BLOG PROMPT FIVE: Kinetic Imagery
Indirect Flights (2015) by Joe Hamilton and various websites (2001-Present) by Rafael Rozendaal
PLEASE ANSWER BY POSTING COMMENTS.
Please share your thoughts regarding these works, which explore the web in a light-hearted, aesthetically driven way.
Indirect Flights by Joe Hamilton: http://indirect.flights/
Rafael Rozendaal: https://www.newrafael.com/websites/
Tasmanian artist Joe Hamilton created "a looping spiral of meticulously layered scenes built from video shots. ... Geographically disconnected locations merge to form a hybrid panorama. ... The piece directly references histories of landscape painting via expressive paint marks lifted from famous paintings. ... Indirect Flights is a response to the impact of digital technologies on the representation of landscape. ... [Hamilton's] work questions our established notions of the natural environment within a society that is becoming increasingly networked."
Dutch-Brazilian artist Rafael Rozendaal sells websites as art. Collectors purchase the domain and must agree to keep the work publicly accessible.
I have to admit that I personally preferred Rozendaal's sites to Indirect Flights, if only because I appreciate the tongue-in-cheek nature of many of the former's work. (I can only imagine part of this stems from their for-profit nature; silliness and brightly colored visual intrigue has a broader appeal than more downbeat subjects of art styles.) Many of them are more tech demos than anything else, with a few being outright goofy (the one with a trash can that constantly rejects the paper ball you try to throw in it comes to mind). Of course, this is not to demean the effort Hamilton put into his site, which is visually striking and raises some interesting points if you look past the immediate splendor. Exploring the unreal patchwork he composed makes for a surreal experience that is evocative of nature but evades any specific recollection on the viewer's end. It reminds me of a painting that purported to show what the world looks like during a stroke: a mass of shapes that are frustratingly close to concrete objects one would be familiar with.
ReplyDeleteI really loved Indirect Flights in part because I love flying (in airplanes, at airports, flying drones) and landscape photography which is why I was highly intrigued of this site. The use of overlapping and being able to drag around to no visible end and the added painterly aspect just made it even more fun to explore around the site. In a deeper sense, to see how much more tight-knit our world is through the use of the web is something I experience everyday; however, to see it from an overview perspective rather than a ground view is refreshing. In contrast, while I understand what Rozendaal was going for, it just wasn't up my alley. Maybe it's the pure saturated colors hurting my eyes or myself not taking the fun aspect to heart. I prefer a higher level of "quality" as subjective as that it but I think it's just hard for me to understand why people would want to buy sites that look like they were made in a middle school class with the simplistic coding nature and the extreme use of gradients. I understand it's in good fun, but it's not my thing and much prefer Indirect Flights.
ReplyDeleteI love the feeling of Indirect Flights. It's really appealing to see the different planes overlapping in a natural way. It definitely makes it feel like it goes deeper into space than it actually does. The theme I take from it is the overtaking of industry and modern technology taking over the natural world. The bright colors of beautiful landscapes are being covered up by rustic building material of browns and grays. I also enjoyed Rozendaal's work. I think they visualize extreme emotions very well. For example, his domain extra nervous .com uses the images to make the viewer feel that emotion fairly easily. I admire him insisting they have to keep the domains open so that the emotions they invoke can be universally felt.
ReplyDeleteThe Indirect Flights website really made me feel as if I were in top a constructed skyscraper looking down at the world. Though it was very interesting visually, it made me feel uneasy-like I was about to fall from a building. The visuals used are very interesting too because there is an obvious contrast between the beautiful nature scenery and the mundane construction type materials. It shows how distant we are from reality but also how far we have come in terms of technology advancements and development. Rozendaal's work is interesting because they seem to be very well-crafted gifs or some sort (in terms of the websites people buy). He is very focused on shapes and colors in his work and therefore it is up to the viewer to decide what the piece means to them in relation to what he has created.
ReplyDeleteI like the aesthetics of Hamilton's site. It was very well put together and the fact that it continuously loops is very interesting. It was also quite fun to move the image very quickly and then watch it slowly come to a stop. I also enjoyed Rozendaal's pages because there were so many things to do. It also looked like he made his pieces is Processing which I have used before. Whether or not he used this program, I liked trying to figure out how the pieces would be coded.
ReplyDeleteI fell in love with the Indirect Flights website. Rozendaal’s work is so unique and gives the viewers a different experience than one they could have on a day to day basis. I think his use of color stands out so much and is very unique. His work and the Indirect Flights specifically made me feel like I had escaped reality entirely which honestly started to trigger my flight or fight senses and give me an off putting feeling (in a good way).
ReplyDeleteI do not fly a lot but I love how Indirect Flight mimic the feels of looking down from an airplane when you can still see the landscape. Yet at the same time, it feels a little artificial because naturally the landscape will be at an angle in real fight. The piece feels as if you can drag on forever seeing limitless content, but I quickly found out that the images are repetitive. I assume that this is part of the artist's message. In this digital age, not only can you artificially see the landscape with technology, the landscape itself merges with the man-made objects and became homogenous.
ReplyDeleteRozendaal's website was a fun experience. The websites are simple but some of them are quite charming. The concept of selling the website and its domain as art is an interesting concept. Especially he required the buyer to keep the domain public and assessable to all. It makes me wonder what did the buyer actually buy? They did not denied the public to access the website, it's unlikely that they would actually change the website (technically a work of art). What did they actually own?
I really like Indirect Flights because of all the different layers and how there was no real end to it. It was fun to play around with and look through the different layers. I felt that the layers on top of the natural environment showed how all these man-made objects block out some of the environment from our view but at the same time we wouldn't be able to see that view without the digital age we are in.
ReplyDeleteRozendaal's website was very interesting and I enjoyed exploring all the different websites. They were all so simple yet were very intriguing to watch. I also liked how there were a few in there that were interactive. It's interesting how people could buy a website and keep it public. I'm not entirely sure what the point of that was but I still thinks it's an interesting concept and it was fun exploring the website.
I thought Indirect Flight was interesting but a bit overwhelming. There are definetly some asthetically pleasing parts, but the number of random objects detract I think from some of the really cool images. Rozendaal had a pretty fun site, or site of sites. It was pleasing to look at some of his work and even better when some of the sites were interactable. I think his regular exhibits were great to look at as well, not just his sites.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to Indirect Flights by Joe Hamilton, my opinion of transparency object is simple, MORE PLS! I think that trancperancy that is the png and animation side of APNG, is very important. It gives the developer a very unique edge to create something very interesting and this work is a good example. The works by Rafael Rozendaal are very unique, mater of fact, of all the artists we have seen the works on his site, are real digital works of art in modern abstract art.
ReplyDeleteIndirect Flights
ReplyDeleteHamilton’s work takes video clips from different places and combines them into a swirling landscape. This mix made me rethink how I see nature in today’s digital world. By using ideas from famous landscape paintings, he connects old art with new technology.
Rozendaal's website are simply unique artworks, His bright and fun designs invite people to explore. This way, art becomes easier for everyone to access and enjoy.