Armin Medosch: Automation, Cybernation and the Art of New Tendencies, 1961-1973 (2012)

“My research investigates exhibitions as sites of research and appraises the possibilities and contradictions of a progressive and socially engaged media art practice. The international art movement New Tendencies (NT) (1961-1973) provides the material evidence through its exhibitions, symposia, artworks, catalogues, newsletters and artist’s statements. The basic methodological assumption behind my research is that new insights are gained by questioning the various interdependencies between NT and historical change.

NT was searching for a synthesis between socialist emancipation and artistic modernism by proposing to replace the notion of art with visual research. The project emerged in Zagreb, capital of Croatia which was then part of Yugoslavia, a Socialist nation which did not belong to the Eastern bloc and experimented with market Socialism combined with social self-management and self-government. Yugoslavia’s unique role between the hegemonic power blocs made it possible that an international, humanistic, and progressive art movement could emerge from its territory.

With every exhibition and conference NT articulated its artistic position and set itself into relation with the respective techno-economic paradigm. NT began during the height of Fordism, continued during Fordism’s moment of crisis in 1968, and ended when a new paradigm – informational capitalism – started to develop from within the old one. In this historical context, my hypothesis is that NT’s exploration of participatory art stands in direct relation to the rise of automation and cybernation in society. A further layer of inquiry is the historically changing relationship between manual and intellectual labour and how art addresses it.

By contextualising NT my research contributes a new dimension to the history of media art. Through the chosen methodology, a new understanding is gained not only of this important art movement but of the general dynamics of media art in the second half of the 20th century.” (Abstract)

Doctoral thesis
Arts and Computational Technology, Goldsmiths, University of London
369 pages

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Diana Majdáková: Digitálny obraz v slovenskom výtvarnom umení 20.storočia. Uplatnenie počítačovej grafiky a digitálnych technológií v tvorbe statického obrazu (2008) [Slovak]

“Práca skúma oblasť počítačom podporovaného umenia, ktorá je založžená na tvorbe a ďalššom vizuálnom spracovaní digitálneho obrazu. Ide predovššetkým o počítačovú grafiku a jej využžitie v grafickom umení, ale aj jej zapojenie do iných výtvarných prejavov, ktorých výstupom je statický obraz. Kritériom sledovaného výberu je výtvarné využžitie ššpecifických vlastností počítačom generovaného obrazu a ich vizualizácia. [..] V práci ide predovššetkým o zmapovanie prejavov relevantnej oblasti počítačového umenia v rámci slovenského výtvarného umenia 20.storočia, s dôrazom na počiatočné fázy v 70. a 80. rokoch. Cieľom nie je “katalógový” prehľad vššetkého, čo sa v sfére digitálneho i počítačového umenia na Slovensku vytvorilo, ale o predstavenie najvýznamnejšších osobností a tendencií, ktoré uplatnenie digitálnych technológií v naššom umení významne ovplyvnili. Sledovaný časový úsek je približžne ohraničený prelomom 20. a 21.storočia.” (z úvodu)

Diplomová práca
Katedra dejín výtvarného umenia, Filozofická fakulta, Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave
Vedúca diplomovej práce: Alexandra Kusá
256 strán
via Mariša Rišková

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3/4 magazine, 27-28: Media Art History: Remake (2012) [English/Slovak]

Special bilingual issue of 3/4 magazine dedicated to media art history. Serves as a catalogue of a travelling exhibition Remake. It also brings, for the first time, selection of interviews done by Dušan Barok with personalities and media art and culture history-makers Diana McCarty, Michal Murin, Călin Man, Rasa Smite and Raitis Smits. Interviews are complemented by a passage from monograph about Steina and Woody Vasulka, entitled Dialogue with Daemons of Tools by art historian Lenka Dolanová, views on art scenes in Ukraine and Iceland and appendix showing the process of development of works for Remake exhibition.

Editor: Barbora Šedivá
Editor-in-chief: Slávo Krekovič
Contributing editors: Dušan Barok, Katarína Gatialová, Oliver Rehák, Mária Rišková, Catherine Lenoble
Publisher Atrakt Art, Bratislava, Slovakia
ISSN 1335-5309
134 pages

Remake project

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