Media Arts: History and Theory

 This week’s reading and video were about the differences between Modern Art , Postmodern Art , and Contemporary Art . In the reading by Arnason and Mansfield, one major idea is that Postmodernism is not about following strict rules. Postmodern artists believed that art could come from anywhere—everyday life, media, even other artwork. They used humor, shock, and ideas from the past in new ways. This is called appropriation . For example, Duchamp’s “Fountain” was just a urinal turned into art. He made people think about what art really is . The video also helped explain how Postmodernism is different from Modernism. Modern art focused on form and structure. Postmodern art focused on meaning and let the viewer decide what something means. It didn’t have to be beautiful or serious. It could be silly, strange, or emotional. Discussion Question: Do you think it’s okay for Postmodern artists to copy or remix other people’s work? Does that still make it creative and original? Can s...

Futurism and Fluxus were two major art movements that came from very different times, but both were all about breaking rules and doing things differently. Futurism started in Italy in the early 1900s. The leader of the movement was a man named Filippo Tommaso Marinetti , who wrote the Futurist Manifesto in 1909. This was basically a loud announcement that said, “Out with the old, in with the new!” Futurists were excited about the future, machines, technology, speed, youth, and war. They hated old traditions like museums, libraries, and anything that reminded them of the past. Futurists loved motion and energy. They didn’t just paint or sculpt in the traditional way. They used strong lines and shapes to make things look like they were moving. One famous Futurist was Umberto Boccioni , who created a sculpture called “Unique Forms of Continuity in Space.” The statue looks like a person walking forward, but instead of having a clear body, the figure is made of flowing shapes that look li...

  1. Futurism 2. Giacomo Balla 3. Constructivism 4. Supremacist 5. Supremacism 6. Bauhaus 7. Hugo Ball 8. Retinal Art 9. Cabaret Voltaire 10. Readymades 11. Postmodernists 12. Combine 13. Joseph Beuys 14. Etienne Jules Marey 15. Muybridge 16. Louis Le Prince 17. Kinetograph 18. Kinetoscope 19. Cinematograph 20. Mechanical TV 21. Electronic TV 22. Sensors 23. Experimental 24. Surrealist

  5 Key Points: The camera works like a second set of eyes—it lets us see things we normally can’t, like stuff happening too fast or too small to catch with our own eyes. Every time a new tool (like a telescope or camera) is invented, it changes how we understand the world around us. People used to think photos told the truth 100%, because they were made by machines. That made photos feel more “trustworthy” than drawings. Artists didn’t just use tools like cameras to make things easier—they used them to get more creative and do things that weren’t possible before. Photos don’t just capture what’s in front of the lens. They help us remember moments, tell stories, and even teach future generations about the past. Discussion Question: Do you think filters and phone cameras make photos less “real”? Can we still trust what we see in a photo when it’s edited or posed?

 This week’s lecture showed how photography, print, and film totally changed how we share stories, news, and art. It all started with people drawing on cave walls thousands of years ago. That was their way of sending a message or maybe recording events. Later, monks spent months writing and decorating books by hand—pretty intense! Then came the big game-changer: the printing press, invented by Gutenberg around 1450. For the first time, people could make tons of books quickly, which helped more people learn how to read and spread ideas way faster. Fast forward to the 1800s, and we got photography. At first, it was super slow—like an 8-hour wait for one picture! But it kept improving. Soon, we could take real-life photos instead of just drawing stuff. This helped a lot with recording history, like when Matthew Brady showed the harsh truth of the Civil War through his photos. Then, people like Eadweard Muybridge and Étienne-Jules Marey started using cameras to show movement. This e...

 Our performance art piece, The Line Between Us , explored society’s reaction to homelessness. Josh portrayed a homeless person lying in front, surrounded by a blanket, cup, and cardboard—symbols of life on the street. As our group entered the room with the audience in it, each performer acted differently: I acknowledged Josh but kept walking, Sophie ignored him and even kicked his cup on her walk out, Mackenzie passed by without notice, and Jake gave change and kind words. After everyone sat, Josh coughed, prompting all of us to rise and leave one by one. From this experience, I learned the emotional power of non-verbal actions and how performance art focuses more on presence and impact rather than dialogue. Unlike a skit, performance art invites interpretation and provokes thought. The piece made me reflect on how often we witness similar real-life scenes and choose to look away. Performing this taught me how art can challenge perspectives through subtle, deliberate actions. htt...