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Voice of Fire 2006
September 16 - November 5, 2006
The Voice of Fire 2006 is a chat room avatar. Its form and colour parodies a famous painting named Voice of Fire, by Barnett Newman, owned by the National Gallery of Canada. The painting’s purchase in 1989 caused a furore, as people were challenged to understand why almost 2 million dollars was spent on its acquisition. Those in the art community were, in turn, challenged to explain the value of monumental abstract painting. Turner’s Voice of Fire 2006 is, in many ways, a reincarnation of heroic abstraction, with the advantages of cyberspace. Unlike monumental acrylic paintings, this digital artwork is not quiet, nor can it be fully experienced with silent contemplation. It is chatty, pixilated, projected, animated and can only be interactive online. For those familiar with chat room technology, it won’t be news that this territory of digital technology within the Internet has come to be considered (and experienced) as a very real realm. Communities are discovered and are built in chat rooms, and participants’ avatars are designed or selected to best represent one’s online life form. In some ways, creating and animating an avatar in a chat room may be similar to acting as the Wizard of Oz, behind the curtain of the Internet.
September 16 - November 5, 2006
The Voice of Fire 2006 is a chat room avatar. Its form and colour parodies a famous painting named Voice of Fire, by Barnett Newman, owned by the National Gallery of Canada. The painting’s purchase in 1989 caused a furore, as people were challenged to understand why almost 2 million dollars was spent on its acquisition. Those in the art community were, in turn, challenged to explain the value of monumental abstract painting. Turner’s Voice of Fire 2006 is, in many ways, a reincarnation of heroic abstraction, with the advantages of cyberspace. Unlike monumental acrylic paintings, this digital artwork is not quiet, nor can it be fully experienced with silent contemplation. It is chatty, pixilated, projected, animated and can only be interactive online. For those familiar with chat room technology, it won’t be news that this territory of digital technology within the Internet has come to be considered (and experienced) as a very real realm. Communities are discovered and are built in chat rooms, and participants’ avatars are designed or selected to best represent one’s online life form. In some ways, creating and animating an avatar in a chat room may be similar to acting as the Wizard of Oz, behind the curtain of the Internet.
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