Digital Aesthetics

  A blog that focuses on aesthetics through digital solutions that I will be presented to at the course, digital aesthetics, at Aarhus University.  

[lovedablogging-blog]

Mirawarri app

Apps At App Store you can install lots of different apps, for example for entertainment - including socialization, games and creative work.  Today, we are particularly interested in photos, (including selfies!) and how we can help to transform those pictures and make them shine even more and give them new life through various filters with the help of apps.

Mirawarri is a photo and digital image-making art app to bring your photos to life and stand out from the crowd with the Mirawarri digital frames, stickers and stamps.  

Mirrawarri’s technical functions When you have install the app at iPhone or Android you can use it to create unique photo creations, either with your already stocked pictures or with a whole new taken picture. 

Once you have selected the picture you want to continue with, you will see three menu items. In those menus you can choose between different frames, different stickers and different kind of stamps. With the items from the three menus you can create some unique images.

The different items from the three menus are inspired from the Warnayaka Aboriginal Art Centre in Australia's central desert. The app is bursting with color, beautiful Warlpiri painting from the Warnayaka Art Centre and photos from Australia's red centre.  

When you are satisfied with you created image, you have the opportunity to save it in you photo album at your phone. You could also share it on different social medias and if you want, you can use the hashtag #Mirawarri to share your photo creations with other Mirawarri users on social media - and be part of an ongoing project.

The aesthetic expression in the app In the photo and digital image app, Mirawarri, you create some unique images with the help of cultural symbols, known from Warnayaka Aboriginal Art Centre in Australia. Because of the use of those symbols, you not only use the app for entertainment, but also to create some kind of symbolic art. The symbols in the items have history and though you maybe don't know the story of the symbols, the result of your creative image gaining some added value.

When downloading the app, the app's description says following: "Forget boring hearts and flower-crowns; add a totally different, eye-catching aesthetic to your selfies". Since an aesthetic expression can be interpreted differently from person to person, it's not obvious that everyone finds your created image aesthetic, but what makes this app's function possible as being aesthetically is these historical symbols which originate from centuries ago, created by a people, many of whom are considered to be inspiring.

What this app does differently from other apps is to involve a culture that is brought to life in a digital world. It is a new opportunity to get young people to work with aboriginal while creating art. With the technical ability to share the finished image on social media, it can wake up the interest of others in the app and open more people's eyes to these symbolic items and maybe to increase the interest to get involved with the aboriginals culture.

Reflection In the text Welcome to Airspace by Kylie Chayka, the German co-founder of Third Wave, Igor Schwarzmann establish that over the past few years, something has happened. That every coffee place looks the same whether you are in Odessa, Beijing, Los Angeles or Seoul - the same raw wood tables, exposed brick and hanging Edison bulbs. And the funny part of it is that they have all independently decided to adopt the same faux-artisanal aesthetic. And it creates you going to the same place all over again. What’s interesting about that? Maybe not much, but it is some kind of safe and not too excited.

The creators behind the Mirawarri app; Gretta Louw and Owen Mundy have tried to create an app that is innovative, yet still easy and a bit familiar for the users. The new is the use of aboriginal art in the creations of images, and the familiar is the way to create the images, as well as to save and share on social media.

There is a good chance that the users would be able to use the app quickly. The question is whether the users are entertaining enough and if you do not already have knowledge about aboriginals; will it be interesting for the users to interact with? Personally, I quickly lost interest in using the app and although I have been in Australia myself and studied aboriginal art, I don't think the app managed to give me added value and reason enough to interact with it.

[panderinghanin]

An examination of my assumption

That the three aspects I listed in previous post are compelling.

First of all, it’s crucial to explain why I used the word compelling. Rethinking my choice of word makes me aware that the word “compelling” might make it sound like glitch art is interesting for every viewer. When you sense Gormley‘s work for the first time in real life, you might feel hit by a feeling of disassociation, simply because what you’ve always seen as immaterial has now become material. When you see Carmagnola‘s work you might think about decay or how time wears objects down, or you might just see a computer-edited picture of a statue head. And I assumed that the aspect of distortion glitch art offers, provokes not only an aesthetic reaction, but also an emotional one. To me, glitch art brings a sense of a disturbed reality, because it resembles a glitch itself and because of that, I assume that my connations to glitch art are the same as others’ who have also experienced glitch. In the end, however, we all experience and interpret things differently.

[lovedablogging-blog]

Hey Panderinghanin!  I like the way you are critical of your own review. In the above text you explain in a way that the reader understands why you have written as you do and what your thoughts have been about the work of Carmagnola. In your criticism, however, I also feel that you are still trying to pull the reader in a certain direction. Therefore, it becomes difficult for the reader to develop his/hers own opinion, but this does not have to be negative since, in your review, you should preferably tell what your experience of the work is and give the reader a picture of what to expect. 

It certainly helps you make the word bold and italic, because it emphasizes that the reader does not need to analyze the work the way you do it. So by using bold and italics, you disconnect yourself from the conclusion and emphasize that it is your point of view and your experience of the work. Very fine!

[lovedablogging-blog]

Criticism on my own post “The Garden of Emoji Delight”

A Digital everyday Object

On September 17th, I wrote a post, which included a review of Carla Gannis's work of "The Garden of Emoji Delight". I started the review by explaining how the work draws us into a modern era, by using a digital everyday object. I have subsequently wondered if a reader could figure out where I got this from. If I read my review like I were a reader who didn’t know my thoughts and experience of "The Garden of Emoji Delight", how many questions would this sentence give rise to?

I draw the opinion of others and their knowledge of digital everyday objects into my review and make it sound that it is not only my opinion I explain in the cross. It is, however, my own experience of Gannis's work and since I use emoji’s in all my communications on digital media I consider emoji’s to be a digital everyday object. I could have been clearer in my review that this is my personal experience and my own use of the digital object, emoji.

A Modern era

I also assume that the work draws us into a modern era. I still believe that it does. It uses an object that has become available in recent times. But after reading my own text again, I wonder if others will feel drawn into a modern era? Can I just conclude that we are all drawn into a modern era just because I have in my mind argued why it is a modern era? I don’t think so.

I have subsequently doubted if it can at all be described as a modern era? Perhaps it should rather be described as the present as we live in a digitized world in this moment. It is likely that the use of digital media between generations can be understood differently, but I believe that the majority of the people know emoji’s very well and make use of them in their digital communication.

My own experience

I chose to be critical of this sentence, as I would prefer not to put too many questions in the introduction of my review. I therefore hope that I have managed to explain myself better and clarify that it is my personal opinion as I elaborate in my review.

[lovedablogging-blog]

Development of Glitches

Have you ever played The Sims? Then you definitely know what a glitch is. For example ween you see your “sim” walk straight through a closed door, when a temporary error occurs in the system that is not part of the encoding, that’s a glitch! Glitches have over time been seen with new eyes. Right from works of art, to furniture designs that give us an expression of our modern and technological present.

I have been tasked to making an exhibition where there must be at least three works that contain glitches. I have selected three works that show the development of our understanding of glitch. From a work that shows a true glitch, which is an error in the system, which has subsequently been seen as a potential as a work. For a work where glitch has been used with care to develop a work that composes dance art with technical glitch effects. Finally, to show a work where the artist in full concentration has designed furniture with a glitch effect.  

My thoughts about the choice of the three works lie in the way the artists have used glitches and the three different expressions it gives the recipient. A meaningful title for an exhibition with this works will be Development in glitches.

1: Ruins Digitals

Artist: Myrto Amorgianou

https://media.giphy.com/media/l2JInid6CvYiXWwyA/giphy.mp4

Myrto works mainly on glitch-art, generative-art, and data-bending projects. Her techniques involve databending of images using Audacity, use of processing to produce generative art of images or GIFs.

In this piece she has created a GIF, which shows a moving picture. For me, it shows a sea that is embarrassing which appears as the glitch the image contains. When you looking at the image without knowing the artist’s thoughts about the work, it looks like a real glitch. Accordingly an error in the system, more than a set up work. I have chosen this work based on my first hand impression. Namely, this work shows a true glitch.

2: Live Performance Happening

Artist: Jason Akira Somma

Somma splits his creative life between dance and visual art. He has created four ongoing studies of glitch art and physical movement by distorting footage and images. The work Live Performance Happening is a real-time collaboration between a group of six flex dancers, electro-acoustic cellist Chris Lancaster and Somma, with his massive repertoire of video channeling tools.

I found this work hugely interesting because it creates the glitch effect to use it with another art form. In this work, glitches are used on purpose, to create a new expression where glitches are seen in a new and less disturbing way.

3: Good Vibrations

Artist: Ferrucio Laviani

Laviani designs for Fratelli Boffi who is known by to stretch and bend the boundaries of interior design with “glitch” furniture for a product series called “Good Vibrations”. Laviani feels inspired to use his furniture design to utilize both quality and this glitch effect which is characterized by image distortion that is low quality. This two focus area seems to fight against each other. He thinks of this twits makes the project fun and exciting to work with.

I particularly like the design by a large wardrobe. Here, Laviani really has got the glitch effect to be includes in the design. The furniture appears almost as a technological creation, more than furniture.

[lovedablogging-blog]

Review of The Garden of Emoji Delights

Artist: Carla Gannis Title: The Garden of Emoji Delight Date: 2014 Medium: Animation The name of the place you viewed the work: The Garden of Emoji Delights was exhibited on Kasia Kay Art Projects Gallery back in 2014.

The animated picture draws us into a modern time and makes use of everyday digital objects in a new way, The use of emoji’s in this way creates a humorous expression and makes the whole experience imaginative and inspiring. The way in which the many different emoji’s are used to create different moods, different times of the day, different experiences, helps to breathe life into the many different stories that plays in the picture.

When you zoom in on the individual objects in the picture, it spans wide how realistic the story is. Some parts are completely realistic, as it was taken out of reality. Other parts are composed in such a silly way that you can question “what is the message?”

The Imaginative mind of the artist

There is no doubt that the artist Carla Gannis has an imaginative mind and has studied every single emoji carefully to create this picture. I imagine she has wished to open our eyes to the objects that we so often use in our digital communication. We know the many ways that emoji’s can be interpreted and analyzed.

The playful and in some way digital picture can be considered as aesthetic, because the picture wakes lots of different moods and feelings, and if you analyze each part of the whole picture, you will be able to put together different kind of stories  and depending on who is watching the picture, different understandings will cause new stories. I was drawn by the picture because so much happened. The colors shine in my eyes and the many objects are composed crosswise. At first glance it was only the chaotic atmosphere that caught my attention, but then I let my eyes slide slowly over the different parts and my interest becomes bigger. The stories become easier to separate and understand, which gave me peace and quiet to consider my own use of emoji’s and the many different meanings a simple emoji can have by composing it in new ways.

Yes, I do like it

Often when you judge a story, you do it from the front page, and in this case it was a good thing. I found The Garden of Emoji Delight exciting and it draws my attention and made me curious. These characteristics contribute to make me say “yes, I do like it”.  

As described earlier, the picture is full of chaos and silly compositions. But if you peel the picture’s layers apart and go deeper into reality, the picture can be understood in so many ways. For me, it helps to make this picture more than just a picture with lots of emoji’s, but instead a picture full of stories that I can turn around into directions I imagine them.

[lovedablogging-blog]

Hello Tumblr! My name is Henriette Haagensen Christensen, and I am a 25-year-old student at Digital Design at Aarhus University. In my course Digital Aesthetics, we have been tasked to starting a blog at whatever platform we find inspirational to cover different topics which we will be given in this semester. 

Why I chose Tumbler as a platform instead of many of the other possible platforms was especially because that Tumblr has an easily accessible interface that is easy to navigate. In addition, I think that the visual possibilities at Tumblr help make the content even more inspiring and fun for me to make and also for me to read other people’s blogs. 

Digital Design With this newly started blog I see it as an opportunity to share my thoughts and questions about our digitized existence, and the many possibilities and consequences we face with digital solutions.

The picture shows a NETbot, which was our first mini project on our first semester in the course Digital Aesthetics. A robot that we should build ourselves. The robot’s purpose is that it can interact with a tablet,  either by clicking on random content or swipe inside a particular app.

Thoughts on digital aesthetics  Through the building process, I asked myself some questions, including how to look aesthetically on this digital creation - if that headache can be regarded as aesthetic - and especially how to decide when something is aesthetic or not and last but not least, what do I find aesthetically? I expect that by taking part in the course digital aesthetics, I will be given the opportunity to answer these questions in the future. So keep up to be a part of an interesting discussion about relevant subject in our present.