:: Friday, February 20, 2004 ::

The following is a brief introduction to "Consisting of Periodically Repeating Identical Units," a continuing online collaborative by the artists Hadas Kedar and Alex Schady. The project began 1 February 2004 this project will develop online at www.variablemedia.org over a two month period as part of its online residency program.

"Kedar and Schady have been making artworks together for four years and are based respectively in Tel Aviv and London. Their collaborations evolve from instructions that they email back and forth to each other. Previous works and the documentation of these, serve as the raw material for each new project. Working instinctively with multiple elements such as video,photography, installation and performance, their projects are focused on processes of research, construction and collaboration."Consisting of Periodically Repeating Identical Units" is their first online work.

The basis of this project is a semi-fictionalized online conversation. Beginning with their discussion about the structure of the site, the artists' may eventually take on the role of other characters who are familiar with their collaborative work. Through these playful conversations an analysis of Kedar and Schady's artistic practise so far will evolve. Art histories and personal histories, facts and fictions, problems and possible solutions will all be addressed within the text. The conversation will also reference and contribute to the development of the visual elements of the work. Slide shows, juxtaposing their own images with art historical references, and QuickTime Movies will be regularly updated on the site as the text narrative develops."

The project culminates 3 April 2004.
:: [+] ::
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Sony Playstation's Third Place Gallery recently announced the winners of their "FUN show". Not professing to be a net.art award as such the winners are however "commissioned for a sum of €2.000 each and donated to Swedish collection of Net Art at a prestigious art institution" and their was a net.art category. The two winners, which for such a respectable prize must have drawn a respectable entrance, are not outstanding to say the least.

Petra Vargova from the Czech republic, won the Digital Expression category with her work Dead or Alive 2, a video piece of the artist fighting characters in the Playstation 2 game, Dead or Alive 2, no prizes for guessing why Playstation choose this. While James Ford from England won the Net.art category with his work House Gymnastics, a sort of Parkour for interiors which was brought to the attention of the masses under the guise of Luc Besson's written and produced (not directed), Yamakasi.

As choices for this award both pieces are flawed. Vargova's work plays it safe in every respect which is a hugh disapointment if you know some of her previous work such as Zone. Enter a piece in an award funded by the biggest games console manufacturer in the world that is about a video game. Choose video as the format to present this work because its accessible to the probable audience of the Third Place Gallery, players of Playstation 2 who probably don't have a huge awareness of net.art. Ford's work while more assuredly taking on a form of the internet, a website, is well - simply not net.art. It might be art, in fact I would say it has a lot in common with modern dance and / or performance, but as a website it simply serves as documentation of that art, documentation that is not even in anyway unique to how documentation can be presented on networks. Labeling the work net.art is both misleading to the public and insulting to Ford's work.

Disappointing overall, hopefully shows / awards like this will not detract from net.art as a whole and mislead public awareness of the genre too far astray.

:: Garrett Lynch [+] ::
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Are you with or against Rhizome? Vladimir Kovacevic definitively is against. His After Rhizome site, launched a year ago, gave lot's of arguments why not to pay $5 for membership and caused heavily debates amongst net artists on mailinglists. Now a year later he evaluates the developments surrounding Rhizome and the netart community. Amongst others he uses a text I wrote last week where I tried to come up with a good starting point for people interested in net art. Though I think he reads things in my posting that I didn't write (meant), a lot of his evaluation gives food for thought. Check out After Rhizome that besides all Rhizome membership con arguments also contains loads of links to alternatives to Rhizome.

:: Peter Luining [+] ::
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For those of you continually in search of new media theory on the net try dichtung-digital which delivers its content in English and German.

"Dichtung-digital.de is a journal for reviews and scholarship about digital literature and art (Concept). It was founded in June 1999." Since 1999 it "has developed into an internationally recognized online journal in digital aesthetics."

:: Garrett Lynch [+] ::
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Addtions to the New Media Fix:

Dietz: Curating on the Web is a must for anyone interested in the dynamics of curating works online, specifically the pressures faced by museum curators. The essay provides great links as well.

Journal is a brand spanking new resource offering high quality essays on media and technology at large.

The fix for this week is teleportacia.org
:: Eduardo Navas [+] ::
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