Exercise 1.4

What do you understand by the phrase ‘digital art’? List the possible meanings and indicate the one that you consider most viable.

What does the term ‘digital’ mean?

The Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English states that digital means:

‘using a system in which information is recorded or sent out electronically in the form of numbers, usually ones and zeros.’

This method of technology allows for the representation of lots of data (information) . Examples of devices/systems that use this technology are computers, TV’s cameras and mobile phones.

Definitions of the phrase ‘digital art’?

• The Tate organisation state that ‘digital art is a term used to describe art that is made or presented using digital technology’.
• Digital artists Jon Thomson and Alison Craighead (2015) describe digital art as art that uses data as its material.
• The online Enclyclopedia.com describes digital art as ‘contemporary art in which computer technology is used in a wide variety of ways to make distinctive works..’ it can be ‘presented on video screens, be abstract or figurative… Digital art also includes works, many of them interactive, made to be used on the web.’
• Artist and curator Stephanie Przybylek describes digital art as ‘work made with digital technology or presented on technology’. (For example images created on a computer or hand drawn images that are scanned then adapted using a program such as Adobe.) …’it can also involve animation and 3D virtual sculpture renderings as well as projects that combine several technologies. Some digital art involves manipulation of video images.’ Przybylek describes this as a ‘merger between art and technology.’

So, if we take the definitions above, it becomes apparent that digital art encompasses a lot of areas. According to Digital Art Weekly ‘What is Digital Art? Definition and Scope of the New Media’ (2018), digital art is also defined as object-oriented artworks and process-oriented visuals. . In the first case digital technologies function as a tool to create traditional objects such as paintings, photographs and sculptures. In the second case, the technology is the end project. They also propose 8 different types of digital art:

1.Digital painting -via pc or tablet creating similar affects to traditional watercolour/acrylic painting.

2.Digital photography – e.g photographs, scans, satellite images.

3. Sculptures – designed through computer software. Displayed physically or virtually.

4.Digital installations – 3D, interactive, virtual and augmented reality.

5. Videos, animation and the moving image

6. Internet and networked art.

7.Software art – computational engineering

8.Mixed Media – digital creations of various outputs.

Examples of digital art

CONCLUSION

The introduction of digital technology into mainstream contemporary society has given artists the opportunity to create and experiment with it. I would argue that the most viable meaning is perhaps the simplest one given by the Tate organisation. ‘Digital art is a term used to describe art that is made or presented using digital technology’. It would seem that this definition encompasses a wide field in the art world from photography and video installations to complex computer programming to create a visual affect. I would perhaps expand upon the terms ‘made’ and ‘presented’ to explain that there is object orientated digital artworks and process orientated digital artworks – Digital technology as a tool or medium (photography, painting) and digital technology as the end project (installations).

List of Illustrations

Fig 1. Milk C. (2012) The treachery of Sanctuary (white panel frames and digitally projected shadows) [photograph] at http://milk.co/treachery#/id/i4251911

Fig 2. Koblin, A. Flight Patterns At http://www.aaronkoblin.com/work/flightpatterns/

Bibliography

Digital Art – Art term At https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/d/digital-art

https://www.encyclopedia.com/reference/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/digital-art

Longman dictionary of contemporary English viewed at https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/digital

Przybylek, S. What is Digital Art? – Definition, History & Examples At https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-digital-art-definition-history-examples.html Accessed 13/11/2019

The British Arts council ‘What is Digital Art?’ at

ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2RWop0Gln24 accessed 13/11/2019