Title: Autonomous Expressionism: a framework for installation directed Network Arts

Authors: David A. Shamma

Addresses: Internet Experiences, Yahoo! Research, 2821 Mission College Blvd, M/S 1MC-08, Santa Clara, CA 95054, USA

Abstract: Digital media has blurred the distinction between creator-centric and experiencer-centric artwork. From online photo collections to remixed videos, the use of new media in digital art conflate the role of creator and experiencer, often leaving the installation itself to make critical decisions, which steer the performance. This article presents The Imagination Environment, an art installation serving as a reflector of popular culture by fusing TV and movies with photos found online. The installation embodies Autonomous Expressionism as a framework of network artwork based in theory and psychology, from the models of art consumption by Kandinsky to the interaction models of Csikszentmihalyi. In Autonomous Expressionism, the roles of the creator is secondary to that of online communities and it is the codification of this model that catalyses new ideas and foster creative collaboration across disciplines.

Keywords: abstract expression; digital art; autonomous expressionism; creativity; Csikszentmihalyi; Duchamp; expression; art installation; Kandinsky; models; network artwork; popular culture; TV; television; movies; films; online photos; photographs; psychology; art consumption; interaction models; online communities; web based communities; virtual communities; creative collaboration.

DOI: 10.1504/IJART.2009.024058

International Journal of Arts and Technology, 2009 Vol.2 No.1/2, pp.62 - 81

Published online: 24 Mar 2009 *

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