Digital Video & Computer Games

Machinima

What is Machinima? Machinima is the use of real-time 3D computer graphics rendering engines to create a cinematic production. Most often, video games are used to generate the computer animation.

Experimental Use of Machinima Machinima as an art intervention Ex: Second Life Dumpster by eTeam Ex: Work by Third Faction (art collective) Ex: Anne-Marie Schleiner (Velvet Strike) Machinima as performance art Ex: Work by Eva and Franco Mattes Ex: “Looks Very Tidy” by James Morgan and John Bruneau Ex: Work by Joseph deLappe (Gandhi project)

Third Faction – Art Collective is a group of new media artists based in the Silicon Valley they create art within The World of Warcraft Third Faction’s focus is to develop a democratized, peaceful and non-hierarchical society this is a participatory practice that welcomes new membership

/hug project by Third Faction http://thirdfaction.org/hug/

eTeam Art Collective is the New York-based duo of German artists Franziska Lamprecht and Hajoe Moderegger often their work humorously touches upon the serious issues of consumption and the environment in 2008 they started the Second Life Dumpster project which monitors the levels of consumption in the virtual world by tagging pieces of garbage with a decay script written by the artists

Second Life Dumpster by eTeam Dumpster project

John Bruneau & James Morgan an art collective consisting of two local artists both have graduated from the CADRE program at San Jose State University with an MFA in Digital Media Art are part-time professors at the Art Institute and San Jose State specialize in interactive, video art and machinima

Looks Very Tidy Performance by James Morgan & John Bruneau, 2007 Looks Very Tidy web site

New Media – Eva & Franco Mattes were born in Italy in 1976 since meeting in Madrid in 1994, they have never separated, living a nomadic life throughout Europe and the United States neither of them received art education; however, they are counted among the pioneers of the Net Art movement, and are renowned for their subversion of public media

Reenactment of Shoot Reenactment of Chris Burden’s performance “Shoot” in Second Life by Eva and Franco Mattes, 2007

New Media – Joe de Lappe an art professor at the University of Nevada has been working with electronic and new media since 1983 has exhibited work throughout the US and abroad - including Australia, the UK, China, Germany, Spain, etc.

Gandhi Project by Joe de Lappe Reenactment of Gandhi’s Salt March

Gandhi Project by Joe de Lappe “Over the course of 26 days, using a treadmill customized for cyberspace, I reenacted Mahatma Gandhi's famous 1930 Salt March. The original 240-mile walk was made in protest of the British salt tax. My update of this seminal protest march took place at Eyebeam and in Second Life, the Internet-based virtual world. For this performance, I walked the entire 240 miles on a converted treadmill and online. My steps on the treadmill controlled the forward movement of my avatar, MGandhi Chakrabarti, enabling the live and virtual reenactment of the march.” - joe de lappe

Going one step further…

Hacking – Cory Arcangel (American, 1978 - ) uses the artistic strategy of appropriation, creatively re-using existing materials such as YouTube videos, computer games, etc. to create new works of art his work explores the relationship between technology and culture

Hacking – Cory Arcangel’s Work Super Mario Clouds F1 Racer (Japanese Racing Game)

Hacking – Cory Arcangel’s Work I Shot Andy Warhol Was created by hacking and rewriting the game “Hogan’s Alley” for the NES.

Hacking – Anne Marie Schleiner is engaged in gaming and net culture in a variety of roles as a writer, critic, curator, and gaming artist/designer her work investigates avatar gender construction, computer gaming culture, and hacker art

Hacking – Anne Marie Schleiner Velvet Strike (anti-war collection of sprays and recipes for use in online shooter games), 2002

Art21 PBS Series: Cao Fei http://video.pbs.org/video/1281753428/