Evan Roth

Evan Roth is an artist and graffiti aficionado born in the US in 1978. Roth received an MFA at Parsons School for Design where he now teaches controversial courses on viral media. He has studied the metrics and patterns in graffiti around the world and his art makes connections between the uses of technology, popular culture and the urban environment. His project 9 to 5 Paintings utilizes a "double mouse" which he created. It is one mouse connected by two separate cables to two separate computers. This allows the user to conduct routine computer activity (checking e-mails, browsing the internet, etc) on one computer while tracking mouse movement and clicks on another. What results is an interesting map of mouse activity which serve as "visual representations of your daily computing routines." The idea is that you get to create art while you work, hence the name 9 to 5 Paintings.

The idea of making art out of daily, routine activity is very interesting. Roth seems to be suggesting that digital activity and the patterns we make in our activity can express something all by themselves. The patterns created by making mouse clicks and drags create the shapes and lines of the art. Normal computer activity like answering emails, browsing the internet, playing a game or making a PowerPoint presentation become the essence of the art piece. By re-envisioning normal computer tasks in a visually artistic way, a person can think about how they use the mouse and interact with the computer and digital data. The use of two screens while making the piece allows the artist some control over the piece if they want it but it takes away from the organic authenticity of the product.

The one thing I think these pieces are missing is incorporation of typing in some way. The program, at the moment, only tracks mouse movement (clicks, drags, etc) but I think keyboard activity would add a compelling second data source that could add a new element to the pieces. Perhaps the mouse and keyboard activity could be shown in different colors. I think adding keyboard activity would help create a more complete picture of a person's computer activity since writing is a very important part of computer usage and is not captured in these pieces as they are now. Aside from this, though, I think the simplicity of the pieces is beautiful and accessible and really interesting--no need for a social agenda, simple self-analysis is all that's really needed to make a compelling art piece!

Self Portrait

Aram Bartholl

Aram Bartholl is a German artist who is currently serving a artist residency in New York at the Eyebeam Art and Technology Center. Aram deals mainly with the connection between digital space and public space. In one of his most recent works, Dead Drops, Aram plainly makes the two spaces one. He carves out niches in walls around New York (5 locations so far) and places USB drives in them so they stick out into the public space. The USB drives contain a readme file that explain the project. You are meant to find the USB drives and connect your computer to them and use them as a free file-sharing "drop box." Since the locations are semi-secret, Aram has adopted the name "dead drops" for these USB drives, pulling from the idea of a secret location used to pass messages between people.

Aram's Dead Drops are a way to join digital and public space. The digital space becomes a message board for the people, out in the public space but in digital form. The digital space becomes part of the public space through its presence in the USB drive and the public space becomes part of the digital space through the sharing of files, almost like graffiti. Aram says that the idea behind this project is to create a free file-sharing environment, meant to be used for people to upload and download files they wish to share with each other. As technology becomes an increasingly large part of our daily lives, it is only a matter of time, Aram seems to be saying, before digital space and public, everyday space become completely combined. With the use of any public space, though, there is some danger. Humans are human and, as such, there is always a malicious use of a seemingly great thing. Right away on Aram's blog showcasing his new project, there was backlash against his idea for a variety of reasons. People worried about security, saying that, because the data is public and anyone can post, they will naturally become infested with viruses and hacks meant to hurt anyone who connects to them. People also were worried about the USB drives poking out of walls either because they could "poke a five-year-old in the eye" or because they could easily be damaged or damage the compute they connect to.

However, I think the people worrying about these things are missing the point--any public space has these same dangers. When dealing with people, you must learn to protect yourself (aka private space. In this case, yourself and your computer). As in any use of public space, one should use these dead drops with caution after protecting your computer to react to any harmful data that might be on them. The digital space, in this way, is no different from public space. We have programs in place to protect our public and private space (police, government, judicial system, etc) so it only makes sense to put programs in place to protect our digital space (virus scanners, etc.). These common threats just serve to draw more connections between digital and public space as well as reveal a very dark nature to humanity. We cannot appreciate a good idea and let it alone to play out its intent: what was meant to be a place for sharing interesting and enjoyable things has now come to be (if only theoretically) a place for the sharing of malicious and devious things. Hooray for the modern world!