Technology comes in many forms.
More often than not technology is the driving force that isolates us from the
simpler times that hark back to when the main point of our existence was to hunt and
gather our daily sustenance. With each passing moment, time unrelentingly moves
on like the second hand on a grandfather clock, tick-tock tick-tock; and then
and what seems like all-of-a-sudden 20 years have passed. It’s not
uncommon to hear the phrase, ‘where did the time go?’
But we do remember where the time
went. We remember it in the photos we took, in the letters we wrote; we remember moments in the cities we built, the voyages around the world, and beyond,
by the ships that took us there and even off-world. We do all of this
with our technology, and through technology we remember.
The term catalogue is one way to
store information. Nowadays we might refer to this as a database. Whenever we
have vast amounts of information stored away in archives or repositories, when
it comes time to access a particular item from that ordered-list of the things
we have stored—and moreover where they are stored—this list makes finding what we are
looking for much easier. Arguably the key ingredient that differentiates ‘junk’
from ‘treasure’ is the database.
But when it comes to the narrative
of the database, not all are created equally, that is according to Lev
Manovich (Manovich, 1998). In typical academic journal-style writing Manovich takes his reader
to places far beyond ordinary comprehension. The style of writing offers no apologies
about who reads it, which is a shame because the content has so much to offer, especially
for the budding abstract artist wanting new ideas on creating something
different.
For those who persist and stick
with Manovich’s article to the end, there is something worth the effort. In the early
second half the last century an American animator, John Whitney put together a device made from
old parts originally designed to ‘scope out’ an opposing force with hostile
intent, and with those parts gave meaning to abstract-art in motion. The best
way to believe something is to see it for yourself, so head over to YouTube and view the video
here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbV7loKp69s
The video is titled Catalog and
runs for a little over 7 minutes. Below is a still image of what you can
expect.
Aside from the reading I would
like to touch on the subject of copyright. More often than not it is far too easy
to simply use Dr Google when it comes to looking for items that are not our
own, in particular, images. It may not be obvious but there is a filter that
can be applied to either show or hide search results according to where the fit into the copyright categorisation.
For students it
has been pointed out that we should adhere to proper protocols when it comes to
the use of copyrighted material. This applies to everything that we use, be it
images, sounds, software, and so on.
Listed under Week 2
Watch/Investigate resources are links to some fine examples of digital writing techniques.
I did notice, however, that in the video by Alex May he seems to take the issue
of copyrighted software rather flippantly. I heard terms such as ‘pirated
programs’ and ‘bittorents’. These terms are generally (but not always) seen as means to acquiring illegal material.
I also remember back in week 1
where the term ‘Napster’ was mentioned. Again, there was no mention of
copyright restrictions; in its day Napster was seriously deplored by major
organisations such as the Motion Pictures Association of America (MPAA) and the Recording Industry of America (RIA). These organisations were known to dish
out severe monetary penalties via the court systems in America, regardless of
who downloaded what.
Australia too has restrictions. For example if a business wants to play commercially recorded music in their restaurant they are required to have the appropriate license. Further details on applying for a license in Australia can be found at: https://ablis.business.gov.au/service/ag/licence-to-play-music-in-restaurants-and-cafes/39930
Australia too has restrictions. For example if a business wants to play commercially recorded music in their restaurant they are required to have the appropriate license. Further details on applying for a license in Australia can be found at: https://ablis.business.gov.au/service/ag/licence-to-play-music-in-restaurants-and-cafes/39930
Works Cited
Manovich, L.
(1998). Database as a Symbolic Form. Retrieved from manovich:
http://manovich.net/content/04-projects/022-database-as-a-symbolic-form/19_article_1998.pdf
Some interesting rumination son copyright there. Its interesting to note that Napster, starting off the idea of sendin music over the Internet, presaged or pre-empted streaming music as we have now with Spotify et al having us pay per month for music but paying the actual artists almost nothing in royalties.
ReplyDeleteIn typical academic journal-style writing Manovich takes his reader to places far beyond ordinary comprehension.
You're right about that. I could only glean a bit of what he was saying, and the example o he gave of Peter Greenaway embracing the idea of database replacing narrative does show that this may be one way of seeing how culture is changing, but that narrative will win in the end. Stories aren't databases.
You write wonderfully! Copyright is an important thing to learn about. People often seem to think photos come from nowhere. I remember an artist named Glen Rayne talking about his art being stolen. He makes art for a popular game franchise. People were printing off his images and selling them as posters. He said that people seem to think that art comes from an art machine.
ReplyDeleteBy the way this is Leila!
ReplyDelete