Week 3 Assignment

Web Work: A History of Internet Art

Net.art a term that I have never heard before had such significance along with the formation of the Internet. It became a platform for which net.artists were able to showcase their works through a digital platform. Leading to a sort of budding community of likeminded individuals. All works ranging from graphics to email, text, and images were posted online for the world to see. Likewise the platforms created at the time, most of net.artists were communicating through email. Rather than just one way to reach a larger audience through traditional physical sites, artists were able to publish their works without the need to rent space or at a museum. Net.artists soon began to form movements such as cyberfeminism. What was happening in the current political and cultural climate correlated to the movements made by net.artists. The ability to create websites to further reach a larger audience and share your voice regarding a motion became more apparent. Issues such as monopolizing domain names with no intention for artmaking raised issues, resulting in an explosion of creations of domains and websites. The infinite amount of opportunity that was offered at the time was endless. Net.artists have also paved the path for physical art centers and museums to create websites for themselves.

With Galleries Closed, A Moment for Net Artists to Shine



During the pandemic, whilst countries were beginning quarantine, Olia Lialina exhibit had to be moved online. Rather than scrambling to figure out how to display her pieces of art her experience as a previous net.artist aided her. Her starting as an artist began online and where she met her audience. It was interesting to hear a sort of reflection of how the pandemic affected the art community. Due to her background, she was able to adjust to the new environment quicker than her fellow artists/organizations. As stated in the article, Lialina was able to make and exhibit her work without going through gallery infrastructure.



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