it for some time I’m sure.
Click here for the photos permanent link to this post
Jul 31, 2003
Urhip
posted at 10:16 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Don’t know why I’m so obsessed with this but it’s driving me crazy that the idea of Williamsburg being hip is all the rage right now so I need to make fun of it.
So! If Williamsburg was hip or is hip in 2003, what does that make someone, like ME, who moved here in 1993? A full TEN years before the hipness melt-down we seem to be experiencing today?
Using a very conservative approach of one superlative per 2 years, that would make ME super-ultra-über-mega-extra-HIP (at least in this one very important sphere of NYC life: choosing a neighborhood to live in).
Or, to simplify, you may refer to me as urhip (pronounced ER-hip). permanent link to this post
So! If Williamsburg was hip or is hip in 2003, what does that make someone, like ME, who moved here in 1993? A full TEN years before the hipness melt-down we seem to be experiencing today?
Using a very conservative approach of one superlative per 2 years, that would make ME super-ultra-über-mega-extra-HIP (at least in this one very important sphere of NYC life: choosing a neighborhood to live in).
Or, to simplify, you may refer to me as urhip (pronounced ER-hip). permanent link to this post
Jul 28, 2003
NYTimes: Williamsburg is over!
posted at 13:34 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Seriously? It hasn’t been ‘cool’ since, at least, ‘96 or ‘97. I think the fall of jungle was also the fall of Billsburg.
From Gawker from the NYTimes:
“He listens to Electroclash music, has 40-plus pals on Friendster and creates art with discarded household paint under the moniker Scooter.” That the NYT mentions Electroclash and Friendster in the same sentence (or at all) is proof that they’re both too mainstream to be cool anymore.
So, is Friendster the shortest fad EVER? It’s only been, what? Like 3 months? We need to slow down just a tad, no?
permanent link to this post
Jul 25, 2003
our new show that we did not even know we would be in until we got this…
posted at 19:28 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Press Release
MTAA Postcard Art Show @ IALA Gallery, Baton Rouge.
August 15 - Oct.. 15, 2003
Press Contact:
Contact Information:
Patrick Lichty, Director,
IALA Gallery
355 Seyburn Drive
Baton Rouge, LA 70808,USA
225 766-3811,
10 AM 4 PM US CST Weekdays, viewings by appointment
voyd@voyd.com
IALA gallery is proud to present conceptual artists Whid and River in their presentation of their postcard art exhibition. This is a variation of the installation recently seen at New Yorkıs 31 Grand and Rome Art galleries, and we are pleased to have the opportunity to install this work. Visitors are invited to view and interact with the MTAA postcard art installation, which is unique for the Baton Rouge area in recent decades. IALA gallery recently received the work, which will be given its site-specific installation at IALA, and we are excited to be able to present this form of conceptual abstraction to the Baton Rouge and Southern Louisiana public.
ABOUT MTAA
Whid and River -AKA MTAA- are leading edge conceptualists in the rising genre of technological/new media art. Their most contemporary and historically-informed works expand the critical issues relating to the nature of art in the technological age, and especially after the rise of the Internet. Their physical and virtual works are widely shown, and have been featured at numerous venues, including the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Walker Art Center.
ABOUT IALA
IALA is a private not-for-profit gallery run by curator and owner Patrick Lichty, which promotes the works of experimental and new media artists through our ongoing exhibitions. Within our permanent collection are works from numerous contemporary and electronic artists, including Peggy Ahwesh, Amy Alexander, MTAA, Roman Verostko, Simon Biggs, Igor Vamos, Yael Kanarek, Barbara Lattanzi, Nancy Buchanan, Melanic Crean, BOME, Guillermo Gomez-Pena, Larry Miller, RTMark, Noriko Meguro, The YesMen, Patrick Lichty, Paul Vanouse, and Diamanda Galas only to name a few. permanent link to this post
MTAA Postcard Art Show @ IALA Gallery, Baton Rouge.
August 15 - Oct.. 15, 2003
Press Contact:
Contact Information:
Patrick Lichty, Director,
IALA Gallery
355 Seyburn Drive
Baton Rouge, LA 70808,USA
225 766-3811,
10 AM 4 PM US CST Weekdays, viewings by appointment
voyd@voyd.com
IALA gallery is proud to present conceptual artists Whid and River in their presentation of their postcard art exhibition. This is a variation of the installation recently seen at New Yorkıs 31 Grand and Rome Art galleries, and we are pleased to have the opportunity to install this work. Visitors are invited to view and interact with the MTAA postcard art installation, which is unique for the Baton Rouge area in recent decades. IALA gallery recently received the work, which will be given its site-specific installation at IALA, and we are excited to be able to present this form of conceptual abstraction to the Baton Rouge and Southern Louisiana public.
ABOUT MTAA
Whid and River -AKA MTAA- are leading edge conceptualists in the rising genre of technological/new media art. Their most contemporary and historically-informed works expand the critical issues relating to the nature of art in the technological age, and especially after the rise of the Internet. Their physical and virtual works are widely shown, and have been featured at numerous venues, including the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Walker Art Center.
ABOUT IALA
IALA is a private not-for-profit gallery run by curator and owner Patrick Lichty, which promotes the works of experimental and new media artists through our ongoing exhibitions. Within our permanent collection are works from numerous contemporary and electronic artists, including Peggy Ahwesh, Amy Alexander, MTAA, Roman Verostko, Simon Biggs, Igor Vamos, Yael Kanarek, Barbara Lattanzi, Nancy Buchanan, Melanic Crean, BOME, Guillermo Gomez-Pena, Larry Miller, RTMark, Noriko Meguro, The YesMen, Patrick Lichty, Paul Vanouse, and Diamanda Galas only to name a few. permanent link to this post
Jul 21, 2003
Gawker: electoclash is over!
posted at 15:11 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
That’s right kiddies, stop hanging around in front of Luxx bothering the neighbors with your smokin’ and babblin’.
According to Gawker according to the Village Voice the whole electroclash scene is now over now that the Berliniamsburg night at Club Luxx is over.
Personally, I know jack about the entire scene. M.River said it was over about a 1/2 a year ago. He’s cooler than most so I believed him at the time, but now I’m not sure :-) I’ve seen the flyers for Berliniamsburg around the ‘hood for some time but never considered going. 80’s disco-retro? Once was enough for me thx.
Fischerspooner is cool tho, aren’t they the ones who really started it? permanent link to this post
According to Gawker according to the Village Voice the whole electroclash scene is now over now that the Berliniamsburg night at Club Luxx is over.
Personally, I know jack about the entire scene. M.River said it was over about a 1/2 a year ago. He’s cooler than most so I believed him at the time, but now I’m not sure :-) I’ve seen the flyers for Berliniamsburg around the ‘hood for some time but never considered going. 80’s disco-retro? Once was enough for me thx.
Fischerspooner is cool tho, aren’t they the ones who really started it? permanent link to this post
Jul 20, 2003
Coney Island July 2003
posted at 11:03 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
Yes. Coney Island is grimy. Yes. Coney Island is sticky. Yes. Coney Island can be smelly. But Coney Island IS Brooklyn summer! And on July 19, 2003 there were free bands playing courtesy of the Village Voice’s Siren Festival.
Here are some pics. (On a brand new site which will become twhid.com shortly. I’ll be using it mostly for commercial stuff, but I may move mteww.com over there too.) permanent link to this post
Here are some pics. (On a brand new site which will become twhid.com shortly. I’ll be using it mostly for commercial stuff, but I may move mteww.com over there too.) permanent link to this post
Jul 19, 2003
AIOTD - The RR Quarterly Report
posted at 08:26 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Using material from the mtaaRR as well as from other artist, bloggers and netsters (you know who you are) create a free printed report to be placed in galleries. Iım thinking black and white 11 x 17 folded once. Print around 500. First one to be out on Sept. 22, 2003
permanent link to this post
Jul 18, 2003
Brooklyn Giglio Festival 100th Anniversary
posted at 11:51 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Williamsburg ain’t all hipsters and art galleries.
Williamsburg’s Our Lady of Mt. Carmel giglio festival takes place every July and since it’s the 100th Anniversary there is a lot of press this year:
NY Times coverage
With a slide show
There was an audio report on NPR too. [ link to NPR audio report ] permanent link to this post
Williamsburg’s Our Lady of Mt. Carmel giglio festival takes place every July and since it’s the 100th Anniversary there is a lot of press this year:
NY Times coverage
With a slide show
There was an audio report on NPR too. [ link to NPR audio report ] permanent link to this post
Jul 17, 2003
3rd Annual Siren Music Festival
posted at 14:13 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
MTAA will be making the scene at the Siren Music Festival down in beautiful Coney Island, Brooklyn this coming Saturday.
Our official excuse (coz, ya know, artists are guilt-ridden the entire time they’re out of their studios and not: a)having sex, b)drinkin’, or c) researchin’. Because you SHOULD be workin’ damnit!) is that we’re going to shoot some video for Pat Lichty’s website unseen, “#9. Images From Our Better Days In Hell (30 sec. loop),” which is due on August something-or-other.
I’m excited to see Northern State (they’re cute, c’mon!), Hot Hot Heat (coz Devin says they’re good), and The Kills (coz they gots a cool name).
I’m sorry that I’ve missed this festival in the past as stupendous acts like The White Stripes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and The Liars have all played it in years past. So, be there, or, like, be a rhombus. permanent link to this post
Our official excuse (coz, ya know, artists are guilt-ridden the entire time they’re out of their studios and not: a)having sex, b)drinkin’, or c) researchin’. Because you SHOULD be workin’ damnit!) is that we’re going to shoot some video for Pat Lichty’s website unseen, “#9. Images From Our Better Days In Hell (30 sec. loop),” which is due on August something-or-other.
I’m excited to see Northern State (they’re cute, c’mon!), Hot Hot Heat (coz Devin says they’re good), and The Kills (coz they gots a cool name).
I’m sorry that I’ve missed this festival in the past as stupendous acts like The White Stripes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and The Liars have all played it in years past. So, be there, or, like, be a rhombus. permanent link to this post
Jul 14, 2003
I promise…
posted at 20:37 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
I promise that hardcore conceptual art will make a comeback sometime very, very soon.
permanent link to this post
permanent link to this post
Jul 13, 2003
July 2003 Photos
posted at 14:22 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
MTAA had two back-to-back openings this weekend. A group show called Dealer’s Choice at 31Grand opened Friday the 11th of July and then a very small solo show at Rome Arts opened the following night, the 12th of July.
We took some photos of the events, CLICK ON THIS LINK to see them. permanent link to this post
We took some photos of the events, CLICK ON THIS LINK to see them. permanent link to this post
Jul 11, 2003
Manual Zoom Mirage
posted at 09:46 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
We like to release stuff here first.
We’re releasing digital files of our new piece that we’re showing at ROME Arts called: "IN PREPARATION FOR THE SUMMER AIR IN BROOKLYN TO RISE FROM THE CONCRETE IN A MANNER WHICH DISTORTS ONE’S ABILITY TO JUDGE DISTANCE AND MEANING (AKA MANUAL ZOOM MIRAGE)" under a creative commons license
You can download large and small JPEGs of the image. You can also download the Adobe Illustrator files we used to output the piece (which, in our opinion, is better than getting the piece in some ways).
M.River has been kind enough to let us keep it on Tinjail.com.
Here it is. permanent link to this post
We’re releasing digital files of our new piece that we’re showing at ROME Arts called: "IN PREPARATION FOR THE SUMMER AIR IN BROOKLYN TO RISE FROM THE CONCRETE IN A MANNER WHICH DISTORTS ONE’S ABILITY TO JUDGE DISTANCE AND MEANING (AKA MANUAL ZOOM MIRAGE)" under a creative commons license
You can download large and small JPEGs of the image. You can also download the Adobe Illustrator files we used to output the piece (which, in our opinion, is better than getting the piece in some ways).
M.River has been kind enough to let us keep it on Tinjail.com.
Here it is. permanent link to this post
Jul 09, 2003
Williamsburg Hipster
posted at 21:29 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
This was supposed to be a rant against, not the Williamsburg hipster, but against the idea of the Williamsburg hipster. I had this idea that “Williamsburg hipster” was a meme out-of-control and I wanted to stop it. But, unfortunately for my rant, when you search for that exact string on Google, “Williamsburg hipster,” you only come up with 66 hits which are mostly NYC-based blogs.
So, I guess it’s not an out-of-control meme at the moment. So maybe I’m nippin’ it in the bud. I first became annoyed by it on this otherwise uplifting post on stevenberlinjohnson.com: the huge clan of Korean-Americans gathered under an elm tree, with the family of Hasidic Jews strolling down the path behind them; the white soccer moms picnicking on the lawn; the Puerto Ricans barbecuing up the hill, with the Williamsburg hipsters playing Frisbee between then; the rap and salsa and acoustic guitars; the old couple reading a Spanish-language paper I’d never seen before. Now, hold on a minute yo! “Williamsburg Hipster” is not a creed or nationality. I found it strange to be mixed in with Koreans and Hasid. Don’t get me wrong, the post was great and NYC parks always get my multi-culti American pride goin’ as well, but I need to stop the MEME!
I’ve lived in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NYC since 1993 and I’m not hip AT ALL! You’d think if I had been ensconced within hipsterdom for so long I might become hip but if anything I’ve become less hip, not more. I’m fatter, I dress worse, I don’t do as many drugs, my hair is much thinner, I haven’t owned a meshback cap for years, and I’m desperately trying to find a regular monthly AD & D game!
I live in Williamsburg, I’m not hip, and I got the pictures to prove it! permanent link to this post
So, I guess it’s not an out-of-control meme at the moment. So maybe I’m nippin’ it in the bud. I first became annoyed by it on this otherwise uplifting post on stevenberlinjohnson.com: the huge clan of Korean-Americans gathered under an elm tree, with the family of Hasidic Jews strolling down the path behind them; the white soccer moms picnicking on the lawn; the Puerto Ricans barbecuing up the hill, with the Williamsburg hipsters playing Frisbee between then; the rap and salsa and acoustic guitars; the old couple reading a Spanish-language paper I’d never seen before. Now, hold on a minute yo! “Williamsburg Hipster” is not a creed or nationality. I found it strange to be mixed in with Koreans and Hasid. Don’t get me wrong, the post was great and NYC parks always get my multi-culti American pride goin’ as well, but I need to stop the MEME!
I’ve lived in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NYC since 1993 and I’m not hip AT ALL! You’d think if I had been ensconced within hipsterdom for so long I might become hip but if anything I’ve become less hip, not more. I’m fatter, I dress worse, I don’t do as many drugs, my hair is much thinner, I haven’t owned a meshback cap for years, and I’m desperately trying to find a regular monthly AD & D game!
I live in Williamsburg, I’m not hip, and I got the pictures to prove it! permanent link to this post
Jul 07, 2003
Friendster Warning
posted at 14:54 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Sure, Friendster seems fun and innocent but I believe they sell your email address to spammers! Perhaps the spammers have figured out a way to steal them from Friendster, but I doubt it.
What is my proof?
I received a spam with the name “twhid twhid” in the subject. That was my full Friendster name for a while, the only place the spammer could have gotten it was from Friendster. Be forewarned! permanent link to this post
What is my proof?
I received a spam with the name “twhid twhid” in the subject. That was my full Friendster name for a while, the only place the spammer could have gotten it was from Friendster. Be forewarned! permanent link to this post
Jul 05, 2003
AIOTD - Flash Then Cloud
posted at 08:44 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Rumor is the fireworks company that does the show in NYC has a government contract to make simulated nuclear flashes and mushroom clouds.
I want to recreate the Manhattan project as an earth work. permanent link to this post
I want to recreate the Manhattan project as an earth work. permanent link to this post
Jul 03, 2003
Another MTAA AIOTD™
posted at 14:16 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
“Our Most Difficult Exhibition Ever”
An exhibition in a rural Ohio public storage facility with all accompanying art world accoutrements including a press release, postcard announcement, email announcements, and a reception to be held in NYC. Special arrangement with the storage facility will allow people to visit the exhibition during business hours.
A small, low resolution, blurry JPEG photo of the exhibition will be made available online.
note: AIOTD™ = art idea of the day permanent link to this post
An exhibition in a rural Ohio public storage facility with all accompanying art world accoutrements including a press release, postcard announcement, email announcements, and a reception to be held in NYC. Special arrangement with the storage facility will allow people to visit the exhibition during business hours.
A small, low resolution, blurry JPEG photo of the exhibition will be made available online.
note: AIOTD™ = art idea of the day permanent link to this post
NYC ‘hood names
posted at 10:44 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
I’m kinda confused by this post on Andera Harner’s photo blog. Is she saying that I am the dog? Or is she simply aiming the previous comment at yours truly?
I suppose she’s aiming the neighborhood abbreviation comment at me since I complained about NYC nabe abbreviations in the comments on this post.
My comments were this: re: NoLita
i know, i know, that one’s been around a while, but the NYC ‘hood names are really gettin’ outta hand.
pretty soon, every BLOCK is gonna have it’s own name!
my ‘hood in billsburg is called MidWilly (middle of williamsburg), there is also SoWilly and NoWilly. Those are my names. If you hear anyone use them, they stole ‘em from me. But c’mon! You know I’m right! I can get more granular and call my block EebeeWeeberGrandMidWilly (East of Bedford, West of Berry, on Grand St. Middle of Williamsburg). permanent link to this post
I suppose she’s aiming the neighborhood abbreviation comment at me since I complained about NYC nabe abbreviations in the comments on this post.
My comments were this: re: NoLita
i know, i know, that one’s been around a while, but the NYC ‘hood names are really gettin’ outta hand.
pretty soon, every BLOCK is gonna have it’s own name!
my ‘hood in billsburg is called MidWilly (middle of williamsburg), there is also SoWilly and NoWilly. Those are my names. If you hear anyone use them, they stole ‘em from me. But c’mon! You know I’m right! I can get more granular and call my block EebeeWeeberGrandMidWilly (East of Bedford, West of Berry, on Grand St. Middle of Williamsburg). permanent link to this post
Jul 01, 2003
DIA 70
posted at 19:50 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Went to the DIA Beacon Sunday. Highlights? Natural light on work. Judd plywood. Serra rubber. Warhol shadows. Nauman and his very strange worlds.
permanent link to this post
Jun 29, 2003
Global Net Art Show
posted at 11:13 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
We need to make a big splash soon. We need a global net art show. The state of the net art isn’t so hot these days; the Walker’s actions and Thing and Rhizome both feeling a bit shaky it seems like we’re encountering a stall. Or it seems we’re encountering reverse momentum in the net art/new media art world.
A really huge show, global in nature would help in showing everyone that we’re not going to just roll over and take it. The show should be entirely online, but there should be global receptions which can function as walk-throughs, the local artists can will be present for the press, large projections of the art, and etc.
So far it’s a rather embryonic idea. I don’t know what would be in the show, or what the theme of the show would be. I just have this strong feeling that we need something strong, big, splashy, and undeniable which comes from the grass-roots as opposed to the institution. permanent link to this post
A really huge show, global in nature would help in showing everyone that we’re not going to just roll over and take it. The show should be entirely online, but there should be global receptions which can function as walk-throughs, the local artists can will be present for the press, large projections of the art, and etc.
So far it’s a rather embryonic idea. I don’t know what would be in the show, or what the theme of the show would be. I just have this strong feeling that we need something strong, big, splashy, and undeniable which comes from the grass-roots as opposed to the institution. permanent link to this post
Jun 26, 2003
Response From Kathy Halbreich, Walker Art Center Director, To The Open Letter
posted at 17:20 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Most of us are aware of The Walker’s decision to fire Steve Dietz which means that they’ve basically destroyed their new media art department. This is a great article regarding the whole affair.
Matt Mirapaul reported this in the NYTime’s.com: Ms. Halbreich said she intended to keep the projects online but could not commit to doing so until the cost was determined. Obviously, this position is unacceptable. So, Sarah Cook wrote a letter and MTAA posted it on our web site at “mteww.com/walker_letter/“. We had 689 people sign the letter in one week. We now have response from the Director, Kathy Halbreich, and also a response from Steve Dietz linked from the initial letter.
I personally found Kathy Halbreich’s response to be sorely lacking: Our philosophical and artistic commitment to New Media has not wavered, but the resources are not there to carry out that commitment as intensively or as quickly as we had hoped. Simply substitute “Photography” or “Video” for “New Media” in the quote above and you can see what an absurd statement it is. We all understand the hard economic times but the cuts should have been shared across the board. The statement also uses double talk. What does “carry out that commitment as intensively or as quickly as we had hoped” mean? To Ms. Halbreich it means disappearing the department that could carry out *any* commitment whatsoever. Blackhawk summed it up well on thingist, “They haven’t shot themselves in the foot, they’ve amputated it.”
She does go on to assure us that the works in Gallery 9 will continue to be accessible (which was my main concern) but I’m still feeling a bit nervous about this considering the NYTime’s article quoted above.
At any rate, this is a big step back for new media art in the USA. The Walker was *the* visionary institution for new media. Steve’s position at The Walker helped to push new media, web art, and net art into the mainstream of american art institutions and now they’ve dropped the ball. It’s a shame. permanent link to this post
Matt Mirapaul reported this in the NYTime’s.com: Ms. Halbreich said she intended to keep the projects online but could not commit to doing so until the cost was determined. Obviously, this position is unacceptable. So, Sarah Cook wrote a letter and MTAA posted it on our web site at “mteww.com/walker_letter/“. We had 689 people sign the letter in one week. We now have response from the Director, Kathy Halbreich, and also a response from Steve Dietz linked from the initial letter.
I personally found Kathy Halbreich’s response to be sorely lacking: Our philosophical and artistic commitment to New Media has not wavered, but the resources are not there to carry out that commitment as intensively or as quickly as we had hoped. Simply substitute “Photography” or “Video” for “New Media” in the quote above and you can see what an absurd statement it is. We all understand the hard economic times but the cuts should have been shared across the board. The statement also uses double talk. What does “carry out that commitment as intensively or as quickly as we had hoped” mean? To Ms. Halbreich it means disappearing the department that could carry out *any* commitment whatsoever. Blackhawk summed it up well on thingist, “They haven’t shot themselves in the foot, they’ve amputated it.”
She does go on to assure us that the works in Gallery 9 will continue to be accessible (which was my main concern) but I’m still feeling a bit nervous about this considering the NYTime’s article quoted above.
At any rate, this is a big step back for new media art in the USA. The Walker was *the* visionary institution for new media. Steve’s position at The Walker helped to push new media, web art, and net art into the mainstream of american art institutions and now they’ve dropped the ball. It’s a shame. permanent link to this post
Jun 23, 2003
It’s (not) A Secret
posted at 17:25 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
For all the cool kids that read our little news & comment section (unofficially the MTAA blog, but we don’t like to call it that) let ME let YOU in on a little secret.
Come to think of it, not many people prolly give a shit, but anyway, our new project, called.. what’s it called again? The title is to long to remember and we neglected to give this one a short “AKA” name as is our practice. Let us call it AKA Hot Brooklyn Summer. (the real title is “In Preparation For The Summer Air In Brooklyn To Rise From The Concrete In A Manner Which Distorts One’s Ability To Judge Distance and Meaning (AKA Manual Zoom Mirage)”, OH shit, it DOES have an AKA title! OK, scratch that babble that came before this).
Now. Where was I?
So this postcard, AKA Manual Zoom Mirage (which all of you should be receiving in the mail shortly) is going to be released on the web as an Adobe Illustrator file with a creative commons license. We’ll release it near the opening date which is July 12th. We’ll announce it’s web presence here and elsewhere.
One more thing: G-fuckin’-5, FINALLY! we wants one, yes we do. permanent link to this post
Come to think of it, not many people prolly give a shit, but anyway, our new project, called.. what’s it called again? The title is to long to remember and we neglected to give this one a short “AKA” name as is our practice. Let us call it AKA Hot Brooklyn Summer. (the real title is “In Preparation For The Summer Air In Brooklyn To Rise From The Concrete In A Manner Which Distorts One’s Ability To Judge Distance and Meaning (AKA Manual Zoom Mirage)”, OH shit, it DOES have an AKA title! OK, scratch that babble that came before this).
Now. Where was I?
So this postcard, AKA Manual Zoom Mirage (which all of you should be receiving in the mail shortly) is going to be released on the web as an Adobe Illustrator file with a creative commons license. We’ll release it near the opening date which is July 12th. We’ll announce it’s web presence here and elsewhere.
One more thing: G-fuckin’-5, FINALLY! we wants one, yes we do. permanent link to this post
Jun 22, 2003
Rain again
posted at 10:13 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
In Brooklyn it is raining again. It has rained all spring. It looks as if it will continue to pour this summer. I live two blocks from the East River in a second floor apartment. I have begun to build a raft out of plastic bags and Ikea furniture. What the hell is a cubit anyway?
permanent link to this post
Jun 21, 2003
Send Yer Snail Mail Address
posted at 16:17 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
So, basically, I’m posting ‘coz I haven’t posted much lately and also to ask one more time for your snail mail address. Send it to twhid_at_mteww_dot_com (you can figure out how to use the email address if you’re a human.)
We need your snail mail address in order to send you a postcard for our show at Rome Arts in Brooklyn, NY. This is no ordinary postcard however, the postcard IS the show; the show IS the postcard.
Other than that, there isn’t much to report from here. I’ve been procrastinating updating my portfolio for about a week, it rains everyday in NYC now, I’m going to play poker next week, the Upgrade is next week, and there is an opening at Bitforms next week too. I’ll foot spam the Upgrade meeting and the Bitforms opening with the MTAA show/postcard; that should be fun. permanent link to this post
We need your snail mail address in order to send you a postcard for our show at Rome Arts in Brooklyn, NY. This is no ordinary postcard however, the postcard IS the show; the show IS the postcard.
Other than that, there isn’t much to report from here. I’ve been procrastinating updating my portfolio for about a week, it rains everyday in NYC now, I’m going to play poker next week, the Upgrade is next week, and there is an opening at Bitforms next week too. I’ll foot spam the Upgrade meeting and the Bitforms opening with the MTAA show/postcard; that should be fun. permanent link to this post
Jun 18, 2003
Better Days In Hell
posted at 18:26 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
We’re pleased to announce that Patrick Lichty will be the proud owner of Website Unseen 9. Images From Our Better Days In Hell, 30 sec.loop. Here is the first random thought on how to make the artwork. 1. the Cyclone at Coney Island. 2. film of Twhid and I ridding in the back car looking sorta blank. 3. the time of one ride reduced to a 30 sec. loop. 4. viewer navigation runs us forward in time or back
permanent link to this post
Jun 14, 2003
We need your address
posted at 17:14 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
You land address that is!
M.River and I are having a show at Rome Arts in good ole Brooklyn, NYC and we want to send YOU a postcard!
So, your land address and you’ll get a postcard. We might not send postcards to international addresses but we haven’t decided yet. permanent link to this post
M.River and I are having a show at Rome Arts in good ole Brooklyn, NYC and we want to send YOU a postcard!
So, your land address and you’ll get a postcard. We might not send postcards to international addresses but we haven’t decided yet. permanent link to this post
AIOTD: My Farts Are Benevolent
posted at 11:21 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
That’s not really the name of the idea. I just thought that it was a really funny sentence.
Would it be art for me to record my farts and sell the recordings as stock audio? It’s kinda like an update of Manzoni’s shit cans.
And remember: AIOTD™ is a trademark of MTAA and stands for Art Idea Of The Day.
RANDOM STUFF
For some reason, this web site Gawker has a problem with Brooklyn. I don’t understand why. But they did report that according to Wallpaper mag Redhook has been discovered. So, you know what that means.. No media has reported on Long Island City yet. Also, Chris and Peggy are gonna hafta start lookin’ for a new place :-(
YES, I’m using BOLD tags and I DON’T CARE! It’s a helluva lot faster than typing
Really annoying thing: going out to a birthday dinner with a group and someone decides that everyone should pay per dish rather than simply splitting up the bill into equal shares and, yes, it’s immaterial that I ordered a $40 bottle of wine, coffee, and an expensive entree when everyone else ordered pasta dishes ;-) I decided I would enjoy my meal before I ordered, CHEAPSKATES BE DAMNED!
I’m happy to report that if you search Google in german for “leather pants stage pics” the MTAA-RR is THE NUMBER ONE WEB SITE returned! WOOOOO-HOOOOOO! permanent link to this post
Would it be art for me to record my farts and sell the recordings as stock audio? It’s kinda like an update of Manzoni’s shit cans.
And remember: AIOTD™ is a trademark of MTAA and stands for Art Idea Of The Day.
RANDOM STUFF
For some reason, this web site Gawker has a problem with Brooklyn. I don’t understand why. But they did report that according to Wallpaper mag Redhook has been discovered. So, you know what that means.. No media has reported on Long Island City yet. Also, Chris and Peggy are gonna hafta start lookin’ for a new place :-(
YES, I’m using BOLD tags and I DON’T CARE! It’s a helluva lot faster than typing
style="font-weight: bold;"
Really annoying thing: going out to a birthday dinner with a group and someone decides that everyone should pay per dish rather than simply splitting up the bill into equal shares and, yes, it’s immaterial that I ordered a $40 bottle of wine, coffee, and an expensive entree when everyone else ordered pasta dishes ;-) I decided I would enjoy my meal before I ordered, CHEAPSKATES BE DAMNED!
I’m happy to report that if you search Google in german for “leather pants stage pics” the MTAA-RR is THE NUMBER ONE WEB SITE returned! WOOOOO-HOOOOOO! permanent link to this post
Jun 11, 2003
MTAA Art Idea of the Day
posted at 20:36 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
an email that self destructs
permanent link to this post
Jun 09, 2003
MTAA Art Idea Of The Day: “Fictional” Art
posted at 16:49 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
idea: Create “real” art out of “fictional” art.
This is a fairly simple idea but there may be copyright issues. The idea is to take images of fictional “High Art” in popular culture and re-contextualize them into a “High Art” context. That is, take an image of art from, say, the gallery scene in Beverly Hills Cop 1, create an actual work which is a replica and exhibit it in a museum or fine art gallery.
How one goes about re-creating a piece is another interesting part of this work. I’m inclined to take the actual image of a fictive artwork from a DVD and create a new 2d still image of the fictional artwork regardless of it’s dimensions in the fictive version. Or, one could take one of the sculptures from Beetlejuice and re-fabricate it. Or, you could mix-n-match depending on the fictional artwork.
I think someone with more time or ambition than MTAA could probably make an entire early career from this idea.
Of course, the problem is, sometimes producers hire “real” artists to either fabricate or loan art for films and television. permanent link to this post
This is a fairly simple idea but there may be copyright issues. The idea is to take images of fictional “High Art” in popular culture and re-contextualize them into a “High Art” context. That is, take an image of art from, say, the gallery scene in Beverly Hills Cop 1, create an actual work which is a replica and exhibit it in a museum or fine art gallery.
How one goes about re-creating a piece is another interesting part of this work. I’m inclined to take the actual image of a fictive artwork from a DVD and create a new 2d still image of the fictional artwork regardless of it’s dimensions in the fictive version. Or, one could take one of the sculptures from Beetlejuice and re-fabricate it. Or, you could mix-n-match depending on the fictional artwork.
I think someone with more time or ambition than MTAA could probably make an entire early career from this idea.
Of course, the problem is, sometimes producers hire “real” artists to either fabricate or loan art for films and television. permanent link to this post
Jun 07, 2003
MTAA Art Idea of the Day
posted at 15:26 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Okay, you may remember this AIOTD from earlier this month -
4 sheets of 4 x 8 plywood are cut to create the letters HTML. The letters are then painted white and hung on a 2 x 4 framework like the Hollywood sign.
This idea was somewhat inspired by Cory. I ran into him a few days ago and told him about the idea. He suggested using DHTML. This is another example of why he rules. permanent link to this post
4 sheets of 4 x 8 plywood are cut to create the letters HTML. The letters are then painted white and hung on a 2 x 4 framework like the Hollywood sign.
This idea was somewhat inspired by Cory. I ran into him a few days ago and told him about the idea. He suggested using DHTML. This is another example of why he rules. permanent link to this post
Jun 05, 2003
Wolfowitz Retraction by The Guardian
posted at 12:14 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/politics
The article sited in my post yesterday regarding Wolfowitz has been retracted by The Guardian:
A report which was posted on our website on June 4 under the heading “Wolfowitz: Iraq war was about oil” misconstrued remarks made by the US deputy defence secretary, Paul Wolfowitz, making it appear that he had said that oil was the main reason for going to war in Iraq. He did not say that. He said, “The most important difference between North Korea and Iraq is that economically we just had no choice in Iraq. The country swims on a sea of oil.” The sense was that the US had no economic options by means of which to achieve its objectives, not that the economic value of the oil motivated the war. The report appeared only on the website and has now been removed.
I guess you CAN’T believe everything you read on the Web :-)
permanent link to this post
Jun 04, 2003
It WAS all about oil afterall
posted at 17:37 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/politics
The Guardian is reporting that loose-lipped Wolfowitz has done it again. He’s actually telling the truth! It’s hard to believe, but evidentally it’s true!
In a story posted today, Wolfowitz: Iraq war was about oil, the deputy defense secretary is quoted as telling an Asian security summit in Singapore, when asked why the US is treating North Korea differently than Iraq: Let’s look at it simply. The most important difference between North Korea and Iraq is that economically, we just had no choice in Iraq. The country swims on a sea of oil. Finally, someone is being honest in the Bush Administration.
I’m thinking that old Wolfowitz may have talked himself out of a job, but at least we’re finding out the actual agenda behind the Bush Admin’s war in Iraq before he goes. permanent link to this post
In a story posted today, Wolfowitz: Iraq war was about oil, the deputy defense secretary is quoted as telling an Asian security summit in Singapore, when asked why the US is treating North Korea differently than Iraq: Let’s look at it simply. The most important difference between North Korea and Iraq is that economically, we just had no choice in Iraq. The country swims on a sea of oil. Finally, someone is being honest in the Bush Administration.
I’m thinking that old Wolfowitz may have talked himself out of a job, but at least we’re finding out the actual agenda behind the Bush Admin’s war in Iraq before he goes. permanent link to this post
Jun 03, 2003
Lies, Lies, Lies
posted at 09:33 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/politics
I’m just going to quote some Krugman today. The fact that the Bush Administration lied to sell the Iraq war to the American people shouldn’t really surprise anyone. What’s really surprising, and hopelessly depressing, is that the American media is once again bending over and letting the Bushies do them from the rear. Where is the outrage? Seems the British have a more truthful media, from Krugman today:
In Britain, the news media have not been shy about drawing the obvious implications, and the outrage has not been limited to war opponents. The Times of London was ardently pro-war; nonetheless, it ran an analysis under the headline “Lie Another Day.” The paper drew parallels between the selling of the war and other misleading claims: “The government is seen as having `spun’ the threat from Saddam’s weapons just as it spins everything else.”
And for those ‘loyal’ Americans who might say, “Hey, it’s OK, we took out a nasty Dictator.” I’ll post some more of Krugman’s opinion:
But here’s the thought that should make those commentators really uncomfortable. Suppose that this administration did con us into war. And suppose that it is not held accountable for its deceptions, so Mr. Bush can fight what Mr. Hastings calls a “khaki election” next year. In that case, our political system has become utterly, and perhaps irrevocably, corrupted.
Link to Krugman’s June 3rd column
permanent link to this post
Jun 02, 2003
blog on
posted at 20:31 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
blog blog blog
blog blog blog
blog blog blog
and blog…
i dont want to have a blog, best jimpunk permanent link to this post
blog blog blog
blog blog blog
and blog…
i dont want to have a blog, best jimpunk permanent link to this post
MTAA Art Idea of the Day
posted at 18:53 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
A small wood shack for a solar power server. Very cool eh?
What? You don’t think we can make a solar server? This very cool geek already did one. So did this very cool kid
Yes, I know you will want to steal this AIOTD. That is okay cuz we are copy left and we got the idea from our friend Kate anyway. Although the idea is only in a rough blog ready state right now, we are acutely going to try to get a gallery to let us build it on their roof in the fall.
permanent link to this post
What? You don’t think we can make a solar server? This very cool geek already did one. So did this very cool kid
Yes, I know you will want to steal this AIOTD. That is okay cuz we are copy left and we got the idea from our friend Kate anyway. Although the idea is only in a rough blog ready state right now, we are acutely going to try to get a gallery to let us build it on their roof in the fall.
permanent link to this post
May 31, 2003
MTAA art idea of the day
posted at 18:33 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Background Context: Who needs summer? Sure, we all know that it is the best time of year. We all know it is the time to get away from the world and have some fun. But…What will happen if the world continues to grow warmer? What happens when we archive the “Endless Summer”? How will we get away from paradise?
Idea: MTAA would like to set up a outdoor space that one may hide away from summer.
Set up a family size tent outdoors. The inside of the tent will be painted out black so that there is no outside light. The light of the tent will come from a single blue light bulb. In the center of the tent will be a single blue bean bag chair on a blue area rug. In front of the beanbag chair will be a monitor showing looping video of an icecaps. On each side of the bean bag chair will be a large air conditioner set to full (note: the units will vent the hot air out of the tent trough flexible air ducts). Playing from a boom box in the tent will be ambient electronic music. Over the music MTAA will gently tell the visitor how to forget summer. This audio will be a mix of “relax, chill out and give up summer by hypnosis” style voice over and rambling poetic fictional descriptions of your new life on an empty ice cap. permanent link to this post
Idea: MTAA would like to set up a outdoor space that one may hide away from summer.
Set up a family size tent outdoors. The inside of the tent will be painted out black so that there is no outside light. The light of the tent will come from a single blue light bulb. In the center of the tent will be a single blue bean bag chair on a blue area rug. In front of the beanbag chair will be a monitor showing looping video of an icecaps. On each side of the bean bag chair will be a large air conditioner set to full (note: the units will vent the hot air out of the tent trough flexible air ducts). Playing from a boom box in the tent will be ambient electronic music. Over the music MTAA will gently tell the visitor how to forget summer. This audio will be a mix of “relax, chill out and give up summer by hypnosis” style voice over and rambling poetic fictional descriptions of your new life on an empty ice cap. permanent link to this post
Haven’t Had Any Ideas
posted at 11:15 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/politics
Looks like we haven’t had many art ideas the past few days.
Things are looking mightly ridiculous here in the USA though. First, our BIG tax cut. If you have kids, you get a $400 credit per kid, unless of course you’re one of the poorest in our country, then you get jack. Seems that people earning under $23,000 dollars a year won’t get the credit. Those Republicans have some stong family values.
And now, the FCC is poised to make our already practically state-run media into officially state-run media. It’s scary as hell. Stay tuned for more jingoisism, militarism, and out-right lies to fill our news. You can read a bit about it HERE, HERE and HERE. This won’t affect me personally. I get most of my news from online sources that I trust. But it will affect my family. In Ohio earlier this year, I was appalled and depressed by what I saw as conservative, militaristic views of my family. They had been watching way to much CNN and MSNBC and were parroting the lies of the Bush administration. They looked at me as if I was traitor for being against the Iraq war.
The most depressing thing regarding the FCC vote is that there isn’t a damn thing any of us can do about it. All of the main media outlets will fall into the hands of huge cooperations who will push the line of the conservatives who gave them the power. Look for not just Fox, but NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN et al to be calling the race early for Bush in 2004. permanent link to this post
Things are looking mightly ridiculous here in the USA though. First, our BIG tax cut. If you have kids, you get a $400 credit per kid, unless of course you’re one of the poorest in our country, then you get jack. Seems that people earning under $23,000 dollars a year won’t get the credit. Those Republicans have some stong family values.
And now, the FCC is poised to make our already practically state-run media into officially state-run media. It’s scary as hell. Stay tuned for more jingoisism, militarism, and out-right lies to fill our news. You can read a bit about it HERE, HERE and HERE. This won’t affect me personally. I get most of my news from online sources that I trust. But it will affect my family. In Ohio earlier this year, I was appalled and depressed by what I saw as conservative, militaristic views of my family. They had been watching way to much CNN and MSNBC and were parroting the lies of the Bush administration. They looked at me as if I was traitor for being against the Iraq war.
The most depressing thing regarding the FCC vote is that there isn’t a damn thing any of us can do about it. All of the main media outlets will fall into the hands of huge cooperations who will push the line of the conservatives who gave them the power. Look for not just Fox, but NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN et al to be calling the race early for Bush in 2004. permanent link to this post
May 26, 2003
MTAA art idea of the day
posted at 20:19 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
custom surfboards
permanent link to this post
MTAA art idea of the day
posted at 07:27 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
4 sheets of 4 x 8 plywood are cut to create the letters HTML. The letters are then painted white and hung on a 2 x 4 framework like the Hollywood sign.
permanent link to this post
May 25, 2003
Day Job
posted at 16:11 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
If you’ve ever wondered what the hell I do in for a living (I’ve been wondering about it myself), then check out these links:
Here are a couple stories about Wavexpress, the company I work for, in Newsweek and Wired.
You should feel free to download our client as well. It’s called TVTonic and if you have a Windows PC that meets the requirements you can watch videos in interesting interfaces. It’s kinda like TV, but delivered over IP. We have some free channels to watch, including a music video channel, a news channel (with video from the AP) and a channel with movie trailers. There’s a bunch of other stuff too, but you need to pay for it.
I would be glad to hear any comments at all about any of this stuff. Feel free to really let loose. Whether you think it’s brilliant or stupid or whatever, you can post your comments anonymously here. I’ll share anything relevant with the management. permanent link to this post
Here are a couple stories about Wavexpress, the company I work for, in Newsweek and Wired.
You should feel free to download our client as well. It’s called TVTonic and if you have a Windows PC that meets the requirements you can watch videos in interesting interfaces. It’s kinda like TV, but delivered over IP. We have some free channels to watch, including a music video channel, a news channel (with video from the AP) and a channel with movie trailers. There’s a bunch of other stuff too, but you need to pay for it.
I would be glad to hear any comments at all about any of this stuff. Feel free to really let loose. Whether you think it’s brilliant or stupid or whatever, you can post your comments anonymously here. I’ll share anything relevant with the management. permanent link to this post
MTAA art idea of the day
posted at 08:40 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
On a 8 x 8 plywood stage, a computerized player grand piano is suspended in air by a framework of 2 x 4s. The player is slaved to a lap top with a airport internet connection. The lap top is suspended above the platform is a similar manner. The laptop is running a programed web crawler looking for sound files. The files are then translated to piano and played.
permanent link to this post
May 23, 2003
2 conversations
posted at 15:36 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
1.
mriver - So twhid, the blog is not art. Right?
twhid - No, it is just a blog
mriver - And there is no way it could end up being art?
twhid - No.
mriver - But what if I started recording our phone conversations and posting the text on the blog?
twhid: Nope, it is still just a blog.
2.
paul from work (not his real name… right): So, I was looking at your blog.
mriver: Gulp (swiging beer as a delay tactic)
paul: The posts are not very personal.
mriver: Ummm…What do you mean?
paul: You never say anything about yourself.
mriver: Oh, (gulp gulp gulp) I am getting around to that soon.
permanent link to this post
mriver - So twhid, the blog is not art. Right?
twhid - No, it is just a blog
mriver - And there is no way it could end up being art?
twhid - No.
mriver - But what if I started recording our phone conversations and posting the text on the blog?
twhid: Nope, it is still just a blog.
2.
paul from work (not his real name… right): So, I was looking at your blog.
mriver: Gulp (swiging beer as a delay tactic)
paul: The posts are not very personal.
mriver: Ummm…What do you mean?
paul: You never say anything about yourself.
mriver: Oh, (gulp gulp gulp) I am getting around to that soon.
permanent link to this post
MTAA art idea of the day
posted at 15:05 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
1. Buy pirated movie. Maybe it will be the new pirate movie from Disney. 2. Use software to: A. make the movie black and white B. silent and C. run at 1/2 speed. 3. show the film one night (maybe with a live band playing along)and charge $.01 per person. Sell beer without a permit to raise cash. Yo-Ho-Ho.
permanent link to this post
May 21, 2003
The Matrix or Sweet Sixteen
posted at 22:05 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
If you’re trying to decide which film to see, The Matrix Reloaded or Sweet Sixteen (strange paring I know) then you might want to go with Sweet Sixteen, directed by Ken Loach.
This is coming from a fairly serious sci-fi geek, but, the Loach film is a fairly incredible work of art, where The Matrix is an incredible work of technology masquerading as art. Sweet Sixteen follows the life of a 15-year-old scottish kid as he’s waiting for his mother to get out of prison. He ends up becoming a herion dealer to try to gain his mother’s love. It’s fairly bleak. The actor who plays the boy, Martin Compston, is amazing, all of the actors are actually. All totally believable.
The scottish accent is extremely aggressive so it’s screened with sub-titles which you’ll need (unless you’re scottish I suppose). permanent link to this post
This is coming from a fairly serious sci-fi geek, but, the Loach film is a fairly incredible work of art, where The Matrix is an incredible work of technology masquerading as art. Sweet Sixteen follows the life of a 15-year-old scottish kid as he’s waiting for his mother to get out of prison. He ends up becoming a herion dealer to try to gain his mother’s love. It’s fairly bleak. The actor who plays the boy, Martin Compston, is amazing, all of the actors are actually. All totally believable.
The scottish accent is extremely aggressive so it’s screened with sub-titles which you’ll need (unless you’re scottish I suppose). permanent link to this post
May 18, 2003
Advanced Dungeons and Dragons
posted at 23:21 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
WOW! Talk about a hardcore nostalgia kick, if you’re a male geek in the late 20s - 30s age range, I’m sure you would be familiar with playing AD & D.
Chris Fahey and Peggy Jameson organized a game last night at their place in red hook and all the über-geeks were in full effect. Chris had pre-rolled some great characters for us and Peggy provided a scrumptious vegetarian buffet of grilled veggies, sauteed chick peas and toasted pita bread.
I have to admit, the geek in me came way out. It was great fun, but I’m like a junky who’s been clean for 20 years—I’m hooked again. Now I’m watching some auctions on eBay, looking to score the original Player’s Handbook and the Fiend Folio. permanent link to this post
Chris Fahey and Peggy Jameson organized a game last night at their place in red hook and all the über-geeks were in full effect. Chris had pre-rolled some great characters for us and Peggy provided a scrumptious vegetarian buffet of grilled veggies, sauteed chick peas and toasted pita bread.
I have to admit, the geek in me came way out. It was great fun, but I’m like a junky who’s been clean for 20 years—I’m hooked again. Now I’m watching some auctions on eBay, looking to score the original Player’s Handbook and the Fiend Folio. permanent link to this post
May 14, 2003
Way To Fuckin’ Busy
posted at 17:50 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
It’s my blog, I’ll use profanity if I want to.
Things are hitting a head at work and, as I state in the title of this post, I’m way to fuckin’ busy. Usually, I’m reading my web sites, posting interesting things here, keeping up with the lists, that has all been disappeared this week.
Seeing The Matrix Reloaded tonight though, yeehaw. permanent link to this post
Things are hitting a head at work and, as I state in the title of this post, I’m way to fuckin’ busy. Usually, I’m reading my web sites, posting interesting things here, keeping up with the lists, that has all been disappeared this week.
Seeing The Matrix Reloaded tonight though, yeehaw. permanent link to this post
May 12, 2003
New Art Idea
posted at 17:43 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
And this one looks like it really will be fabricated.
First, unfortunately, due to variables outside of our control, we won’t be able to wall in Rome gallery like we were hoping to do. Our plan was to wall in the entire gallery with plywood, like a construction barricade, then curate a show of artist flyers to wheatpaste to our new plywood wall. It’s a drag, but, what are ya gonna do? There were problems with the landlord. Williamsburg is definitely not what it used to be. No big deal.
We came up with a some good replacement ideas though. The one we’re leaning towards has to do with taking the iconic gallery announcement postcard and turning that into art itself. I won’t go into details yet, but a novelty-sized (as Letterman would say) postcard, playing with scale and location, and circular logic all are part of it.
Making the postcard into art isn’t new for MTAA however. For a solo show we did back in ‘00 we treated the postcard like an object d’art. In that show we took the postcard and made a painting out of it. People could also turn in their postcards for free ‘customized’ beers at the opening. We were emphatic that the beer was NOT art, but people treated it that way anyway. I think they just liked the idea that they were gettin’ free art (or free beer, can’t decide). permanent link to this post
First, unfortunately, due to variables outside of our control, we won’t be able to wall in Rome gallery like we were hoping to do. Our plan was to wall in the entire gallery with plywood, like a construction barricade, then curate a show of artist flyers to wheatpaste to our new plywood wall. It’s a drag, but, what are ya gonna do? There were problems with the landlord. Williamsburg is definitely not what it used to be. No big deal.
We came up with a some good replacement ideas though. The one we’re leaning towards has to do with taking the iconic gallery announcement postcard and turning that into art itself. I won’t go into details yet, but a novelty-sized (as Letterman would say) postcard, playing with scale and location, and circular logic all are part of it.
Making the postcard into art isn’t new for MTAA however. For a solo show we did back in ‘00 we treated the postcard like an object d’art. In that show we took the postcard and made a painting out of it. People could also turn in their postcards for free ‘customized’ beers at the opening. We were emphatic that the beer was NOT art, but people treated it that way anyway. I think they just liked the idea that they were gettin’ free art (or free beer, can’t decide). permanent link to this post
May 10, 2003
More on the Over Media lifestyle
posted at 09:47 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Person A at an opening last night - Hey, M. River, saw your Blog. Very funny, I read it for, like, 2 hours. How do you find the time to do that?
Person B at a bar on hearing about what Person A said. - Blogs…who has time to read a Blog? When you can read a Blog sitting on a toilet…
Plan for art project - Bathroom Blog Install permanent link to this post
Person B at a bar on hearing about what Person A said. - Blogs…who has time to read a Blog? When you can read a Blog sitting on a toilet…
Plan for art project - Bathroom Blog Install permanent link to this post
May 09, 2003
To Much Media?
posted at 21:34 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Hell yes.
I can’t get to all my media. I know, I know, many people have much more pressing problems then not being able to consume all the media in their lives, but this is definitely a new and contemporary concern.
It’s impossible for me to work full-time, freelance, keep my studio practice current and keep up with my media. I have to many bookmarked web sites unvisited, playstation2 games unplayed, unread books on my palm, unread books on my table, unread magazines both offline and on, filtered email lists un-browsed, TV shows missed, openings skipped, panel discussions avoided, news to catch up on, trailers un-downloaded, movies unseen (catch ‘em on DVD), DVDs gathering dust, MP3s unplayed, CDs stuck in a drawer, and radio shows neglected.
Does anyone have time to experience all this stuff? I certainly don’t.
It’s not like it’s recreation either. I’m an artist/designer, working on the web with new technologies and I NEED to keep abreast of this stuff, practice due diligence regarding the mediascape. How am I supposed to make work involving this stuff if I’m not up-to-date? bah! permanent link to this post
I can’t get to all my media. I know, I know, many people have much more pressing problems then not being able to consume all the media in their lives, but this is definitely a new and contemporary concern.
It’s impossible for me to work full-time, freelance, keep my studio practice current and keep up with my media. I have to many bookmarked web sites unvisited, playstation2 games unplayed, unread books on my palm, unread books on my table, unread magazines both offline and on, filtered email lists un-browsed, TV shows missed, openings skipped, panel discussions avoided, news to catch up on, trailers un-downloaded, movies unseen (catch ‘em on DVD), DVDs gathering dust, MP3s unplayed, CDs stuck in a drawer, and radio shows neglected.
Does anyone have time to experience all this stuff? I certainly don’t.
It’s not like it’s recreation either. I’m an artist/designer, working on the web with new technologies and I NEED to keep abreast of this stuff, practice due diligence regarding the mediascape. How am I supposed to make work involving this stuff if I’m not up-to-date? bah! permanent link to this post
May 06, 2003
WEBSITE UNSEEN OPPORTUNITY RE-OPENED FOR A LIMITED TIME">WEBSITE UNSEEN OPPORTUNITY RE-OPENED FOR A LIMITED TIME
posted at 22:56 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
MTAA bored, fat, drunk and out of the loop make a desperate ploy for the net art audience’s ATTENTION!
WILL THESE SENSATIONALIST TACTICS WORK?
We sure hope so.
~please, read on~
On August 16, 1999 MTAA launched their online project “Website Unseen”. The project offered one hundred titles for art web sites that MTAA promised to build for $US 100.00 per website. On August 06, 2001, after 15 commissions resulting from the original “Website Unseen” opportunity, MTAA withdrew the offer. Since the close, one new site has been commissioned by special agreement. This brings the total number of completed “Website Unseen” commissions to sixteen.
To celebrate the Fourth Anniversary of “Website Unseen,” MTAA is offering one more project for sale under the “classic offer”, that is, it’ll only cost you one hundred bucks.
If you’re interested in purchasing one of the “Website Unseen Titles”, please consult the “Website Unseen Title List” to pick your title and then contact .
MTAA will complete only one title under this new offer. How will we decide who to choose from the overwhelming response we’re anticipating? We won’t divulge the process but each petition will be sufficiently vetted, you have our assurance.
We’ll contact our new patron before June 15th and launch the title on August 16, 2003, the Four Year Anniversary of “Website Unseen”. permanent link to this post
WILL THESE SENSATIONALIST TACTICS WORK?
We sure hope so.
~please, read on~
On August 16, 1999 MTAA launched their online project “Website Unseen”. The project offered one hundred titles for art web sites that MTAA promised to build for $US 100.00 per website. On August 06, 2001, after 15 commissions resulting from the original “Website Unseen” opportunity, MTAA withdrew the offer. Since the close, one new site has been commissioned by special agreement. This brings the total number of completed “Website Unseen” commissions to sixteen.
To celebrate the Fourth Anniversary of “Website Unseen,” MTAA is offering one more project for sale under the “classic offer”, that is, it’ll only cost you one hundred bucks.
If you’re interested in purchasing one of the “Website Unseen Titles”, please consult the “Website Unseen Title List” to pick your title and then contact .
MTAA will complete only one title under this new offer. How will we decide who to choose from the overwhelming response we’re anticipating? We won’t divulge the process but each petition will be sufficiently vetted, you have our assurance.
We’ll contact our new patron before June 15th and launch the title on August 16, 2003, the Four Year Anniversary of “Website Unseen”. permanent link to this post
May 05, 2003
Summer Shows
posted at 16:30 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
So, MTAA haven’t been all that busy so far this year. But it seems that that may be about to change. It looks as if we’re going to do two summer installations, one at Rome Arts and one at 31Grand. Both are galleries in Williamsburg, Brooklyn only blocks away from my home.
We’re also planning to continue a series that seems to be developing in our work which could be called the ‘Walled’ series. The first in this series would be In Preparation For The Over-Running Of White Columns By Hordes of Bloodthirsty Barbarians (AKA Bunker Flood). I won’t go into the details yet, but the two installations we’re planning take a similar strategy.
We’ll post more details on time and place when we have them. permanent link to this post
We’re also planning to continue a series that seems to be developing in our work which could be called the ‘Walled’ series. The first in this series would be In Preparation For The Over-Running Of White Columns By Hordes of Bloodthirsty Barbarians (AKA Bunker Flood). I won’t go into the details yet, but the two installations we’re planning take a similar strategy.
We’ll post more details on time and place when we have them. permanent link to this post
May 02, 2003
window.opener
posted at 18:10 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/geek
That’s what I learned today.
If you want to reference the main browser window from a pop-up window via javascript you use
I needed to do it at work and couldn’t remember how to do it. Interestingly enough, if you use
Now you too can reference the main browser window from a pop-up window via javascript. If you feel like leaving comments on why you might want to do this, feel free. permanent link to this post
If you want to reference the main browser window from a pop-up window via javascript you use
window.opener. I know, I know, all you code monkeys out there are like, "of course you doofus!" but I’m no javascript master so bite me.
I needed to do it at work and couldn’t remember how to do it. Interestingly enough, if you use
target="main" in an anchor tag (after naming the main window via javascript window.name="main") then MSIE Windows and Mac will load the HREF in that main window. But Gecko browsers don’t seem to get it (at least not Mozilla 1.0/Windows). What works is onclick="window.opener.¬
location.href='yerhref';". That seems to work in everything I tested: Safari, Mac IE 5.2, WinIE 6, Moz 1.0. I don’t test in NS 4 as much as I should. I think in this case I will however.
Now you too can reference the main browser window from a pop-up window via javascript. If you feel like leaving comments on why you might want to do this, feel free. permanent link to this post
Apr 30, 2003
Matisse vs. Picasso vs. Spring
posted at 20:41 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Spring. I love it.
The MOMA, Queens invited all NYC museum staff for a private afternoon view of the Matisse Picasso show today. So, like many of my fellow good hard working museum stiffs on this fine spring day, I played hooky and went.
Now, if you think going to a museum blockbuster with your average art viewing crowd is odd, just think about how the vibe was with a mass of people who mount shows for a living. Yes, I spent some of my time in a roomful of the classics of modern art looking at how they jacked the stud walls into the ceilings. I saw a couple from another museum debate a framing choice on a small Picasso for at least 10 min. Museum geeks. I love them.
Oh, IMO, Picasso. Hands down.
And now, for the 3 people who read this site…the mtaaRR blog beats the world press and reports that the Gugg. officially signed with the Brazilian government this morning to build a museum. You read it here first. permanent link to this post
The MOMA, Queens invited all NYC museum staff for a private afternoon view of the Matisse Picasso show today. So, like many of my fellow good hard working museum stiffs on this fine spring day, I played hooky and went.
Now, if you think going to a museum blockbuster with your average art viewing crowd is odd, just think about how the vibe was with a mass of people who mount shows for a living. Yes, I spent some of my time in a roomful of the classics of modern art looking at how they jacked the stud walls into the ceilings. I saw a couple from another museum debate a framing choice on a small Picasso for at least 10 min. Museum geeks. I love them.
Oh, IMO, Picasso. Hands down.
And now, for the 3 people who read this site…the mtaaRR blog beats the world press and reports that the Gugg. officially signed with the Brazilian government this morning to build a museum. You read it here first. permanent link to this post
Damn
posted at 17:30 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/politics
MTAA DOES suck.
They’ve been telling us that for years and years but we wouldn’t listen. Now I understand that they were right all along.
If two guys can’t keep this little web log going we must SUCK!
But then again, I could just post all the little meanderings of my online time. Here’s things that made me angry at the Bush Admin today:
Robert Scheer in Salon
Maureen Dowd in the NYTimes
And of course, Joe Conason always gets me riled up.
What is wrong with America? We can’t understand that no matter how many Iraqis (or anyone else for that matter) go free, it’s not permissable to build our foreign policy on lies?
Let the hair-pulling commence. permanent link to this post
They’ve been telling us that for years and years but we wouldn’t listen. Now I understand that they were right all along.
If two guys can’t keep this little web log going we must SUCK!
But then again, I could just post all the little meanderings of my online time. Here’s things that made me angry at the Bush Admin today:
Robert Scheer in Salon
Maureen Dowd in the NYTimes
And of course, Joe Conason always gets me riled up.
What is wrong with America? We can’t understand that no matter how many Iraqis (or anyone else for that matter) go free, it’s not permissable to build our foreign policy on lies?
Let the hair-pulling commence. permanent link to this post
Apr 27, 2003
Open Beer for URl Swap
posted at 16:53 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Openly Swapping
posted at 10:41 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Yep, went to the Open Swap yesterday at the New School and all the art/cult geeks were in full effect.
First, I helped M.River move some things to his new apartment in Greenpoint, Bklyn. Then, went home and picked up my backup drive and my laptop (a crappy Dell) and headed over.
It was lots of fun. There was a speedy wireless network, and lots of Mac iBooks and Powerbooks. It was nice to be in a land of Macs and it made me regret once again that my laptop is Windows.
Andrew Andrew DJ’d the event. I see one of the Andrews on the train all the time. Once he asked me about my pda/phone. Now they both have one. Geeks.
I got some PDFs of Malcolm Gladwell articles from the New Yorker from Carol Stakenas. I got some MP3s from Cory Arcangel and Alex Galloway. I shared almost every piece of digital bit that I own as I brought my main backup drive. I copied lots of stuff to Carol’s iBook and starting the webserver to share with others. Macs rock. One can literally start-up apache and be serving files in about 10 seconds. I also just plugged the firewire drive into whichever Mac wanted some stuff.
The most interesting thing was Galloway’s mobile wireless video sniffer. It’s an X10 video receiver hooked up to a little LCD screen and powered with a big 12-volt battery. He says he got the idea from 2600. Here’s some pics of him putting it together.
I took a bunch more photos but I deleted them from my camera. I downloaded them to Carol’s iBook though. She has them. permanent link to this post
First, I helped M.River move some things to his new apartment in Greenpoint, Bklyn. Then, went home and picked up my backup drive and my laptop (a crappy Dell) and headed over.
It was lots of fun. There was a speedy wireless network, and lots of Mac iBooks and Powerbooks. It was nice to be in a land of Macs and it made me regret once again that my laptop is Windows.
Andrew Andrew DJ’d the event. I see one of the Andrews on the train all the time. Once he asked me about my pda/phone. Now they both have one. Geeks.
I got some PDFs of Malcolm Gladwell articles from the New Yorker from Carol Stakenas. I got some MP3s from Cory Arcangel and Alex Galloway. I shared almost every piece of digital bit that I own as I brought my main backup drive. I copied lots of stuff to Carol’s iBook and starting the webserver to share with others. Macs rock. One can literally start-up apache and be serving files in about 10 seconds. I also just plugged the firewire drive into whichever Mac wanted some stuff.
The most interesting thing was Galloway’s mobile wireless video sniffer. It’s an X10 video receiver hooked up to a little LCD screen and powered with a big 12-volt battery. He says he got the idea from 2600. Here’s some pics of him putting it together.
I took a bunch more photos but I deleted them from my camera. I downloaded them to Carol’s iBook though. She has them. permanent link to this post
Apr 25, 2003
More New Art Ideas
posted at 09:15 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Installation Of Convenience (AKA The Dog Ate Our Artwork)
A process piece, the artists construct an artwork out of things which they find at the closest 24 Hour deli or convenience store. All materials for the artwork are obtained and the artwork is created between 00:01 and 12:01 hours on the day of the opening.
Liberty, Fraternity, Community
A series of historical paintings in the neo-classical style depicting great moments in Smurf history. These ‘paintings’ could be done in oil or as digital images. permanent link to this post
A process piece, the artists construct an artwork out of things which they find at the closest 24 Hour deli or convenience store. All materials for the artwork are obtained and the artwork is created between 00:01 and 12:01 hours on the day of the opening.
Liberty, Fraternity, Community
A series of historical paintings in the neo-classical style depicting great moments in Smurf history. These ‘paintings’ could be done in oil or as digital images. permanent link to this post
Apr 23, 2003
03 spring shows
posted at 22:10 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Hey! MTAA are in some new online shows this spring. This is good cuz our resume 03 is kinda thin…
M. River steps into the net art open 2003 @ irishmuseumofmodernart
and Angela Forster calls The Webpage for Planned Self-Obsolescence semiotically powerful, simple, communicative, purposeful and accurate for the digital salvage show @ Perspective House permanent link to this post
M. River steps into the net art open 2003 @ irishmuseumofmodernart
and Angela Forster calls The Webpage for Planned Self-Obsolescence semiotically powerful, simple, communicative, purposeful and accurate for the digital salvage show @ Perspective House permanent link to this post
Apr 22, 2003
Net Art NYC April 20, 21, 2003
posted at 14:27 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
Lots of activity this week in the NYC net art scene.
There are some more things happening this week other than the one’s I’m covering so if anyone wants to leave the times and dates in the comments please feel free. There is an opening for the Digital Salon at the World Financial Center tonight and an opening on Wednesday launching EAI projects by Tony Martin, Torsten Burns, and Darrin Martin (MTAA showed with these guys at the Eyebeam AIR show).
Mouchette’s show at Postmasters was fun. There was a big inflatable environment which contained Mouchette and people cued up for a chance to go inside and talk with (what turned out to be) him. He was a very polite, fairly young frenchman who took our picture after we talked for a few minutes.
Pics of Mouchette event at Postmasters
Jodi’s INSTALL.EXE rocks the house. They managed to fill Eyebeam’s huge space comfortably with the big main space reserved for 4 large projections of what Cory Arcangel dubbed “desktop improvisation”. MTAA had a close relationship to the show as M.River was hired to oversee the construction and installation of the work and ended up working with JOan Heemskerk and DIrk Paesmans on the show.
There are no pics of Joan Heemskerk in my little photo documentation because she was unfortunately not feeling well and was at the opening only a short time.
Here are some photos (I’m a dork and didn’t take any photos of the actual work, just the people). permanent link to this post
There are some more things happening this week other than the one’s I’m covering so if anyone wants to leave the times and dates in the comments please feel free. There is an opening for the Digital Salon at the World Financial Center tonight and an opening on Wednesday launching EAI projects by Tony Martin, Torsten Burns, and Darrin Martin (MTAA showed with these guys at the Eyebeam AIR show).
Mouchette’s show at Postmasters was fun. There was a big inflatable environment which contained Mouchette and people cued up for a chance to go inside and talk with (what turned out to be) him. He was a very polite, fairly young frenchman who took our picture after we talked for a few minutes.
Pics of Mouchette event at Postmasters
Jodi’s INSTALL.EXE rocks the house. They managed to fill Eyebeam’s huge space comfortably with the big main space reserved for 4 large projections of what Cory Arcangel dubbed “desktop improvisation”. MTAA had a close relationship to the show as M.River was hired to oversee the construction and installation of the work and ended up working with JOan Heemskerk and DIrk Paesmans on the show.
There are no pics of Joan Heemskerk in my little photo documentation because she was unfortunately not feeling well and was at the opening only a short time.
Here are some photos (I’m a dork and didn’t take any photos of the actual work, just the people). permanent link to this post
Apr 19, 2003
Obituary For An Artwork
posted at 12:55 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
On December 10, 2002 an automated net artwork by MTAA and P.Erl (AKA Alex Galloway) entitled onKawaraUpdate ceased to live. The work, created as a splash page for Rhizome.org, was launched on April 27, 2001. During its brief life, the onKawaraUpdate spawned a new web page each day mimicking the aesthetic and process of conceptual artist On Kawara’s famous Date Paintings. Each new page also culled news from online sources. The artwork was intended to keep creating new web pages daily until the end of time. You may view the deceased artwork here: onKawaraUpdate
According to the T.Whid of MTAA, “the work automated seminal process art as a comment on our increasingly automated, mediated, and computer-processed present.” Ironically, the work died long before Mr. Kawara who has been making his Date Paintings for almost 40 years.
The project seemed to be in ill health from its birth. In its first month of life the onKarwaraUpdate began to generate gibberish headlines but was brought back to health by P.Erl. Over the next year or so P.Erl was called in to stabilize the project on several occasions. Sadly, the artwork never seemed to fully recover.
Finally on April 18, 2003, M.River of MTAA found the work paused on the December date and pronounced it dead on the art scene.
“It’s a tragic loss for us,” lamented T.Whid of MTAA “You bring a small artwork into the world and you think it will be around to grow and thrive, but now, it’s just gone.”
A private cremation will be held at the MTAA Home Office in Brooklyn this Sunday afternoon. In lieu of flowers, the artists request donations to the onKawaraUpdate Memorial Fund. Contact MTAA to find out how to contribute to this fund which will be dedicated to helping struggling and underfunded net artworks. permanent link to this post
According to the T.Whid of MTAA, “the work automated seminal process art as a comment on our increasingly automated, mediated, and computer-processed present.” Ironically, the work died long before Mr. Kawara who has been making his Date Paintings for almost 40 years.
The project seemed to be in ill health from its birth. In its first month of life the onKarwaraUpdate began to generate gibberish headlines but was brought back to health by P.Erl. Over the next year or so P.Erl was called in to stabilize the project on several occasions. Sadly, the artwork never seemed to fully recover.
Finally on April 18, 2003, M.River of MTAA found the work paused on the December date and pronounced it dead on the art scene.
“It’s a tragic loss for us,” lamented T.Whid of MTAA “You bring a small artwork into the world and you think it will be around to grow and thrive, but now, it’s just gone.”
A private cremation will be held at the MTAA Home Office in Brooklyn this Sunday afternoon. In lieu of flowers, the artists request donations to the onKawaraUpdate Memorial Fund. Contact MTAA to find out how to contribute to this fund which will be dedicated to helping struggling and underfunded net artworks. permanent link to this post
New Images
posted at 12:43 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
The three of you may have noticed that there are rotating images in the main head area of this section of MTEWW.
For a while the image was of a terrorist warning that we found in a subway car which said, “If you see something, say something.” We felt that was good advice not only for informing on your fellow citizens, but generally, it’s good advice. YES! SAY SOMETHING! SPEAK YOUR MIND! SAY WHAT YOU FEEL! VOICE YOUR OPINIONS! Don’t let our flag-wrapped, war mongering TV networks and the patriotically-correct thugs rot your mind or intimidate you.
Anyway, the new image is from the Boulder concert we attended a couple weeks back. Somehow it seems to relevant. permanent link to this post
For a while the image was of a terrorist warning that we found in a subway car which said, “If you see something, say something.” We felt that was good advice not only for informing on your fellow citizens, but generally, it’s good advice. YES! SAY SOMETHING! SPEAK YOUR MIND! SAY WHAT YOU FEEL! VOICE YOUR OPINIONS! Don’t let our flag-wrapped, war mongering TV networks and the patriotically-correct thugs rot your mind or intimidate you.
Anyway, the new image is from the Boulder concert we attended a couple weeks back. Somehow it seems to relevant. permanent link to this post
Apr 16, 2003
Steve Mumford
posted at 21:47 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
An artist friend of mine named Steve Mumford has taken it upon himself to attempt to get into Iraq now at the tail end of the war. He left for Kuwait Saturday April 12, 2003 and from there will try to gain safe passage to Baghdad. Before leaving he tried to hook-up with a media outlet so as to obtain a press pass but was unsuccessful. I guess he’s going to hustle his way in from Kuwait.
I’m hoping he’s successful in getting into Baghdad. It’s a dangerous trip. But it would be nice to have some images created by an individual come out of this war as opposed to all the mass media and journalistic images which are edited and censored for the public. I’m interested in what Steve can bring to whatever he may encounter over there.
[update: 21:46] Steve made it to Basra according to his wife Inka. permanent link to this post
I’m hoping he’s successful in getting into Baghdad. It’s a dangerous trip. But it would be nice to have some images created by an individual come out of this war as opposed to all the mass media and journalistic images which are edited and censored for the public. I’m interested in what Steve can bring to whatever he may encounter over there.
[update: 21:46] Steve made it to Basra according to his wife Inka. permanent link to this post
Apr 15, 2003
Happenings In The NYC Net Art Scene
posted at 17:06 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
The end of April seems to be THE time to get yer net art on in NYC this spring.
First, this Sunday (yes Easter for you Christians out there) Mouchette will reveal his/her/their identity and give away the Mouchette.org web site to an artist to take over. This is all happening at Postmasters between 3PM and 5PM on Sunday April 20, 2003.
Then, just two days later, INSTALL.EXE by JODI opens at Eyebeam.
For those of you who ain’t hep, JODI are the probably the most well-known net artists around. Here’s a little summary. permanent link to this post
First, this Sunday (yes Easter for you Christians out there) Mouchette will reveal his/her/their identity and give away the Mouchette.org web site to an artist to take over. This is all happening at Postmasters between 3PM and 5PM on Sunday April 20, 2003.
Then, just two days later, INSTALL.EXE by JODI opens at Eyebeam.
For those of you who ain’t hep, JODI are the probably the most well-known net artists around. Here’s a little summary. permanent link to this post
Apr 12, 2003
Thin, Pink, Spicy
posted at 22:44 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Had dinner with Mouchette this evening. Yeah, that Mouchette.
All she eats is thinly sliced pickled ginger—you know, the kind you get with sushi. She says it’s thin, pink, and spicy. That’s why she likes it.
She drank about a gallon of sake with it too. That little girl can REALLY put it away. permanent link to this post
All she eats is thinly sliced pickled ginger—you know, the kind you get with sushi. She says it’s thin, pink, and spicy. That’s why she likes it.
She drank about a gallon of sake with it too. That little girl can REALLY put it away. permanent link to this post
TAXES.
posted at 10:29 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
I hate preparing my income taxes.
Surprised? Of course you’re not.
I made almost $1000 off of art this year which includes a couple of commissions, writing and speaking fees. That’s not much money, but M.River and I split it in half. <There was more here but it was edited for tax reasons<>.
I taught a class at City College for a semester and made a whopping $2144 off of that. Teachers are really underpaid.
It’s a damn good thing I have a day job or I wouldn’t be able to have my ultra-hip Williamsburg loft. My digital addiction couldn’t be fed either. That would suck. But then, so does my day job. permanent link to this post
Surprised? Of course you’re not.
I made almost $1000 off of art this year which includes a couple of commissions, writing and speaking fees. That’s not much money, but M.River and I split it in half. <There was more here but it was edited for tax reasons<>.
I taught a class at City College for a semester and made a whopping $2144 off of that. Teachers are really underpaid.
It’s a damn good thing I have a day job or I wouldn’t be able to have my ultra-hip Williamsburg loft. My digital addiction couldn’t be fed either. That would suck. But then, so does my day job. permanent link to this post
Apr 08, 2003
local boy makes good
posted at 20:06 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
when i was young in columbus ohio, just out of high school, i hung out at a night club called crazy mamas. the music at the club each night drifted between punk, funk and the rolling stones. on saturday nights, in a back room about size of a mini van, some guy would dance around playing a keyboard and sampler while signing songs about…well, i just remember the songs being…weird. weird in general and definitely weird for columbus. the one man band was called evolution control committee. i always felt sorry for him. no one could clear a room of happy beer drinking locals like ecc.
much to my amazement, ecc went on to become one of the grandfathers of mash and it looks like CJ Pinch-Rolla from ECC has just won the coveted 2003 BEIGE cassette jockey championship. permanent link to this post
much to my amazement, ecc went on to become one of the grandfathers of mash and it looks like CJ Pinch-Rolla from ECC has just won the coveted 2003 BEIGE cassette jockey championship. permanent link to this post
Apr 06, 2003
Dia History in NYTime’s Mag
posted at 16:20 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
It was nice to see an art story on the cover of the NYTime’s Magazine this week though we’re all very troubled about the war and the Bush administration’s imperial ambitions (see this article for a great overview: washington monthly article).
The NYTime’s article, The Dia Generation, covers the history of The Dia Center from it’s inception in the early 70s to the opening of a major new museum in upstate NY, Dia: Beacon, which focuses on 60s/70s minimalism, conceptualism, Earth Art and etc.
The article was a bit dry with the history of the infighting and whatnot, but what’s interesting is how the early Dia acted like Renaissance patrons.
from the article: ‘Friedrich compared what he was doing — now with his wife’s fortune — to the Medicis. ”Dia didn’t tap something new; it tapped something old,” he said at the time. ”Our values are as powerful as those in the Renaissance.” For emphasis, he added that Dan Flavin ”is as important as Michelangelo.”’ They handpicked a few artists and supported them extravagantly for some years giving them everything they needed to create work with no constraints of economy, time, or space.
I wonder what our contemporary net, web, and new media artists could do with the money, time, and space that were given to the Dia’s lucky chosen few. permanent link to this post
The NYTime’s article, The Dia Generation, covers the history of The Dia Center from it’s inception in the early 70s to the opening of a major new museum in upstate NY, Dia: Beacon, which focuses on 60s/70s minimalism, conceptualism, Earth Art and etc.
The article was a bit dry with the history of the infighting and whatnot, but what’s interesting is how the early Dia acted like Renaissance patrons.
from the article: ‘Friedrich compared what he was doing — now with his wife’s fortune — to the Medicis. ”Dia didn’t tap something new; it tapped something old,” he said at the time. ”Our values are as powerful as those in the Renaissance.” For emphasis, he added that Dan Flavin ”is as important as Michelangelo.”’ They handpicked a few artists and supported them extravagantly for some years giving them everything they needed to create work with no constraints of economy, time, or space.
I wonder what our contemporary net, web, and new media artists could do with the money, time, and space that were given to the Dia’s lucky chosen few. permanent link to this post
Forget Your Troubles and ROCK!!!
posted at 16:16 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
Attended the book release party for “Sound of The Beast” last night at Club Luxx in my home neighborhood of Williamsburg. “Sound of The Beast” is a history of Heavy Metal written by Ian Christie. Boulder rocked the house to the ground. Check out the action pics here.
permanent link to this post
Apr 04, 2003
His Gun Is So Sweet!
posted at 16:56 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
This by way of Blackhawk (big props) over on The Thing’s Thingist.
I wish I was twisted enough to conjure things LIKE THIS up, but unfortunately I’m not. I wonder if this is how the Marine’s looked as they stormed Baghdad’s airport. I’m thinking yes.
While I was in Ohio last week visiting my family the news came out about the seven women and children killed at an army checkpoint in Iraq. My 80-something grandmother complained, “Why were they driving around out there?” inferring that if they had been more careful they’d be less dead.
It’s frightening to see the bloodthirsty, militaristic attitude of the Bush Administration invading banal bric-a-brac and Grandma’s kitchens. permanent link to this post
I wish I was twisted enough to conjure things LIKE THIS up, but unfortunately I’m not. I wonder if this is how the Marine’s looked as they stormed Baghdad’s airport. I’m thinking yes.
While I was in Ohio last week visiting my family the news came out about the seven women and children killed at an army checkpoint in Iraq. My 80-something grandmother complained, “Why were they driving around out there?” inferring that if they had been more careful they’d be less dead.
It’s frightening to see the bloodthirsty, militaristic attitude of the Bush Administration invading banal bric-a-brac and Grandma’s kitchens. permanent link to this post
Perle resigns
posted at 15:30 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/politics
This is old news (from 3/28/03) but as I had a post regarding it in this space it makes sense that I update the info.
Richard Perle has resigned as the chairman of the Pentagon Defense Policy Board, but he will remain a member of the board.
Here’s an article that sums it up concisely.
Seems like a bit of shuffling in an attempt to take the heat off. Things will be more or less status quo in that little neighborhood of the high, mighty, and willing to peddle their public positions.
BTW, I’ve added a new ‘politics’ category to the twhid section of this space. Just trying to keep things neat. permanent link to this post
Richard Perle has resigned as the chairman of the Pentagon Defense Policy Board, but he will remain a member of the board.
Here’s an article that sums it up concisely.
Seems like a bit of shuffling in an attempt to take the heat off. Things will be more or less status quo in that little neighborhood of the high, mighty, and willing to peddle their public positions.
BTW, I’ve added a new ‘politics’ category to the twhid section of this space. Just trying to keep things neat. permanent link to this post
You saw/heard it here first
posted at 15:04 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Maybe I’ll get in trouble for this.
But then, maybe I won’t.
It doesn’t really matter as no one reads this thing anyway.
Am I the Liz Smith of net art? That would be pathetic.
These links could disappear tho, let me know if that’s what you would like to happen. permanent link to this post
But then, maybe I won’t.
It doesn’t really matter as no one reads this thing anyway.
Am I the Liz Smith of net art? That would be pathetic.
These links could disappear tho, let me know if that’s what you would like to happen. permanent link to this post
Apr 01, 2003
looking at an old drawing
posted at 21:40 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
found this test in my computer today. looks like i was right…
today is April 30, 1999. this drawing that you are looking at (sometime, somewhere, that i can not see) was made around 5 or 6 years ago. it was made at a time when i was new to the city and for some reason stopped making conceptual work. today is the first time i’ve seen it in years. there is a group of drawings (around 50 or so) from this time. i try not to think about them. they are from a part of my life when i lost track. it was a time of being adrift. the real problem is this - looking at the work (as i type these words into my computer) i am unable to understand myself. it is my fear that i will look back at this text in some future moment and experience the same emotion. permanent link to this post
today is April 30, 1999. this drawing that you are looking at (sometime, somewhere, that i can not see) was made around 5 or 6 years ago. it was made at a time when i was new to the city and for some reason stopped making conceptual work. today is the first time i’ve seen it in years. there is a group of drawings (around 50 or so) from this time. i try not to think about them. they are from a part of my life when i lost track. it was a time of being adrift. the real problem is this - looking at the work (as i type these words into my computer) i am unable to understand myself. it is my fear that i will look back at this text in some future moment and experience the same emotion. permanent link to this post
Mar 31, 2003
I’m Disconnected
posted at 09:32 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
I’m disconnected from my normal communications systems so updates to this section of the web site are on M.River’s shoulders.
I’ll be back on Friday April 5, 2003. I know all 2 regular readers of this section will be very disappointed. permanent link to this post
I’ll be back on Friday April 5, 2003. I know all 2 regular readers of this section will be very disappointed. permanent link to this post
Mar 26, 2003
new front line
posted at 21:16 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
I changed the front page of Tinjail. It still has the NO WAR stuff but I added a 3 frame thingy at the bottom. It’s great for people with war coverage ADD. Check it.
permanent link to this post
Perle IS the swine
posted at 17:07 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
A great article today by Ariana Huffington on Salon.com which helps to expose Richard Perle for the swine that he is. A few columnists on the left have been taking shots at this punk including Joe Conason of Salon.com and the New York Observer. But it was Seymor Hersh in the New Yorker who started the whole thing.
OH, who is this guy and why should we care? Here’s an interview with him with a concise bio. He’s chairman of the Defense Policy Board which reports to the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy AKA The Defense Department. In short, this Board has a lot to do with why the USA is in Iraq right now. It’s a semi-public board it seems, from their charter, “Individual Defense Policy Board members will be selected by the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy with the approval of the Secretary of Defense. ” Find the charter here. permanent link to this post
OH, who is this guy and why should we care? Here’s an interview with him with a concise bio. He’s chairman of the Defense Policy Board which reports to the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy AKA The Defense Department. In short, this Board has a lot to do with why the USA is in Iraq right now. It’s a semi-public board it seems, from their charter, “Individual Defense Policy Board members will be selected by the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy with the approval of the Secretary of Defense. ” Find the charter here. permanent link to this post
Mar 25, 2003
Shut your mouth
posted at 10:02 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
If this article on Salon doesn’t scare the hell out of you… well, I can’t imagine anyone who wouldn’t be scared and enraged by this report.
click here to read the article
This Bush administration has got to go, hopefully the country will wake up and the Dems will grow a backbone before 2004. A Dem win in 2004 may be our only hope for a return to a sane government which doesn’t rule by fear and demagoguery. permanent link to this post
click here to read the article
This Bush administration has got to go, hopefully the country will wake up and the Dems will grow a backbone before 2004. A Dem win in 2004 may be our only hope for a return to a sane government which doesn’t rule by fear and demagoguery. permanent link to this post
Mar 23, 2003
Anti-war March, March 22, 2003
posted at 10:55 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
M.River, Kate, Colleen Smiley, Alex Galloway and I all met at the main library at 11:30AM.
We headed over to the march around ten ‘til noon.
You can check out the photos here: http://www.mteww.com/antiwar_march_03-22-03/
The march was great, over 200,000 people according to the media. It was fairly uneventful, very mellow. We started off very slowly, it took about two hours to get from 41st to 34th but after Herald Square we were moving at a pretty good rate. We even stopped for pizza on 27th street.
At 14th and Union Square my friends Bill Hallinan and Dawn Winchester joined us (we had lost Kate and Colleen by this point).
At Washington Square Park (the official end of the march) there was some police scuffling, shoving, some people got arrested. We were standing about 10 yards away when it happened but we were in the park, not on the street. People chanted ‘Shame, Shame’ at the cops. It was tense at that point, but most people didn’t really want to get in a confrontation with the police so they started to leave and we did too. permanent link to this post
We headed over to the march around ten ‘til noon.
You can check out the photos here: http://www.mteww.com/antiwar_march_03-22-03/
The march was great, over 200,000 people according to the media. It was fairly uneventful, very mellow. We started off very slowly, it took about two hours to get from 41st to 34th but after Herald Square we were moving at a pretty good rate. We even stopped for pizza on 27th street.
At 14th and Union Square my friends Bill Hallinan and Dawn Winchester joined us (we had lost Kate and Colleen by this point).
At Washington Square Park (the official end of the march) there was some police scuffling, shoving, some people got arrested. We were standing about 10 yards away when it happened but we were in the park, not on the street. People chanted ‘Shame, Shame’ at the cops. It was tense at that point, but most people didn’t really want to get in a confrontation with the police so they started to leave and we did too. permanent link to this post
Mar 19, 2003
NO WAR campaign
posted at 09:39 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
And why MTEWW.com won’t be taking part.
FutureFarmers have replaced their homepage with an anti-war homepage that says simply ‘NO WAR’ with links to resources and other ‘NO WAR’ pages.
I can’t put mteww.com into the campaign because I don’t believe in the ideology behind the message. The <title> of the page reads “NO BLOOD FOR OIL AND PROFIT!!!”, I believe this is an overly simplistic view of our current situation and a dangerous view to espouse. I don’t oppose the war for pacifist or ideological reasons, I oppose it for security reasons. This war is going to make the world a more dangerous place IMO. Also, the simple message of ‘NO WAR’ would lead people to believe that I oppose all wars, but I don’t. Sometimes violence must be met with violence in order to achieve greater aims (WWII being the example that everyone drags out).
So, the FutureFarmer’s ‘NO WAR’ message will not replace mteww.com’s index page, I’m not sure if M.River agrees with me but I maintain mteww.com and I feel I’m allowed to make the decision.
Having said that, don’t forget to join the ANTI-WAR MARCH THIS SATURDAY, MARCH 22ND. If you’re in NYC you can join the march on Bway between 36th and 42nd streets before noon. M.River and I are going to join the funeral bloc which is meeting at the main library (42nd and 5th) and march from there to the main march. permanent link to this post
FutureFarmers have replaced their homepage with an anti-war homepage that says simply ‘NO WAR’ with links to resources and other ‘NO WAR’ pages.
I can’t put mteww.com into the campaign because I don’t believe in the ideology behind the message. The <title> of the page reads “NO BLOOD FOR OIL AND PROFIT!!!”, I believe this is an overly simplistic view of our current situation and a dangerous view to espouse. I don’t oppose the war for pacifist or ideological reasons, I oppose it for security reasons. This war is going to make the world a more dangerous place IMO. Also, the simple message of ‘NO WAR’ would lead people to believe that I oppose all wars, but I don’t. Sometimes violence must be met with violence in order to achieve greater aims (WWII being the example that everyone drags out).
So, the FutureFarmer’s ‘NO WAR’ message will not replace mteww.com’s index page, I’m not sure if M.River agrees with me but I maintain mteww.com and I feel I’m allowed to make the decision.
Having said that, don’t forget to join the ANTI-WAR MARCH THIS SATURDAY, MARCH 22ND. If you’re in NYC you can join the march on Bway between 36th and 42nd streets before noon. M.River and I are going to join the funeral bloc which is meeting at the main library (42nd and 5th) and march from there to the main march. permanent link to this post
Mar 17, 2003
Five Small Videos
posted at 23:07 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
“Five Small Videos About Interruption And Disappearing” is a group of very simple interactive videos that MTAA have created. Check it out.
This project was commissioned by The Alternative Museum but they haven’t announced it yet and word on the street is that other commissions from this group are not yet completed (with some not even started).
So… I guess it’ll be a while before you see any announcements about this from TAM. permanent link to this post
This project was commissioned by The Alternative Museum but they haven’t announced it yet and word on the street is that other commissions from this group are not yet completed (with some not even started).
So… I guess it’ll be a while before you see any announcements about this from TAM. permanent link to this post
Mar 16, 2003
Interview 99
posted at 16:52 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
The following fictional alternative interview is presented as the artist statement in an attempt to explain / demonstrate the working methods of the MTAA. This fiction was written during Hurricane downgraded to Tropical Storm Floydıs landfall in New York on Thursday September 16, 1999. This fiction is set in a warehouse along the East River waterfront of Brooklyn. More specifically, this fiction takes place on the 7th floor of this warehouse at a small kitchen table. The windows in front of this table looks out to the underbelly of the Manhattan bridge. This underbelly frames the perfect view of the New York skyline. It is a sky line that on this day is covered in a constant gray downpour.
(this is the moment the tape player is turned on)
HS - Woooooh…itıs really coming down now…Okay, letıs get started guys…so first.. a very basic question: Are dogs smarter than cats?
TW - Yeah, this one comes up quite a bit for us. Yes, dogs are smarter than cats. That is not just my opinion. It is hard science. It is just the facts.
MR - I have to agree with T Whid. Some people seem to get all upset by this. Weıre not saying that cats are not intelligent animals…I mean some of them are quite clever…but the cold truth is dogs are smarter. I would not say that dogs are better pets…I donıt think is always the case at all…but brain mass to brain mass…you have to give it to the dogs.
HS - Well…you know how I feel about my cats…
TW - Yeah, but we donıt mean it in more brain…higher evolution…humans on the top rung of evolution and your right to BE is the size of your brain kinda way.. but…dogs ARE smarter.
HS - Okay,…okay. So what have you been listening to lately?
MR - Well…as I am writing this interview, I have:I Care Because You Do by AphexTwin pounding in my head phones. God damn it, it hurts. Usually I only write while listening to Mark Eitzel or American Music Club (…truly beautiful and broken stuff over and over and over…) but I thought Iıd give this a try. Originally, when I was jotting down the sketch of this interview during the storm, I was listening to all of the Magnetic Fieldıs 69 Love Songs box set.
TW - Yeah, I think the liner notes for the box set helped get M River focused on this artist statement. The liner notes are a long conversation about the making of 69 Love Songs. It was tapped in restaurant and has a nice off the cuff feel. I think M River is using this as a starting point in this work.
MR - Si, but I have a feeling that the interview in the liner notes is a fact that may have been altered a bit afterwards. This is of course is the opposite… All fake with a little truth tossed in at the end for luck.
HS - Okay, so T Whid. What have you been reading?
TW- Um… I hate to admit this but Iım reading ³The Secret History of UFOıs². But I SWEAR…Iım only doing it to win a argument with the guy in the next cubicle at work. Hey…itıs really starting to come down out there. Maybe we should cut this short and go…
HR - Sure, T Whid, sure. One last question. How is this interview functioning as a artist statement? Or is this just some kinda tongue-in-cheek conceptual cop out?
MR - Letıs begin to answer that with the MTAA motto: Given 1: confusion 2; misunderstanding
TW - The working method of the MTAA states that the MTAA is a performed fiction. It is a fiction that does not strive for the “Spiritual” nor does it presents any symbolic meaning. The meaning, if one may use this word, may be found in ideas like: faith in pop culture, narcissism, anti professionalism, kindness, Artainment and science.
MR - Uh huh,…as well as in the thought of Self being a mailable state.
HS - I donıt buy it … but, if that is your statement, weıll go with it. Thanks for your time.
MR - No, no. Thank you.
(interview stops and tape is turned off)
End note - It rained and rained and the city looked gray. Itıs a week later and I am finishing this at my desk at home. Soon I will send it to T Whid and then to HS. They will read it for the first time. They will edit and add some words. They will do with it as they like. You will read it and wonder why. Artist statement? Apex Twin says;…I care because you do. I just tend to say;…I just donıt care anymore.
I am staring at my monitor and thinking of Hurricane down graded to Tropical Storm Floyd. I am thinking of you. permanent link to this post
(this is the moment the tape player is turned on)
HS - Woooooh…itıs really coming down now…Okay, letıs get started guys…so first.. a very basic question: Are dogs smarter than cats?
TW - Yeah, this one comes up quite a bit for us. Yes, dogs are smarter than cats. That is not just my opinion. It is hard science. It is just the facts.
MR - I have to agree with T Whid. Some people seem to get all upset by this. Weıre not saying that cats are not intelligent animals…I mean some of them are quite clever…but the cold truth is dogs are smarter. I would not say that dogs are better pets…I donıt think is always the case at all…but brain mass to brain mass…you have to give it to the dogs.
HS - Well…you know how I feel about my cats…
TW - Yeah, but we donıt mean it in more brain…higher evolution…humans on the top rung of evolution and your right to BE is the size of your brain kinda way.. but…dogs ARE smarter.
HS - Okay,…okay. So what have you been listening to lately?
MR - Well…as I am writing this interview, I have:I Care Because You Do by AphexTwin pounding in my head phones. God damn it, it hurts. Usually I only write while listening to Mark Eitzel or American Music Club (…truly beautiful and broken stuff over and over and over…) but I thought Iıd give this a try. Originally, when I was jotting down the sketch of this interview during the storm, I was listening to all of the Magnetic Fieldıs 69 Love Songs box set.
TW - Yeah, I think the liner notes for the box set helped get M River focused on this artist statement. The liner notes are a long conversation about the making of 69 Love Songs. It was tapped in restaurant and has a nice off the cuff feel. I think M River is using this as a starting point in this work.
MR - Si, but I have a feeling that the interview in the liner notes is a fact that may have been altered a bit afterwards. This is of course is the opposite… All fake with a little truth tossed in at the end for luck.
HS - Okay, so T Whid. What have you been reading?
TW- Um… I hate to admit this but Iım reading ³The Secret History of UFOıs². But I SWEAR…Iım only doing it to win a argument with the guy in the next cubicle at work. Hey…itıs really starting to come down out there. Maybe we should cut this short and go…
HR - Sure, T Whid, sure. One last question. How is this interview functioning as a artist statement? Or is this just some kinda tongue-in-cheek conceptual cop out?
MR - Letıs begin to answer that with the MTAA motto: Given 1: confusion 2; misunderstanding
TW - The working method of the MTAA states that the MTAA is a performed fiction. It is a fiction that does not strive for the “Spiritual” nor does it presents any symbolic meaning. The meaning, if one may use this word, may be found in ideas like: faith in pop culture, narcissism, anti professionalism, kindness, Artainment and science.
MR - Uh huh,…as well as in the thought of Self being a mailable state.
HS - I donıt buy it … but, if that is your statement, weıll go with it. Thanks for your time.
MR - No, no. Thank you.
(interview stops and tape is turned off)
End note - It rained and rained and the city looked gray. Itıs a week later and I am finishing this at my desk at home. Soon I will send it to T Whid and then to HS. They will read it for the first time. They will edit and add some words. They will do with it as they like. You will read it and wonder why. Artist statement? Apex Twin says;…I care because you do. I just tend to say;…I just donıt care anymore.
I am staring at my monitor and thinking of Hurricane down graded to Tropical Storm Floyd. I am thinking of you. permanent link to this post
Mar 15, 2003
Texas’ Final Meal Requests
posted at 16:29 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
I suppose this site is for the press. But it’s matter-of-fact, banal listings of death row last meal requests and other information pertaining to Texas’ death machine should give the surrealies to any thinking reader.
And remember:
”*The final meal requested may not reflect the actual final meal served.”
Get your chills here: http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/stat/finalmeals.htm permanent link to this post
And remember:
”*The final meal requested may not reflect the actual final meal served.”
Get your chills here: http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/stat/finalmeals.htm permanent link to this post
Mar 13, 2003
Thing Benefit
posted at 14:44 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
The Thing’s benefit was lots of fun the other night and, yes, we took some pix. The only problem with it was that the place was way to small, it was packed! Wolfgang should have found a bigger place or they should have banned all the non-Thing benefitters from the place.
M.River and I started out our evening by having some drinks at openair bar on St. Mark’s Place in the East Village. We then met Doran Golan at his restaurant, La Casalinga (check out a qtvr), and he treated us to a very good pasta dinner with tasty red wine. Highly reccomended if your visiting NYC.
Cabbed it to The Thing benefit at Good World Bar & Grill. The place was already crawling with thingistas including Wolfgangsta himself, Christiane Paul & John Klima, Ricardo Dominquez & Diane Ludin, and Mark Tribe. Everyone looked like they were having fun supporting The Thing. permanent link to this post
M.River and I started out our evening by having some drinks at openair bar on St. Mark’s Place in the East Village. We then met Doran Golan at his restaurant, La Casalinga (check out a qtvr), and he treated us to a very good pasta dinner with tasty red wine. Highly reccomended if your visiting NYC.
Cabbed it to The Thing benefit at Good World Bar & Grill. The place was already crawling with thingistas including Wolfgangsta himself, Christiane Paul & John Klima, Ricardo Dominquez & Diane Ludin, and Mark Tribe. Everyone looked like they were having fun supporting The Thing. permanent link to this post
Mar 10, 2003
New Art Ideas Update
posted at 17:56 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
art idea #1:
So, M.River and I have some new ideas for art which involve sculptural forms meshed with more ‘new media-ish’ video and sound elements. Don’t worry they’ll still be funny and absurd and ridiculous. At least I hope they will. We’re sorta edging into creating a body of work in the vein of Endnode (AKA Printer Tree). We’ve been considering half-jokingly to create a body of work whose aesthetic is bare plywood married with vacuum-formed consumer electronic goods and have a few ideas in that vein. Another idea is a self-portrait that downloads our email from and prints it but then immediately shreds it.
art idea #2:
This is a good one and I can describe it in 3 words (or 4, one’s hyphenated):
Abstract Expressionist Auto-Trace!
This is a good one I think.
art idea #3:
This one is sorta connected to art idea #1, but it might not be in the bare wood/molded plastic series and it can be described in only 2 words:
Gas Huffer!
We’re thinking about getting back into imagery and an image of someone huffing gasoline has particular resonance today we think.
art idea #4:
And of course the NATO idea described below. Send us money now! permanent link to this post
So, M.River and I have some new ideas for art which involve sculptural forms meshed with more ‘new media-ish’ video and sound elements. Don’t worry they’ll still be funny and absurd and ridiculous. At least I hope they will. We’re sorta edging into creating a body of work in the vein of Endnode (AKA Printer Tree). We’ve been considering half-jokingly to create a body of work whose aesthetic is bare plywood married with vacuum-formed consumer electronic goods and have a few ideas in that vein. Another idea is a self-portrait that downloads our email from and prints it but then immediately shreds it.
art idea #2:
This is a good one and I can describe it in 3 words (or 4, one’s hyphenated):
Abstract Expressionist Auto-Trace!
This is a good one I think.
art idea #3:
This one is sorta connected to art idea #1, but it might not be in the bare wood/molded plastic series and it can be described in only 2 words:
Gas Huffer!
We’re thinking about getting back into imagery and an image of someone huffing gasoline has particular resonance today we think.
art idea #4:
And of course the NATO idea described below. Send us money now! permanent link to this post
Mar 09, 2003
New Art To Old (NATO)
posted at 14:21 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
So, by now you have probably seen T.Whid’s candid pictures of our active social life:
Upgrade’s Party
Rhizome’s Party
Barney’s Party
Eyebeam’s Party
You may have asked yourself, "Okay, cool, but is it art?" Well, according to T.Whid, no. Although now with our New Art To Old (NATO) offer, it could be. Here is the offer: 1. Pick an image off of the MTAA Society Pages. 2. Send us a check for 500 USD, and the name of the image you want. 3. We will make you a 20 x 24 inch acrylic on canvas based on the image. Note: 1. Only one painting per image will be made. 2. This is a limited time site unseen offer but trust us, we are very good painters (well… T.Whid is). 3. The painting will be done by either M.River, T.Whid, or M.River and T. Whid. 4. It will take us a month or so for delivery of the painting.
So, that is our NATO offer. Order now before we wise up and change our minds. permanent link to this post
Upgrade’s Party
Rhizome’s Party
Barney’s Party
Eyebeam’s Party
You may have asked yourself, "Okay, cool, but is it art?" Well, according to T.Whid, no. Although now with our New Art To Old (NATO) offer, it could be. Here is the offer: 1. Pick an image off of the MTAA Society Pages. 2. Send us a check for 500 USD, and the name of the image you want. 3. We will make you a 20 x 24 inch acrylic on canvas based on the image. Note: 1. Only one painting per image will be made. 2. This is a limited time site unseen offer but trust us, we are very good painters (well… T.Whid is). 3. The painting will be done by either M.River, T.Whid, or M.River and T. Whid. 4. It will take us a month or so for delivery of the painting.
So, that is our NATO offer. Order now before we wise up and change our minds. permanent link to this post
Eyebeam Kegger
posted at 14:16 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
OH YEAH! Haven’t been to a good KEG party in WEEKS!
Me and M.River got ripped doood. Check it out.
permanent link to this post
Me and M.River got ripped doood. Check it out.
permanent link to this post
Mar 08, 2003
when Google has achieved the net art masterpiece, what are the artists to do?
posted at 23:17 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
[orginally posted to the rhizome raw
list on 11.29.2002]
preface: this little text started out very casually, then grew a bit organically. i attempted to polish, but i’m not a great writer. it now seems to be uncomfortably sitting somewhere btw tossed off email and a serious attempt at commentary. reading this story in the nytimes recently:
"Postcards From Planet Google"
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/28/
technology/circuits/28goog.html
from the article: "AT Google’s squat headquarters off Route 101, visitors sit in the lobby, transfixed by the words scrolling by on the wall behind the receptionist’s desk: animación japonese Harry Potter pensées et poèmes associaço brasileira de normas técnicas.
The projected display, called Live Query, shows updated samples of what people around the world are typing into Google’s search engine. The terms scroll by in English, Chinese, Spanish, Swedish, Japanese, Korean, French, Dutch, Italian - any of the 86 languages that Google tracks.
Stare at Live Query long enough, and you feel that you are watching the collective consciousness of the world stream by. “
this article, like many tech-related articles i read, got me thinking about the two worlds in which many of us on this list exist: the worlds of art and technology. how they’re different. how they’re the same. how are their functions evolving?
in a world where a technology company can display ‘the collective consciousness of the world’(1) as a backdrop to their reception desk, essentially a marketing ploy for their services; when they can collect this data, sit on it and ruminate on how to ‘monetize’ it; when it takes a fully capitalized, profit-driven corporation employing some of the brightest engineers around to achieve such fascinating data then what is left for the artist to do?
it used to be that it was the artist’s job to capture the ‘collective consciousness’ either through intuition, genius, or dumb-luck. the artists were the ones who told humans what humans were thinking about, obsessing over, loving, hating. we no longer need intuition, genius or even dumb-luck. we’ve got hard data and more is coming in every millisecond.
thinking about google’s Live Query (check out google’s zeitgeist for a taste: http://www.google.com/press/zeitgeist.html (2)) i start to imagine what an artist might do with the information. especially if the artist could get the info in a realtime stream. but, then, i think about most of the data visualization projects i’ve seen (Carnivore clients as an example) and they don’t do all that much for me. they are simply formal exercises which, though are interesting in their random-seeming behavior, don’t have a visual richness to command my awe (a limitation of screens and projectors) and don’t possess a depth conceptually to make me go, ‘aaahh’.
what could an artist add to the Google Live Query? How could one make it any more sublime than it is? the artist could add nothing. when the data-set ITSELF is so conceptually fascinating there is no more to do. any sort of visualization would simply be distraction. simply KNOWING that the data is flowing in and stored on some magnetic media somewhere is enough for me. it’s fun to see it stream-in i suppose, but the knowledge of it’s creation and archival is much more than fun; it’s sublime.
Google has achieved the net art masterpiece. there has not been anything created in net art that comes close to it and i don’t foresee anything coming from the arts that could rival it. the arts are underfunded. the arts don’t have access to the same resources. the technologists will always win in this game of art and tech. i feel that we’ve strayed to far into their world in some areas; we can’t compete when it comes to the ‘awe’ factor. sure, we can ‘comment’, ‘criticize’, and ‘tweak,’ but it mostly comes out thin compared to our market cousins: the Googles, the Ids, the Pixars, the Rockstar Games. we simply don’t have the tech that they play with and will always be behind in that area; we can’t compete FORMALLY with the commercial side. though our projects my be much deeper conceptually, the form or aesthetic allows people to step into the work, if it doesn’t stack up against the commercial counterpart, it’s easy for the audience to ignore it.
To be precise, there are a few areas where artists are going to be hard-pressed to compete. Those areas are 3D gaming, ‘virtual’ worlds and 3D animation; and realtime data visualization and manipulation.
The worlds created in the Sims, Grand Theft Auto, Toy Story, Quake and etc are complex and exciting in ways which their artworld counterparts can’t match up. They are larger, easier to navigate, more exciting to interact with, have more sophisticated visuals, are more entertaining, and are surprising in their level of freedom to interact (the audience has more options). And why shouldn’t they be more interesting? They’ve got large teams of developers working on them, they can test the interaction in focus groups and have almost unlimited pools of capital to draw from. What individual artist could compete with that?
in realtime data collection and manipulation, IMO, the strength of the work comes from the intriguing data. the visual representations of this data should help us comprehend interesting data. if the data isn’t interesting, neither is the piece no matter how interesting the visuals may be. Research firms, search engines, polling companies create interesting and therefor very valuable data to the market. There will always be a technological advantage fueled by capital to the market technologists as opposed to the artists. They have the capital to put together interesting data in ways that artists can’t compete with.
One area where the artists and the industry can compete head-to-head is in *web art*(3), this is an area where artists are ahead of industry, IMO. Web *presentation* technologies (CSS, XHTML, DHTML Flash, Director, etc) are more readily available so this makes sense. It’s an area where artists are able to achieve technological parity. It’s also the area that is the most similar to traditional art practice; it lends itself to the individual creator working with limited means.
So what should be done? More funding for the arts is one answer. Collectives of pooled technology and economic resources would be a great way to go. Korean immigrants in NYC join credit clubs where everyone pays into a central pool and they can then receive loans to start businesses. This model could work for artists working in technology.
it will be very hard to compete it some of these areas however. if there is no pay-off in the end, capitalists won’t put money behind projects. public funding is almost non-existent, subject to it’s own opaque rules, and wouldn’t be enough to achieve technological parity in any case.
+++
(1) i know, i know, it’s not the entire world, but it seems to me that the sample is large enough that searches wouldn’t change much if you added EVERYONE to the mix.
(2 ) Looking over the google zeitgeist makes one a bit sick by it’s heavy tilt toward USAian pop cultural obsessions. They may be filtering the data for this page to suit western viewers. Or perhaps lots more USAians use Google.
(3) I make this distinction btw net art and web art: net art needs to use a network as an integral part of the medium. if one takes the network out of the piece, the piece ceases to function either literally or conceptually. web art simply uses the web for distribution (ie one can run it without a network connection and it works fine), is presented through a browser (most of the time), and/or uses web technologies (HTML, Flash etc). permanent link to this post
preface: this little text started out very casually, then grew a bit organically. i attempted to polish, but i’m not a great writer. it now seems to be uncomfortably sitting somewhere btw tossed off email and a serious attempt at commentary. reading this story in the nytimes recently:
"Postcards From Planet Google"
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/28/
technology/circuits/28goog.html
from the article: "AT Google’s squat headquarters off Route 101, visitors sit in the lobby, transfixed by the words scrolling by on the wall behind the receptionist’s desk: animación japonese Harry Potter pensées et poèmes associaço brasileira de normas técnicas.
The projected display, called Live Query, shows updated samples of what people around the world are typing into Google’s search engine. The terms scroll by in English, Chinese, Spanish, Swedish, Japanese, Korean, French, Dutch, Italian - any of the 86 languages that Google tracks.
Stare at Live Query long enough, and you feel that you are watching the collective consciousness of the world stream by. “
this article, like many tech-related articles i read, got me thinking about the two worlds in which many of us on this list exist: the worlds of art and technology. how they’re different. how they’re the same. how are their functions evolving?
in a world where a technology company can display ‘the collective consciousness of the world’(1) as a backdrop to their reception desk, essentially a marketing ploy for their services; when they can collect this data, sit on it and ruminate on how to ‘monetize’ it; when it takes a fully capitalized, profit-driven corporation employing some of the brightest engineers around to achieve such fascinating data then what is left for the artist to do?
it used to be that it was the artist’s job to capture the ‘collective consciousness’ either through intuition, genius, or dumb-luck. the artists were the ones who told humans what humans were thinking about, obsessing over, loving, hating. we no longer need intuition, genius or even dumb-luck. we’ve got hard data and more is coming in every millisecond.
thinking about google’s Live Query (check out google’s zeitgeist for a taste: http://www.google.com/press/zeitgeist.html (2)) i start to imagine what an artist might do with the information. especially if the artist could get the info in a realtime stream. but, then, i think about most of the data visualization projects i’ve seen (Carnivore clients as an example) and they don’t do all that much for me. they are simply formal exercises which, though are interesting in their random-seeming behavior, don’t have a visual richness to command my awe (a limitation of screens and projectors) and don’t possess a depth conceptually to make me go, ‘aaahh’.
what could an artist add to the Google Live Query? How could one make it any more sublime than it is? the artist could add nothing. when the data-set ITSELF is so conceptually fascinating there is no more to do. any sort of visualization would simply be distraction. simply KNOWING that the data is flowing in and stored on some magnetic media somewhere is enough for me. it’s fun to see it stream-in i suppose, but the knowledge of it’s creation and archival is much more than fun; it’s sublime.
Google has achieved the net art masterpiece. there has not been anything created in net art that comes close to it and i don’t foresee anything coming from the arts that could rival it. the arts are underfunded. the arts don’t have access to the same resources. the technologists will always win in this game of art and tech. i feel that we’ve strayed to far into their world in some areas; we can’t compete when it comes to the ‘awe’ factor. sure, we can ‘comment’, ‘criticize’, and ‘tweak,’ but it mostly comes out thin compared to our market cousins: the Googles, the Ids, the Pixars, the Rockstar Games. we simply don’t have the tech that they play with and will always be behind in that area; we can’t compete FORMALLY with the commercial side. though our projects my be much deeper conceptually, the form or aesthetic allows people to step into the work, if it doesn’t stack up against the commercial counterpart, it’s easy for the audience to ignore it.
To be precise, there are a few areas where artists are going to be hard-pressed to compete. Those areas are 3D gaming, ‘virtual’ worlds and 3D animation; and realtime data visualization and manipulation.
The worlds created in the Sims, Grand Theft Auto, Toy Story, Quake and etc are complex and exciting in ways which their artworld counterparts can’t match up. They are larger, easier to navigate, more exciting to interact with, have more sophisticated visuals, are more entertaining, and are surprising in their level of freedom to interact (the audience has more options). And why shouldn’t they be more interesting? They’ve got large teams of developers working on them, they can test the interaction in focus groups and have almost unlimited pools of capital to draw from. What individual artist could compete with that?
in realtime data collection and manipulation, IMO, the strength of the work comes from the intriguing data. the visual representations of this data should help us comprehend interesting data. if the data isn’t interesting, neither is the piece no matter how interesting the visuals may be. Research firms, search engines, polling companies create interesting and therefor very valuable data to the market. There will always be a technological advantage fueled by capital to the market technologists as opposed to the artists. They have the capital to put together interesting data in ways that artists can’t compete with.
One area where the artists and the industry can compete head-to-head is in *web art*(3), this is an area where artists are ahead of industry, IMO. Web *presentation* technologies (CSS, XHTML, DHTML Flash, Director, etc) are more readily available so this makes sense. It’s an area where artists are able to achieve technological parity. It’s also the area that is the most similar to traditional art practice; it lends itself to the individual creator working with limited means.
So what should be done? More funding for the arts is one answer. Collectives of pooled technology and economic resources would be a great way to go. Korean immigrants in NYC join credit clubs where everyone pays into a central pool and they can then receive loans to start businesses. This model could work for artists working in technology.
it will be very hard to compete it some of these areas however. if there is no pay-off in the end, capitalists won’t put money behind projects. public funding is almost non-existent, subject to it’s own opaque rules, and wouldn’t be enough to achieve technological parity in any case.
+++
(1) i know, i know, it’s not the entire world, but it seems to me that the sample is large enough that searches wouldn’t change much if you added EVERYONE to the mix.
(2 ) Looking over the google zeitgeist makes one a bit sick by it’s heavy tilt toward USAian pop cultural obsessions. They may be filtering the data for this page to suit western viewers. Or perhaps lots more USAians use Google.
(3) I make this distinction btw net art and web art: net art needs to use a network as an integral part of the medium. if one takes the network out of the piece, the piece ceases to function either literally or conceptually. web art simply uses the web for distribution (ie one can run it without a network connection and it works fine), is presented through a browser (most of the time), and/or uses web technologies (HTML, Flash etc). permanent link to this post
Mar 07, 2003
Notes On Cremaster At The Guggenheim
posted at 17:37 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Some thoughts on the Matthew Barney show at the Guggenheim. The notes are in response to an email on thingist from a netizen known as a-nd which I quote below.
a-nd wrote: First off i had seen part of Cremaster 2 some years back and had walked about halfway through the film because of a variety of feelings (disturbed, dislike, resistance, disgust, boredom). Having had that experience i wasn’t sure what to expect of the exhibit and i went there a bit resistant. In the end i can’t say i came out of the Guggenheim with a feeling of dislike, etc. as i expected. I felt detached/removed/disengaged from the exhibit in every way and i think with all the people around me that only made the experience worse. On the other hand i am very much curious to watch Cremaster5 because from what i saw in the exhibit i think i would greatly enjoy it. I plan to go back to the Guggenheim on a weekday when hopefully there will be less people. t.whid replies:
I have ambivalent feelings toward the films. (I can never keep ‘em straight either). The first one I saw was the one which takes place on the Isle of Man and I thought it was brilliant. Barney is great at creating enthralling mecho-psycho-sexual scenes and tableaus that make you squirm and want to take part in them at the same time.
The next film I saw was the one in the opera house with Ursala Andress and it was over-wrought, self-indulgent and boring as hell and I wanted to kill him for forcing me to go through it. Of course I wasn’t forced, but artists who work in linear narrative video or film seem to need a lesson in thinking a little about the audience’s stamina.
a-nd wrote: As far as the people who i was with, one person said the exhibit felt violating, another was really put off by lack of understanding, expecting to understand but not really getting it and feeling like everyone else around was in the same boat. t.whid replies:
What didn’t they get? He does have an obtuse narrative that travels through the Cremaster films that isn’t always clear (purposefully IMO). Sometimes I wish he was a bit more up front with his narrative but I get the feeling that he’s reflecting what he sees as obsessions of our contemporary culture.
I love his obsessive attention to detail. Perhaps it’s the part of me that is into fantasy films and literature, but Barney’s world seems to be fully realized to the last detail. From the seams on the costumes to the genitals on the water faeries, he doesn’t miss a thing.
The Guggenheim installation is especially fun as it’s the set in the last (chronologically in order of production) film. He’s subverted this landmark into merely being a set for one of his films. With all the props in place you begin to feel that you’re part of the piece now, you’re in the work. It was fun.
a-nd wrote: I think there was a real sense of somehow feeling locked out, like no one was getting anything out of it. Too much ego, too much narcissism. t.whid replies:
I feel that any narcissism or ego you feel was brought with you. I’m sure Barney has a healthy ego and is as narcissistic as every other artist I’ve ever known, but the work doesn’t seem to exude that feeling IMO. I’m sure people will feel that way about the work but IMO it’s simple jealousy at his success. As I looked at the show I couldn’t imagine any other artist of his generation pulling something off this big. He practically filled the entire museum.. and he’s only 36, pretty impressive. permanent link to this post
a-nd wrote: First off i had seen part of Cremaster 2 some years back and had walked about halfway through the film because of a variety of feelings (disturbed, dislike, resistance, disgust, boredom). Having had that experience i wasn’t sure what to expect of the exhibit and i went there a bit resistant. In the end i can’t say i came out of the Guggenheim with a feeling of dislike, etc. as i expected. I felt detached/removed/disengaged from the exhibit in every way and i think with all the people around me that only made the experience worse. On the other hand i am very much curious to watch Cremaster5 because from what i saw in the exhibit i think i would greatly enjoy it. I plan to go back to the Guggenheim on a weekday when hopefully there will be less people. t.whid replies:
I have ambivalent feelings toward the films. (I can never keep ‘em straight either). The first one I saw was the one which takes place on the Isle of Man and I thought it was brilliant. Barney is great at creating enthralling mecho-psycho-sexual scenes and tableaus that make you squirm and want to take part in them at the same time.
The next film I saw was the one in the opera house with Ursala Andress and it was over-wrought, self-indulgent and boring as hell and I wanted to kill him for forcing me to go through it. Of course I wasn’t forced, but artists who work in linear narrative video or film seem to need a lesson in thinking a little about the audience’s stamina.
a-nd wrote: As far as the people who i was with, one person said the exhibit felt violating, another was really put off by lack of understanding, expecting to understand but not really getting it and feeling like everyone else around was in the same boat. t.whid replies:
What didn’t they get? He does have an obtuse narrative that travels through the Cremaster films that isn’t always clear (purposefully IMO). Sometimes I wish he was a bit more up front with his narrative but I get the feeling that he’s reflecting what he sees as obsessions of our contemporary culture.
I love his obsessive attention to detail. Perhaps it’s the part of me that is into fantasy films and literature, but Barney’s world seems to be fully realized to the last detail. From the seams on the costumes to the genitals on the water faeries, he doesn’t miss a thing.
The Guggenheim installation is especially fun as it’s the set in the last (chronologically in order of production) film. He’s subverted this landmark into merely being a set for one of his films. With all the props in place you begin to feel that you’re part of the piece now, you’re in the work. It was fun.
a-nd wrote: I think there was a real sense of somehow feeling locked out, like no one was getting anything out of it. Too much ego, too much narcissism. t.whid replies:
I feel that any narcissism or ego you feel was brought with you. I’m sure Barney has a healthy ego and is as narcissistic as every other artist I’ve ever known, but the work doesn’t seem to exude that feeling IMO. I’m sure people will feel that way about the work but IMO it’s simple jealousy at his success. As I looked at the show I couldn’t imagine any other artist of his generation pulling something off this big. He practically filled the entire museum.. and he’s only 36, pretty impressive. permanent link to this post
Mar 04, 2003
The Upgrade
posted at 11:45 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
For 3 years now a group of new media artists, curators and hangers-on in NYC have been meeting and discussing online and new media art. This loose group has called their meetings The Upgrade.
The Upgrade started as a casual get-together between Yael Kanarek, Mark Napier, M.River, and T.Whid at the bar 2A in Manhattan’s East Village. Eventually, as the get-togethers grew, we moved over to Two Boots pizza. Finally, to make the meetings more productive, Yael persuaded Eyebeam to begin hosting the events at The Filmmakers Collaborative (another org, like Eyebeam, founded by John Johnson). That’s when the meetings became known as The Upgrade because we were upgrading to a new room with projectors, internet connections and critical discussions as opposed to pizza, beer and gossip. When Eyebeam’s Chelsea warehouse became usable the meetings moved there.
The most recent Upgrade was the three year anniversay and Eyebeam was kind enough to donate a small brunch to accompany the presentation. Here are some photos of the event: http://www.mteww.com/upgrade_brunch/ permanent link to this post
The Upgrade started as a casual get-together between Yael Kanarek, Mark Napier, M.River, and T.Whid at the bar 2A in Manhattan’s East Village. Eventually, as the get-togethers grew, we moved over to Two Boots pizza. Finally, to make the meetings more productive, Yael persuaded Eyebeam to begin hosting the events at The Filmmakers Collaborative (another org, like Eyebeam, founded by John Johnson). That’s when the meetings became known as The Upgrade because we were upgrading to a new room with projectors, internet connections and critical discussions as opposed to pizza, beer and gossip. When Eyebeam’s Chelsea warehouse became usable the meetings moved there.
The most recent Upgrade was the three year anniversay and Eyebeam was kind enough to donate a small brunch to accompany the presentation. Here are some photos of the event: http://www.mteww.com/upgrade_brunch/ permanent link to this post
Feb 27, 2003
Benefit The ‘Zome
posted at 09:51 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
MTAA found ourselves at the Rhizome.org benefit the last Tuesday night.
We also found ourselves drinking a whole bunch of booze and taking these photos.
Don’t miss the ritual Passing of The Five Bucks. permanent link to this post
We also found ourselves drinking a whole bunch of booze and taking these photos.
Don’t miss the ritual Passing of The Five Bucks. permanent link to this post
Feb 25, 2003
Everything…
posted at 16:46 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
I have a feeling that if you found out my real name, social security number and my mother’s maiden name, you could tell me what color my eyes are, my favorite beer, and the general state of my so - called love life. It seems that facts regarding our entire life can now be splayed out for public download. Not only our life but, the nations, honey bees, Greek poets, Las Vegas show girls and the planet Mars. All the facts are now available for us 24/7 and they can be served up in any combination of cross referenced forms.
Yes please, I would like to know the names of all Las Vegas show girls who wrote college thesis papers (graduate level) on Greek poets who contemplated Mars or Vulcan (or what ever they called it back then) and I would like the names listed alphabetically with their state of birth. Please e-mail this to me ASAP. Itıs for an artwork….seriously. permanent link to this post
Yes please, I would like to know the names of all Las Vegas show girls who wrote college thesis papers (graduate level) on Greek poets who contemplated Mars or Vulcan (or what ever they called it back then) and I would like the names listed alphabetically with their state of birth. Please e-mail this to me ASAP. Itıs for an artwork….seriously. permanent link to this post
Feb 24, 2003
Cremaster Opening At The Guggenheim
posted at 23:20 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
So, M.River said he was going to write some captions for the photos we
took at the opening but he’s procrastinated it. I’ve written same real
lame captions and posted the pics via iPhoto (hey, it’s fast and easy, I don’t
care what you think).
Click here to experience the glamorious life of M.River and T.Whid. permanent link to this post
Click here to experience the glamorious life of M.River and T.Whid. permanent link to this post
random art idea for the day..
posted at 21:39 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Jon Ippolito gave me this idea while speaking with him about Creative Commons this morning. He said - You should remake the flash movie they have on the site. I looked at it and thought that the best thing to do would be to just change the voice over. If anyone wants to do it, go for it
permanent link to this post
Feb 22, 2003
Wasabi Death Wish (WDW) 1999
posted at 19:11 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
The Wasabi Death Wish (WDW) is the worlds first Speed Metal Bunraku Puppet act that also functions as an alternative teaching method in basic math for grades K to 4. Created as a side project by the members of the MTAA, the WDW is performed as follows:
The two members of the WDW, M.River (aka MC Division) and T.Whid (aka DJ Long) enter a cafeteria, gym or classroom covered by black clothes from head to toe. Only their eyes are peer out from behind their black masks. The stage is set with only two microphones. The performers carry with them Bunraku style puppets that are animated by long poles. The two puppets stand about 3 feet high and are clothed in remarkably detailed costumes. MC Division, the lead singer puppet, is dressed in leather pants, no shirt and a Skull = Pie tattoo on its little shaved wooden head . DJ Long, the musical force of the WDW has a circa 1978 mullet haircut and a little bass guitar that seems hung far to low to play (ala Sid). The Puppeteers during the performance remain remarkable still while their scaled down alter egos trash about stage. The sound for the WDW is created beat box / air guitar style by the puppeteers. The WDW sound borrows heavily from Sabbath (the Oz years), Run DMC, Danzig, 7 Seconds and the ABC Saturday morning educational cartoons of School House Rock. The debut album of the WDW, entitled Satan Taught Me Math, includes the singles 6+6+6 and Subtract …Then FIGHT. permanent link to this post
The two members of the WDW, M.River (aka MC Division) and T.Whid (aka DJ Long) enter a cafeteria, gym or classroom covered by black clothes from head to toe. Only their eyes are peer out from behind their black masks. The stage is set with only two microphones. The performers carry with them Bunraku style puppets that are animated by long poles. The two puppets stand about 3 feet high and are clothed in remarkably detailed costumes. MC Division, the lead singer puppet, is dressed in leather pants, no shirt and a Skull = Pie tattoo on its little shaved wooden head . DJ Long, the musical force of the WDW has a circa 1978 mullet haircut and a little bass guitar that seems hung far to low to play (ala Sid). The Puppeteers during the performance remain remarkable still while their scaled down alter egos trash about stage. The sound for the WDW is created beat box / air guitar style by the puppeteers. The WDW sound borrows heavily from Sabbath (the Oz years), Run DMC, Danzig, 7 Seconds and the ABC Saturday morning educational cartoons of School House Rock. The debut album of the WDW, entitled Satan Taught Me Math, includes the singles 6+6+6 and Subtract …Then FIGHT. permanent link to this post
Feb 20, 2003
MTAA Slogans
posted at 17:44 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
MTAA have a few slogans that we use to help guide us when we’re making our artwork and to help other people understand our motivations.
Here are a few slogans:
"Meaning In Misunderstanding"
"The Art Happens Here"
and this one is brand new: "Desperately Attempting To Tell You That We Have Nothing To Say"
And that’s all I can think of for now.
Matt Barney opening at the Guggenheim tonight. I’ll try to take some pics and make them available here. Should be a fun night for everyone. permanent link to this post
Here are a few slogans:
"Meaning In Misunderstanding"
"The Art Happens Here"
and this one is brand new: "Desperately Attempting To Tell You That We Have Nothing To Say"
And that’s all I can think of for now.
Matt Barney opening at the Guggenheim tonight. I’ll try to take some pics and make them available here. Should be a fun night for everyone. permanent link to this post
Feb 18, 2003
Annie Oakley - Live Shot, 1998
posted at 20:22 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
A proposal for performance on the internet
Materials - computer with internet and chat room capability, cell phone, camera, .022 rifle, paper target, car, an operator
Preparations - Before the performance, an announcement will be posted on the internet and sent to individuals by e-mail. This announcement will give the date, time, and web address for a live participatory trick shot with Annie Oakley.
Site work - Before the performance, a .022 riffle will be placed in the trunk of a car. The car will drive to the front of the start location. At the time for the performance to begin, a call from a cell phone will be placed to the operator at a start location.
Performance on the internet - The web page (internet site) at the time of the performance should contain the following information.
An image of Annie Oakley (one showing her over shoulder trick shot), a map of area marked with the starting location, a photograph of the gun in the trunk of a car and the following text:
I am in a car in front of (name of starting location).In the trunk of the car is a .022 riffle. In my coat pocket is a paper target and one live round. I am speaking to you from a car phone. My voice is being transcribed onto the web by an operator at (starting location name). Except for the delay in transcription, this is live. For the next 30 minutes, I would like to have anyone on the net select a traveling direction for an attempt at Annie Oakley’s over the shoulder trick shot.I am not interested in hurting anyone. Destruction of property or a night in jail is not my goal. All I am interested in is the shot. Everything else is up to you.
The performance then begins with information about the direction and speed of the car (i.e., I am heading west at 25 mph.) It will be my attempt for the next 30 minutes to have people on the web direct the car to some unknown site. After 30 min. of travel the car will stop. I will set up the target, load the riffle and take the shot.
Annie Oakley’s act in the Wild West Show brought a distilled version of the West to the big cites. The violence or necessity of life was presented as a nomadic circus performance. An argument may be made that the internet is all performance without the need for a link to the physical world. It is my hope that the participants on the web, in their response to the performance, will further define a relation to the external world.
Afterwards - At a later date, the images from the performance will be inter spliced onto the text of the conversation. This will create the final document of the work.
permanent link to this post
Materials - computer with internet and chat room capability, cell phone, camera, .022 rifle, paper target, car, an operator
Preparations - Before the performance, an announcement will be posted on the internet and sent to individuals by e-mail. This announcement will give the date, time, and web address for a live participatory trick shot with Annie Oakley.
Site work - Before the performance, a .022 riffle will be placed in the trunk of a car. The car will drive to the front of the start location. At the time for the performance to begin, a call from a cell phone will be placed to the operator at a start location.
Performance on the internet - The web page (internet site) at the time of the performance should contain the following information.
An image of Annie Oakley (one showing her over shoulder trick shot), a map of area marked with the starting location, a photograph of the gun in the trunk of a car and the following text:
I am in a car in front of (name of starting location).In the trunk of the car is a .022 riffle. In my coat pocket is a paper target and one live round. I am speaking to you from a car phone. My voice is being transcribed onto the web by an operator at (starting location name). Except for the delay in transcription, this is live. For the next 30 minutes, I would like to have anyone on the net select a traveling direction for an attempt at Annie Oakley’s over the shoulder trick shot.I am not interested in hurting anyone. Destruction of property or a night in jail is not my goal. All I am interested in is the shot. Everything else is up to you.
The performance then begins with information about the direction and speed of the car (i.e., I am heading west at 25 mph.) It will be my attempt for the next 30 minutes to have people on the web direct the car to some unknown site. After 30 min. of travel the car will stop. I will set up the target, load the riffle and take the shot.
Annie Oakley’s act in the Wild West Show brought a distilled version of the West to the big cites. The violence or necessity of life was presented as a nomadic circus performance. An argument may be made that the internet is all performance without the need for a link to the physical world. It is my hope that the participants on the web, in their response to the performance, will further define a relation to the external world.
Afterwards - At a later date, the images from the performance will be inter spliced onto the text of the conversation. This will create the final document of the work.
permanent link to this post
Feb 17, 2003
MTAA’s Ten Titles for Art Works That Can Be Made To Locate Meaning in One’s Bedroom AKA Text Based Night Light.
posted at 21:19 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Installation Instructions:
1. Hang this text in your bedroom or area were you tend to fall asleep. If your bedroom is not available someone/somewhere else may be used.
2. Read text before sleeping.
3. In case of emergency or accidental awakening use this text to navigate room.
1. Portable 2 Square Feet Of Brooklyn Sky or Much to Our Surprise, Beautiful Airflow.
2. The Ever Popular Smithson/Helicopter/Spiral Chase Scene at 45 RPMs (for Tom)
3. Utopic Architecture and the Models who Love Them.
4. My New Century, Looks Like Your Used Mattress.
5. Stoneage, Ironage, Spaceage…Sleepage, Time based Sculpture for the Tired
6. Paris is the Sound of the Speed of Lights (for Anne).
7. New Monuments to the Old Skool, (Turntables on Marble)
8. Nightstand of The Gods (Alarm Clock, Glass of Water, Photograph of Everyone and Everything).
9. Area Rug for the working class, (Black Boots on Blue Wool)
10. …and as the confetti floats down and the spotlight fades, we make our way back to our room, thinking of sleep and the approaching red light of the day. AKA painting for the night before you knew meaning in your bedroom.
Bonus Tracks
+ just another maintenance free readymade (light on dust on window)
+ Tastefully done nudes may stop my disappointment but not my love
+ xxoo, asci art for the unimaginative
+ 3 minute pop song vs. 2 minute rough sketch (aka the sad reality of 6 hours work for 10 lines of text)
permanent link to this post
1. Hang this text in your bedroom or area were you tend to fall asleep. If your bedroom is not available someone/somewhere else may be used.
2. Read text before sleeping.
3. In case of emergency or accidental awakening use this text to navigate room.
1. Portable 2 Square Feet Of Brooklyn Sky or Much to Our Surprise, Beautiful Airflow.
2. The Ever Popular Smithson/Helicopter/Spiral Chase Scene at 45 RPMs (for Tom)
3. Utopic Architecture and the Models who Love Them.
4. My New Century, Looks Like Your Used Mattress.
5. Stoneage, Ironage, Spaceage…Sleepage, Time based Sculpture for the Tired
6. Paris is the Sound of the Speed of Lights (for Anne).
7. New Monuments to the Old Skool, (Turntables on Marble)
8. Nightstand of The Gods (Alarm Clock, Glass of Water, Photograph of Everyone and Everything).
9. Area Rug for the working class, (Black Boots on Blue Wool)
10. …and as the confetti floats down and the spotlight fades, we make our way back to our room, thinking of sleep and the approaching red light of the day. AKA painting for the night before you knew meaning in your bedroom.
Bonus Tracks
+ just another maintenance free readymade (light on dust on window)
+ Tastefully done nudes may stop my disappointment but not my love
+ xxoo, asci art for the unimaginative
+ 3 minute pop song vs. 2 minute rough sketch (aka the sad reality of 6 hours work for 10 lines of text)
permanent link to this post
Snow Day
posted at 19:16 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid/photos
Hurray! Snow Day! Well, I had the day off anyway, but it sure did feel
like a snow day. NYC had one wild weekend: historic peace demonstrations
and now this historic snow fall.
Here are some pics of my street in Brooklyn:
pic 1
pic 2
pic 3 permanent link to this post
Here are some pics of my street in Brooklyn:
pic 1
pic 2
pic 3 permanent link to this post
Feb 16, 2003
Peace Rally, NYC
posted at 12:00 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
Walking the streets of New York yesterday, with some hope to end a war before it begins, I felt at ease. This is an odd mood to have when the air is bitter cold, a line of cops on horse back just rode up to push everyone off the street, the city is on some weird orange alert and my government is about to bomb the fuck out of someone once again. It was as if it was familiar day. I felt proud of the strangers around me, from the anarchists to the police (whom I felt as individuals might agree with what we were saying this time…love it when cops break face and smile when they see some guy in full glam drag carrying a sign saying WAR IS NOT PRETTY).
Anyway, I thought it was a positive day.
Later in the evening, I went to see The Pianist and the whole ugliness of war that I fear will soon begin came back into focus. permanent link to this post
Anyway, I thought it was a positive day.
Later in the evening, I went to see The Pianist and the whole ugliness of war that I fear will soon begin came back into focus. permanent link to this post
Feb 15, 2003
NYC peace rally report
posted at 20:51 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
so, there were tons of people and it was a great show of citizenship.
It was hard to get to the actual ‘legit’ rally but my cohorts and I made it eventually.
I met some people at the New York Public Library at 42nd St. and 5th Ave. at around 11:30AM. We headed out for 49th St. and 1st Ave at around noon.
Problems started at about 42nd and 3rd, we’re weren’t allowed to cross the avenue and were directed to start uptown on 3rd. As we headed uptown it was getting more and more crowded and the police wouldn’t allow people to cross the avenue at all. We finally crossed the avenue at around 51st but got caught in a big crowd. Everyone was supposed to stay on the sidewalk, but people wanted to move and after 51st the avenue became filled with people.
We were stuck between 51st and 53rd for a long time. At one point mounted police attempted to force people back onto the sidewalk but there was just way to many people and the police seemed to realize that with all the different people in the crowd including young children in strollers, older folks, and people in wheel chairs that it was to dangerous to treat the crowd roughly.
After that the police seemed to just want to keep the cross streets clear but were content to let people march up the avenue between blocks. Some cars and trucks had gotten caught by the crowd and were patiently waiting for the crowd to clear.
At 62nd we were allowed to go over to 2nd Ave. then they stopped us from going over to 1st so we kept heading uptown. Word on the street was that they were allowing people over on 72nd st. We got fed up at 68th and there were only 2 police manning the barricade. They tried to stop people from going through, but once you made it across they didn’t seem to care so we snuck through. After we got through a big crowd pushed through behind us and filled 68th St. between 2nd and 1st.
Now we had made it! But at every cross street they had barricades up. At 66th we just hopped over it. Once you were over the police didn’t pay any attention to you. At 65th people kept opening them up and stepping through and the police would close them up after a few people would slip through. My cohorts slipped through and I got stuck on the other side. Eventually people opened up the barricades and we all pushed through, as I went through I pulled it wide open. It felt good to let all the people out but then a girl came up to me and told me to be more careful; she got hit in the stomach when I had pulled it open. I apologized and felt guilty about it for a while.
By this point I’m feeling pretty crappy as I’ve been sick all week and am taking antibiotics so I only hung around for a few speakers and left. permanent link to this post
It was hard to get to the actual ‘legit’ rally but my cohorts and I made it eventually.
I met some people at the New York Public Library at 42nd St. and 5th Ave. at around 11:30AM. We headed out for 49th St. and 1st Ave at around noon.
Problems started at about 42nd and 3rd, we’re weren’t allowed to cross the avenue and were directed to start uptown on 3rd. As we headed uptown it was getting more and more crowded and the police wouldn’t allow people to cross the avenue at all. We finally crossed the avenue at around 51st but got caught in a big crowd. Everyone was supposed to stay on the sidewalk, but people wanted to move and after 51st the avenue became filled with people.
We were stuck between 51st and 53rd for a long time. At one point mounted police attempted to force people back onto the sidewalk but there was just way to many people and the police seemed to realize that with all the different people in the crowd including young children in strollers, older folks, and people in wheel chairs that it was to dangerous to treat the crowd roughly.
After that the police seemed to just want to keep the cross streets clear but were content to let people march up the avenue between blocks. Some cars and trucks had gotten caught by the crowd and were patiently waiting for the crowd to clear.
At 62nd we were allowed to go over to 2nd Ave. then they stopped us from going over to 1st so we kept heading uptown. Word on the street was that they were allowing people over on 72nd st. We got fed up at 68th and there were only 2 police manning the barricade. They tried to stop people from going through, but once you made it across they didn’t seem to care so we snuck through. After we got through a big crowd pushed through behind us and filled 68th St. between 2nd and 1st.
Now we had made it! But at every cross street they had barricades up. At 66th we just hopped over it. Once you were over the police didn’t pay any attention to you. At 65th people kept opening them up and stepping through and the police would close them up after a few people would slip through. My cohorts slipped through and I got stuck on the other side. Eventually people opened up the barricades and we all pushed through, as I went through I pulled it wide open. It felt good to let all the people out but then a girl came up to me and told me to be more careful; she got hit in the stomach when I had pulled it open. I apologized and felt guilty about it for a while.
By this point I’m feeling pretty crappy as I’ve been sick all week and am taking antibiotics so I only hung around for a few speakers and left. permanent link to this post
Feb 14, 2003
New York Sunset Rim Shot
posted at 20:14 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
A notes for work from Oct. 13 1997 that seems to match my mood today
A performance to take place on a roof of an industrial building in Brooklyn New York. The performance is presented with only the participates and a camera person. The performers are filmed so that the sky line of Manhattan is visible as well as the sunset. The camera shot is static with all performers framed within the shot. At the center of the shot is a drum kit with a drummer seated behind. The kit sits down action (furthest) from the camera. In the mid point between the kit and the camera are two men. They stand to the right and left of the kit. They face each other with the kit, the sunset, and the city framed between them. All three performers are miked.
The performance consist of the hour of sunset. As the hour goes by the two performers read to each other. At pauses between sentences, the drummer performs a rim shot. The drummer performs the rim shot with out a cue and with out prior knowledge of the text. At each rim shot the speakers exchange turns speaking. permanent link to this post
A performance to take place on a roof of an industrial building in Brooklyn New York. The performance is presented with only the participates and a camera person. The performers are filmed so that the sky line of Manhattan is visible as well as the sunset. The camera shot is static with all performers framed within the shot. At the center of the shot is a drum kit with a drummer seated behind. The kit sits down action (furthest) from the camera. In the mid point between the kit and the camera are two men. They stand to the right and left of the kit. They face each other with the kit, the sunset, and the city framed between them. All three performers are miked.
The performance consist of the hour of sunset. As the hour goes by the two performers read to each other. At pauses between sentences, the drummer performs a rim shot. The drummer performs the rim shot with out a cue and with out prior knowledge of the text. At each rim shot the speakers exchange turns speaking. permanent link to this post
Feb 13, 2003
Some Rights Reserved
posted at 16:51 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
This site uses a Creative Commons license and
I back the idea 100%. (Not sure if M.River cares that I’m giving our stuff away, oh well).
Check out this Scientific American article about Lessig’s idea of ‘Some Rights Reserved’.
Also, now that M.River seems to be posting here it should be made known what those little links on the left are. If you click on mriver you will see only M.River’s posts and the twhid link works the same. The link on rss feed is the URI for the RSS feed. RSS is an XML format that allows syndication of blog-like sites. I use NetNewsWire Lite for Mac OSX to check headlines of my favorite sites. permanent link to this post
Check out this Scientific American article about Lessig’s idea of ‘Some Rights Reserved’.
Also, now that M.River seems to be posting here it should be made known what those little links on the left are. If you click on mriver you will see only M.River’s posts and the twhid link works the same. The link on rss feed is the URI for the RSS feed. RSS is an XML format that allows syndication of blog-like sites. I use NetNewsWire Lite for Mac OSX to check headlines of my favorite sites. permanent link to this post
Feb 12, 2003
Some random thoughts on the state of the art…
posted at 19:54 GMT by M.River in /news/mriver
1. I’ve noticed a recent increase in the use image and video manipulation over text and vector graphics within net art. Although some have used image as a main tool for some time (brad brace comes to mind) a form of realism seems to be on the rise. Reasons? Perhaps digital cameras becoming common, more access to broadband, better software,or the change in political climate.
2. Along or against this trend, new works are being made using what Cory Archangel may have coined “Dirt Style Design” or Low-Fi net art. These works look back to the “Heroic Period” of Net.art as well as the pop home pages of the net. Think Hampster Dance (circa 1997) meets one38.org. Reasons? Who knows? Maybe it’s the same reasons as in thought 1.
3. When looking at net art as well as art in general of late, I’ve been trying to use the American movie rating system. Not as a quality judgement but as another way to look at content. “G” and “PG” seem to be the ratings of the time. I am looking for an interesting PG-13 or up. Other people have pointed out to me that using movie ratings to look at visual art is like comparing apples to oranges but it has been a good exercise for me.
The reason for the post is that for the last year or so I have felt net art has been in a holding pattern. Great art works are being made and attention is finally being given, but I miss the time of experimentation. Thoughts 1,2 and 3 have let me know that net art might change again as all art will do. permanent link to this post
2. Along or against this trend, new works are being made using what Cory Archangel may have coined “Dirt Style Design” or Low-Fi net art. These works look back to the “Heroic Period” of Net.art as well as the pop home pages of the net. Think Hampster Dance (circa 1997) meets one38.org. Reasons? Who knows? Maybe it’s the same reasons as in thought 1.
3. When looking at net art as well as art in general of late, I’ve been trying to use the American movie rating system. Not as a quality judgement but as another way to look at content. “G” and “PG” seem to be the ratings of the time. I am looking for an interesting PG-13 or up. Other people have pointed out to me that using movie ratings to look at visual art is like comparing apples to oranges but it has been a good exercise for me.
The reason for the post is that for the last year or so I have felt net art has been in a holding pattern. Great art works are being made and attention is finally being given, but I miss the time of experimentation. Thoughts 1,2 and 3 have let me know that net art might change again as all art will do. permanent link to this post
one of the greatest artworks of all time
posted at 16:23 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
Your Time Is Valuable (shockwave needed)
cool thing: it’s portable too! Just as effective online as it is in the gallery and vice versa.
yee ha! and hooo-ray! permanent link to this post
cool thing: it’s portable too! Just as effective online as it is in the gallery and vice versa.
yee ha! and hooo-ray! permanent link to this post
"Digital Typography" ca. 1983
posted at 15:06 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
While at my girlfriend’s parents home the other evening I ran across an article
called Digital Typography from a Scientific American ca. 1983. It
is a fascinating read, I feel like an archeologist who has found a tome that which
explains the basis of his belief system (ok, maybe that’s taking it a bit far).
Over the next few days I’ll post some of the more juicier passages from it along with scans from diagrams. One of the fun things about the article is it’s antique tone: ..once letterforms are represented as discrete elements they can be efficiently encoded as discrete and distinguishable phyical properties in any convenient medium, processed as bits of information by a computer, transmitted over great distances as pulses of current and decoded to reconstitute the letterforms… ah, email anybody? permanent link to this post
Over the next few days I’ll post some of the more juicier passages from it along with scans from diagrams. One of the fun things about the article is it’s antique tone: ..once letterforms are represented as discrete elements they can be efficiently encoded as discrete and distinguishable phyical properties in any convenient medium, processed as bits of information by a computer, transmitted over great distances as pulses of current and decoded to reconstitute the letterforms… ah, email anybody? permanent link to this post
Feb 11, 2003
War Protest
posted at 18:09 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
This weekend in NYC. Meet at 1st and 49th St. at Noon on Saturday the 15th of Feb, 2003.
If anyone’s interested, I’m meeting up with some people at 11:30AM on the south side of Union Square. Come on down and get yer anti-war on! Send me email if you interested so we know who we’re waiting for. After that the 6 to Lexington and 51st should get us close to the rally. permanent link to this post
If anyone’s interested, I’m meeting up with some people at 11:30AM on the south side of Union Square. Come on down and get yer anti-war on! Send me email if you interested so we know who we’re waiting for. After that the 6 to Lexington and 51st should get us close to the rally. permanent link to this post
Update Shoot
posted at 14:01 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
M.River and I were talking a while back about updating Chris Burden’s seminal
Shoot
performance from 1971. MTAA have done a few
updates of artist’s work
in the past.
This is the idea:
We make a credit card public. All the information one would need to steal the credit card and use it would be made publicly available on the web.
It’s fairly easy to see the irony in updating Shoot in this way. I think it’s a good idea for a project but we’re afraid that this information would lead to someone stealing our identities all together. (Which I guess is an update to being shot in the chest instead of the arm). permanent link to this post
This is the idea:
We make a credit card public. All the information one would need to steal the credit card and use it would be made publicly available on the web.
It’s fairly easy to see the irony in updating Shoot in this way. I think it’s a good idea for a project but we’re afraid that this information would lead to someone stealing our identities all together. (Which I guess is an update to being shot in the chest instead of the arm). permanent link to this post
Feb 09, 2003
The new MTAA blog is up!
posted at 22:17 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
I’ve posted some things below to help get this thing started.
The texts below were orginally posted on to the Rhizome RAW mailing list. If you’re not
familiar with Rhizome, it’s a new media discussion site. (There’s plenty of links
on this page so that you can find your way there.)
We hope to keep this thing fairly active and keep folks abreast of the happenings in the New York City new media and net art scene. Like, last night: Cary Peppermint performance at the Collective Unconscious, a alternative theater on Ludlow St.
Cary launched a few new ‘techno-lectures’ during the performance including Fever Lecture (11.7mb). And had a couple of ‘e’ addled asian hipsters doing some club moves. I would say that a good time was had by all.
OH YEAH! almost forgot, if you want a link on the side bar over there, let me know. permanent link to this post
We hope to keep this thing fairly active and keep folks abreast of the happenings in the New York City new media and net art scene. Like, last night: Cary Peppermint performance at the Collective Unconscious, a alternative theater on Ludlow St.
Cary launched a few new ‘techno-lectures’ during the performance including Fever Lecture (11.7mb). And had a couple of ‘e’ addled asian hipsters doing some club moves. I would say that a good time was had by all.
OH YEAH! almost forgot, if you want a link on the side bar over there, let me know. permanent link to this post
The yearn to be appreciated long after you’re dead
posted at 16:45 GMT by T.Whid in /news/twhid
[orginally posted to the
rhizome raw
list on 10/8/99]
recently reading an editorial by philippe de montebello, the director of the met [museum] in nyc, i was troubled by his idea that superior aesthetic form is the primary criteria for a lasting artwork. he stated that though daumier merely made political cartoons, we appreciate his work over his contemporary Gavarni because "he was only a journeyman artist..".
what’s troubling to me isn’t the overly conservative tone of the piece, or the obviously out-dated modernist view of form being the single most important attribute art holds, or the assumption that the artists he derides in the article care about the staying power of their work. (most artists don’t care, only the museums and collectors who need to protect their investments.) no, what troubled me was that young artists who do have a romantic notion of being appreciated and famous long after they are dead have gotten very bad advice. net artists especially have gotten very bad advice from that editorial. the aesthetic superiority of the formal qualities of your work won’t ensure lasting appreciation, pr will.
its simple to have good pr while you’re alive and kicking. you do it yourself. you create networks of like-minded individuals who all promote one another. you issue press releases. you can hire someone to do it, if you have the loot. but after you are dead, the pr machine may quiet down quite a bit. you are no longer controlling it, if you’re lucky you’ll have endowed an institution to keep your name in the public eye. or the museum curators and the collectors will keep you in the press as a way of boosting their collections value. but as a net artist, who are we kidding? no one will have you in their collections, you’ll never have enough money to endow an institution. sure you have the power of the internet in your grasp, so in your time you can easily be known worldwide, but what happens after you’re not updating that website once a month?
i believe i have an answer: confusion!
that’s right, while you are alive, create lots of confusion about who you are and what you do. and leave lots of cryptic clues on email lists and bbs’s all over the internet. the historians love a mystery, and the future net art historians are going to have a gold mine of information, but only if we do our parts to help them now!
1. ensure that any email you send does not have your actual name on it.
2. if at all possible find a few alias’s to identify yourself, not just one: m.river, mark river, mike river, mike sarrf, is a good example. you could even pretend you are 2 or more different people.
3. create different and fanciful resumes, narratives, bios, statements to include in any and all shows you are affiliated with and on your websites.
4. the future net art historians may begin to become discouraged by all the confliciting data, so you need to sow the “truth” throught the data stream in a way that will be challenging to the historian, but not impossible for her to create a final story. to insure a place in the net art pantheon, sow 2-4 different “truths” through your data stream, this will promote healthy, attention getting debate amongst the future most ambitious net art historians.
5. create networks with other net artists to help bolster these different “truths” through your data stream.
i encourage anyone with any other ideas on how best to spin one’s future narrative to post it to this forum, i encourage mark tribe to, after a period of discussion on this topic, destroy this email and all threads relating to it so as we’re not found out!
remember, its always nice to be “rediscovered”. permanent link to this post
recently reading an editorial by philippe de montebello, the director of the met [museum] in nyc, i was troubled by his idea that superior aesthetic form is the primary criteria for a lasting artwork. he stated that though daumier merely made political cartoons, we appreciate his work over his contemporary Gavarni because "he was only a journeyman artist..".
what’s troubling to me isn’t the overly conservative tone of the piece, or the obviously out-dated modernist view of form being the single most important attribute art holds, or the assumption that the artists he derides in the article care about the staying power of their work. (most artists don’t care, only the museums and collectors who need to protect their investments.) no, what troubled me was that young artists who do have a romantic notion of being appreciated and famous long after they are dead have gotten very bad advice. net artists especially have gotten very bad advice from that editorial. the aesthetic superiority of the formal qualities of your work won’t ensure lasting appreciation, pr will.
its simple to have good pr while you’re alive and kicking. you do it yourself. you create networks of like-minded individuals who all promote one another. you issue press releases. you can hire someone to do it, if you have the loot. but after you are dead, the pr machine may quiet down quite a bit. you are no longer controlling it, if you’re lucky you’ll have endowed an institution to keep your name in the public eye. or the museum curators and the collectors will keep you in the press as a way of boosting their collections value. but as a net artist, who are we kidding? no one will have you in their collections, you’ll never have enough money to endow an institution. sure you have the power of the internet in your grasp, so in your time you can easily be known worldwide, but what happens after you’re not updating that website once a month?
i believe i have an answer: confusion!
that’s right, while you are alive, create lots of confusion about who you are and what you do. and leave lots of cryptic clues on email lists and bbs’s all over the internet. the historians love a mystery, and the future net art historians are going to have a gold mine of information, but only if we do our parts to help them now!
1. ensure that any email you send does not have your actual name on it.
2. if at all possible find a few alias’s to identify yourself, not just one: m.river, mark river, mike river, mike sarrf, is a good example. you could even pretend you are 2 or more different people.
3. create different and fanciful resumes, narratives, bios, statements to include in any and all shows you are affiliated with and on your websites.
4. the future net art historians may begin to become discouraged by all the confliciting data, so you need to sow the “truth” throught the data stream in a way that will be challenging to the historian, but not impossible for her to create a final story. to insure a place in the net art pantheon, sow 2-4 different “truths” through your data stream, this will promote healthy, attention getting debate amongst the future most ambitious net art historians.
5. create networks with other net artists to help bolster these different “truths” through your data stream.
i encourage anyone with any other ideas on how best to spin one’s future narrative to post it to this forum, i encourage mark tribe to, after a period of discussion on this topic, destroy this email and all threads relating to it so as we’re not found out!
remember, its always nice to be “rediscovered”. permanent link to this post