August 14-20, 2003

artpicks

"New Directions in New Media"

Art

In an effort to foster international dialogue about digital art, InLiquid presents "New Directions in New Media," on view in Minima Gallery and online at inliquid.com. This exhibition is the first installment in an ongoing series documenting the adolescence of digital art and its evolution from novelty item into something truly expressive.

Nationally renowned curator Nora Barry gathers the work of more than 20 national and international digital artists. Highlights include Young-hae Chang Heavy Industries' Beckett's Bounce, a jazz-inspired poetry Flash animation that eschews complicated interactivity, playing instead to the short attention span of Internet surfers. In David Crawford's Stop Motion Studies, Series 7 (pictured), the user selects videos from drop-down menus, juxtaposing scenes from subways in different cities. These artists appropriate databases, online environments and code-based programming, tools formerly left to the MIT set; they work with the brass tacks of the media rather than the hype. Because technology is second nature to the artists, the work contains irreverent playfulness, rather than fervent technophilia. The viewer senses that digital media has come into its own, like film or photography, as a staple of artistic expression.

“New Directions In New Media,” opening reception Tue., Aug. 19, 5:30-8:30 p.m. (lecture by curator Nora Barry at 6 p.m.), exhibition Wed., Aug. 20, 5:30-8:30 p.m. and Thu., Aug. 21, 5:30-10 p.m., Minima Showroom, 47 N. Second St., 215-922-2002; available at www.inliquid.com starting Fri., Aug. 22.

—Nikki Roszko