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A Techno-Sceptic Manifesto
by
Sita Popat and Gray T. Miller
Directors, satorimedia LLC
Directors, satorimedia LLC
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A Techno-Sceptic Manifestoby
Sita Popat and Gray T. Miller
Directors, satorimedia LLC |
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We at satorimedia are artists.
We choose to concentrate on art that is mediated through contemporary technology. This means that, although we are not all computer programmers, we each work towards a level of understanding of the technology that is relevant to the expression of our art. Our primary concern is with the creation of each work, but we believe that there are elements of technology that can help us realize the art as we have envisioned it.
We strive to use technology only when it is relevant to the artwork.
We aim to achieve an deeper knowledge of the technology used in the context of the artworks that we make. We wish to explore and develop our understanding and familiarity of the chosen technology, rather than constantly reaching out like children for new toys.
We aim to apply our knowledge of art, in its historical and contemporary contexts, so that in making art we draw upon the full potential of the art form, rather than re-inventing the wheel in a variety of materials.
We believe that art can suffer from its relationship with technology because:
a) Designing with contemporary technology often takes up so much energy that the artist does not have time to concentrate on the art.1
b) Technology is prone to failure.2
c) Compromises frequently have to be made because the technology will not do what the artist requires.3
d) Getting the technology into the venue is often problematic and expensive.
e) Even if the artwork is outstanding and the technology works, audiences tend to focus on the technology, so that the intended meaning of the artwork is lost.
f) Funding tends to be given to any project that includes the word 'technology', rather than according to merit.
We believe that in spite of these drawbacks, technology is worth using because:
a) Technology is inescapable; it is pervasive to human culture.
b) We believe that there is a responsibility for artists to re-purpose technology, especially potentially destructive technology.
c) Recent technological developments have been focused on improved communication, which stimulates the flow of ideas, which instigates creativity and expression, which feeds art.
d) The development of digital media has facilitated the hybridization of previously hermetic art forms.
e) We wish to collaborate as artists, despite the fact that we are on different continents, and technology allows us to do this.
New technology is rough, and that can be frustrating, but at the same time it challenges us to find clearer and more diverse ways of expressing ourselves. At satorimedia, we aim to use technology to find ways to communicate not only with each other, but with artists and audiences around the world. Although we feel that the unrestricted embracing of technology has many inherent dangers, we also believe that constraints can stimulate creativity. We believe that advancing technologies will further facilitate communications, fostering an exchange of ideas essential to the development of the arts. The greatest example of this is the Internet; originally designed to win an unwinnable war, now the medium of collaboration and interaction between all parts of the globe.
This is not a mistake. We have confidence that the human psyche can rise above its destructive instincts towards the creation of beauty accessible to all. We the artists of satorimedia...where it all comes together.
1 Technology is rarely designed to meet the needs of a particular work of art. Much technology-based art, in fact, is comprised of the juxtaposition of previously disparate technologies, such as computers and sound, or paint and film. As digital formats multiply, the difficulties in getting various machines to communicate information between each other grow exponentially.–GTM
2 "...maybe our forward progress needs to be disabled, now and then, simply to allow the thoughts and feelings of the deep heart to emerge, providing a grounding of values and the essential element of mystery, without which our progress goes on unhindered and therefore dangerous."-Thomas Moore, The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life, P. 88
back to text3 This is related to one of the "laws of Performance Technology", the signal: noise ratio. Simply put, it states that if you simplify the protocol, the stronger the signal will be-whatever that is. Conversely, if you simplify the signal, then you strengthen whatever protocol is being used-which is a way to overcome temperamental technology. The problem lies in the fact that when you simplify the signal that much, there's not much worth saying...