---
title: Interactive Digital Art
> []did you read this?
---期末專題評分說明 in Moodle
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*About this note...*
*This note is a report of me(F7407036 常定 利) trying to figure out what is Intereactive digital art*
# Report on Interactive Digital Art, ~~or rather I'm lost with art.~~
During taking course of *IMPLEMENTATION OF INTERACTIVE DIGITAL ART*, I encountered 2 problems, 1st, when prfessor asked us to find {"Example of interactive digital art that inspires you." | I belelive our professor said something along that line}, for our final project, I wanted to make somthing that people, even kids who has no idea what even art is could enjoy. Because I have terrible memory when my parents took me to art gallery when I was small, small enough to not-remembering what I saw, but old enough to remember "Boy, that was boring" feeling. Thats why I wanted to make something even kids can enojoy. Like gyroscope, it's simple physiscs but, everytime you use it, it still feels like it's first time, becase it's principle is amazing.
And I found **[this](https://www.instructables.com/Arduino-based-toy-for-children/)**, IoT toy for kids. Which creator has background/story, design, and it's interactive. I thought after modifing creator's apporach, and make it more complicated would be then suitable for our final project, which professor was not impressed calling it "This is not art, it's toy.", which I was surprised, because I thought I fullfilled requirements.
2nd, after searching for "suitable" interactive digital art, I came up with **[this](https://hackmd.io/mJpGaUh8T7irN_kXJqsi2w)**, my memory when I was 10 or 11. Intention is to share the "WOW" experience I had to everyone, an art made with my feeling, memory, which you can feel and sympathize memory from more than 10 years ago. I wanted people to interct with "unknown thing they have no idea what it is, but it is something they understand its amazing.", however once again, our professor was not satisfied due to "It's too simple, this is like lab assignment". I was once again shocked. Maybe it is "simple" for "technical" aspect. But I beleive art is not evaluated by "simplicity", as Leonardo Davinci said "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication". I think I have good intention, background/story, which are interactive. Especially my aim, "to express my memory/feeling from 10 years ago, which doesn't have form, into a form which people can interact" is great in my opinion.
From these 2 experiences, I was completly lost. What it meant by "too simple" ? Should I add more sensor ? Make it more complicated ? But that ruins concept of "Big wow from simple thing", my memory getting my brain zapped by simple wave on oscilloscope. Then is my idea bad ? What is art ? This is why I could not present my "art". So, decided to search what it is "Interactive digital art" after all.

## What is *Interactive Digital Art* ?
- ***Interactive Art***...Form of art that ==involves the spectator in a way that allows the art to achieve its purpose.==
- Through some of the earliest examples of interactive art have been dated back to the 1920s, most digital art didn't show up until the late 1990s, due to cost and main purpose of computer was to strictly "to compute". However, since it's debut, countless museums and venues hace been increasingly accomodating digital and interactive art into their productions.
- Some interactive art installations achieve this by letting the observer or visitor "walk" in, on, and around them, some others ask the artist or the spectators to become part of the artework.
- ***Interactive Digital Art***...==Type of art of that features computers, interfaces and sometimes sensors to respond to motion, heat, meteological cahnges or other types of input their makers programmed them to respond to.==
- Most examples of virtual internet art and electronic art are highly interactive. Sometimes, visitors are able to navigate through a hypertext enviroment, some accept textual or visual input from outside, sometimes an audieance can influence the course of a performance or can even participate in it.
- Some other interactive artworks are considered as the quality of interaction involve all the spectrum of surrounding stimuli.
### History of Interactive (Digital) Art
- According to Maurice Benayoun, the first piece of interactive art should be the work done by Parrhasius(One of the greatest painter from ancient Greece) during his art contest with Zeuxis described by Pliny, in the fifth century B.C. when Zeuxis tried to unveil the painted curtain. The work takes its meaning from Zeuxis' gesture and wouldn't exist without it. Zeuxis, by its gesture, became part of Parrhasius' work, hence interactive art. ==This shows that the specificity of interactive art resides often less in the use of computers than in the quality of proposed "situations" and the "Other's" involvement in the process of sensemaking.==
- In the 70's, artists began to use new technology such as video and satellites to experiment with live performances and interactions through the direct broadcast of video and audio. - ++*Paul, C: Digital Art, page 18. Thames & Hudson Inc, 2003.*++
- Forward to nowadays, Interactive art became a large phenomenon due to the advent of computer-based interactivity in the 1990s. Along with this came a new kind of art-experience. Audience and machine were now able to more easily work together in dialogue in order to produce a unique artwork for each audience. - ++*Paul, C: Digital Art, page 18. Thames & Hudson Inc, 2003.*++
- In the late 1990s, museums and galleries began increasingly incorporating the art form in their shows, some even dedicating entire exhibitions to it. - ++*Paul, C: Digital Art, page 23. Thames & Hudson Inc, 2003.*++
- This continues today and is only expanding due to increased communications through digital media. Even large corporations has exhibition or booth to show interctive art. Such as Microsoft Gen Studio, IBM Think Exhibit and so on. I belive one of the reason for large corporation to take part in these movement is to show public complicated technology in a simple way. Which is one of the inspiration that gave me to make something to "Amaze people".

### Examples of Interactive (Digital) Art
- ***[BOUNDARY FUNCTIONS (1998)](https://www.snibbe.com/projects/interactive/boundaryfunctions) by Scott Snibbe***...Art installation to create a sense of interdependence, to promote friendly interaction among strangers, and to increase viewers concentration.
- ***[Plane White](https://architizer.com/projects/plane-white/) by Carina Ow***...The “Plane White” installation is interactive digital experience for Kandinsky’s famed painting “Composition VIII.” Like Kandinsky, these digital artists experience art in a non-traditional, multi-sensory way by blurring the line between the visitor and the digital dimension.
- ***[IN ORDER TO CONTROL](http://www.notabenevisual.com/works/in-order-to-control) by NOTA BENE VISUAL***...A text discussing about the threshold on ethics and morality was looping on the floor, people who step on the typographic area to read it, realize them selves on the wall and the interaction process starts.Everything that’s legal is not always fair. Everything that’s fair is not always legal.

- From above 2 defintions, "Interactive Digital Art" is apprarently part/sub group of Interactive art. Which originally it was just interactive art, however, thanks to technological advancement, it became easier to replicate waht you want to do, and so in some cases, it became more accurate(like trying to replicate same thing over an over) Alright, I understand interactive art, but what is art then ?
## But what is *"Art"* after all ?
***Art***...The expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power. *- [Oxford dictionary](https://www.lexico.com/definition/art)*
:::danger
However, ==there is no generally agred definition of what constitutes art==, and ideas have changed over time.
*- Stephen Davies (1991). Definitions of Art. Cornell University Press*
:::

From how Stephen Davies describes; "++*there is no generally agred definition*++", it sounds like there were far more times art raised disputes, which I'll write about it in next section.
### Classification disputes
- ==Disputes as to whether or not to classify something as a work of art are referred to as classificatory disputes about art.==
- Classificatory disputes in the 20th century have included cubist and impressionist paintings, Duchamp's Fountain, the movies, superlative imitations of banknotes, conceptual art, and video games. - ++*[Deborah Solomon (14 December 2003). "2003: the 3rd Annual Year in Ideas: Video Game Art". The New York Times Magazine.](https://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/14/magazine/2003-the-3rd-annual-year-in-ideas-video-game-art.html)*++
- Philosopher David Novitz has argued that disagreement about the definition of art are rarely the heart of the problem. Rather, =="the passionate concerns and interests that humans vest in their social life" are "so much a part of all classificatory disputes about art."== - ++*Novitz, David (1996). "Disputes about Art". The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism. 54 (2): 153–163.*++
- According to Novitz, classificatory disputes are more often disputes about societal values and where society is trying to go than they are about theory proper.
- For example, when the Daily Mail criticized Hirst's and Emin's work by arguing "For 1,000 years art has been one of our great civilising forces. Today, pickled sheep and soiled beds threaten to make barbarians of us all" they are not advancing a definition or theory about art, but questioning the value of Hirst's and Emin's work. - ++*Painter, Colin. Contemporary Art and the Home. Berg Publishers, 2002. p. 12.*++

Above mentioned cases are rather "Un-intentional", but, there are art that are "Intentional".
### Anti-art
- ***Anti-art***...Is a label for art that ==intentionally challenges the established parameters and values of art.== It is term associated with Dadaism and attributed to Marcel Duchamp just before World War I, when he was making art from found objects.
#### Examples of art that caused debate

- ***Comedian by Maurizio Cattelan***...An Italian artist slapped a banana on the wall with duct tape, named *Comedian* was sold for $120,000. - *[Article](https://news.artnet.com/market/maurizio-cattelan-banana-art-basel-miami-beach-1722516)*


- ***Artist's Shit by Piero Manzoni***...The work consists of 90 tin cans, each reportedly filled with 30 grams (1.1 oz) of faeces.

- ***Fountain by Marcel Duchamp***...An everyday object that is turned into an artwork because the artist decides it is art. In 1917,Duchamp submitted a urinal to the newly established Society of Independent Artists. The Society refused Fountain, arguing that it could not be considered an artwork.

It seems art could be anything, it's up to each individual. As Andy Warhol said *“Art is anything you can get away with”*, and *“Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art”*

Andy Warhol, who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. He himself caused a lot of debate about "definition of art"
Marilyn Diptych 1962
Campbell's Soup Cans 1962

## Summary, and what I've learned
So, back to to my question, was I wrong ? No, I was not wrong, in my definition, it is interactive digital art, however, for professor, it was not. Is he right ? Yes and no, because as mentioned in "What is art" section, interpretation of art is up to individual.
What is interactive digital art ? ==The expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power, which involves the spectator in a way that allows the art to achieve its purpose.== Basically, anything that has intention as art, which is completed by audience is interactive art. Apparently, text form is also one of the way to express. Alight then, it seems I've made interactive art by writing this note. As matter of fact, this note can be edited by everyone. It is interactible.