Reading Response 3

         The definition of a metaphor is, “a figure of speech in which a term or phrase is applied to something which it is not literally applicable in order to suggest resemblance; an emblem.” Daniel Chandler’s article, Semiotics: The Basis: Challenging the Literal, talks about the relationship between metaphors and our physical reality. Metaphors apply to the language we speak, and the language we see in art. I believe that each individual has their own individual reality, giving each their own individual interpretation on some metaphors. In art, if a viewer is looking at a piece where the content is deliberately non-literal, what ever the interpretation, the viewer will have different connotations of the metaphor. Culture, family, races, immediate environment always come into play with interpretation of any language. It’s the “baggage” of the viewer.

            In the article “Transaesthetics”, by Margot Lovejoy, the issue of technology becoming the new medium in art arises. Lovejoy talks about the two sides of technology that people, not always in the art world, gravitate towards. There is the side that sees technology as Satan. And the side that sees it as God. The Satan side is filled with skepticism and resistance while the God side embraces technology and engages in a positive interaction with it. Technology as a medium in art brings a question of the artist hand in the work. How much is the artist actually creating and how much is the artist allowing technology to create the work, or simply be the work. For example, I am a painter, so my hand in my work is extremely important to the creation process and the finished product.  When I use imagery in my painting, which is rare lately, I do use the technology of the computer to reference images. I also use it as far as documentation and publication of my work, research of other artists or historical references, or communication. As far as creating my work though, technology is not Satan, but it is far from God. For me, technology is a tool, not a medium. I think that technology is viable as a medium to anyone that can utilize it in a way to create successful work, whether that be video installations, manipulated two-dimensional imagery, or machine made sculpture. “Definitions of art alter with historical and technological change.”  

            Claire Bishop’s article “Antagonism and Relational Aesthetics,” talks about Bourriaud’s writings of “relational art work seeking to establish intersubjective encounters rather that private individual consumption of the art.” Relational art can be designated to performance, installation, and interactive art. It utilizes the space and the audience. The artist creates a different reality or community, a synopsis of the concept for the viewer to experience first hand.