Wednesday, June 07, 2017

Glitch: An Exploration of Digital Media

Exhibition Dates: May 27 – July 9, 2017
Reception: June 8 • 6 – 8pm

The newest exhibition in Target Gallery, the contemporary exhibition space for the Torpedo Factory Art Center, explores emerging technological and interactive media in art. Glitch: An Exploration of Digital Media features the work of 11 artists from across the country, five of whom are from the region. Adriel Luis, curator of digital and emerging media at the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center, juried the show.


“Ever since the invention of fire, humans have approached technology with intrigue, bewilderment and audacity – sometimes all at the same time,” said Luis. “The work submitted for this exhibit presented a treasure trove of ways that artists attempt to tame this flame. I learned that technology and media-based art is not merely a genre or medium, but rather a layer of reality that will inevitably become present in all forms of creative expression.”


The work on view in Glitch shows the complex—and sometimes messy—relationship between emerging technologies and basic human communication. Technology can be an obstacle, a distraction, or a placeholder for storytelling. For example, in Sasha de Koninck’s Zeroes and Ones, each jacquard weaving has musical compositions embedded into them. Viewers can play preprogramed compositions or create their own arrangements based on where they move and direct the camera on the accompanying tablet device.


“I chose works that insisted on telling their tales in spite of these challenges,” said Luis. “The works presented here may demonstrate new ways of looking at media, but more importantly, they are new ways of looking at ourselves.”

The participating artists are:

Jill Burks, Cambridge, NYEric Corriel, Brooklyn, NYSasha de Koninck, Santa Monica, CA
Alexis Gomez, Dumfries, VA
Ed Grant, Brooklyn, NY
Maxim Leyzerovich, Washington, D.C.
Tracy Miller-Robbins, Westerville, OHJohn Mosher, Salisbury, MDZach Nagle, Minneapolis, MN
Lyric Prince, Arlington, VA 
Kaylah Waite, Hyattsville, MD