Over the years, technological developments have influenced all facets of human life. Even though attention has been paid on the impact of technology on the economic and social developments of humans, it is important to consider its impact on artistic expression. Technology has changed how society creates and conceives art. Unlike the past where work was a direct result of the physical efforts of artists, technology has put new tools and creative liberties at the disposal of artists to create new works of art. In this context, new media is the embodiment of the intersection between technology and art. Previously, abstraction was associated with non-figurative painting, but in new media, emotive medium has become so abstract that it cannot be felt or touched. As a result, art is no longer confined to traditional forms such as paintings and sculptures, but also includes digital expressions such as sounds, pictures, videos, and even virtual reality experiences. An example is sound art whereby artists utilise sound in its pure state, simultaneously blurring and bridging the barriers between noise, music, and sound. Susan Philipsz is one prominent sound artist that have used new media techniques to create artistic expression that can impact the emotion without any explanation or thought.
Susan Philipsz’s Lowlands was created in 2010. The work was made available to art lovers at the Glasgow International Festival of Visual, two years after Philipsz won the Turner Prize. The attention the sound art had made around art circles made it a popular choice for exhibitors. In an exhibition directed by Katrina Brown, the sound art was displayed for 18 days, between Friday 20th April 2012 and Monday 7th May 2012. I choose this new media art form for the assignment since Lowlands was the first new media art to win the Turner Award as a sound installation.
New media has allowed artists to express themselves using different media. Sound art enables artists to evoke an emotional response from the audience. Unlike conventional art, artists primarily depend on voices, sounds, noise, and music to send an audible message. Lowlands by Philipsz tries to recreate the emotions of a man drowns at sea recounting his death to his lover. Philipsz is able to encourage the audience to relieve and experience the melancholic moment through hearing only. This is a powerful mode of communication since it allows the audience to visualise their version of events and connect with the subject in the art piece. Unlike most conventional art forms where sight is the most important sense, Philipsz’s piece can be experienced and interpreted without seeing.
Several writers have explored the impact of sound art on society. For example, Kahn (2013) states that technology enables humans to not only see light or images but also to hear them. In the context of new media, the reading suggests that humans are not limited to experience their surroundings through seeing but they could use sound to understand and interpret the physical world. Kahn recounts an incident of sound art was experienced in 1882 where a telephone company manager was able experience a damp atmosphere through sound (2013, n.p). As technology evolved and advanced, better and more refined digital expressions of art was created. Philipsz’s work Lowlands is one such example, whereby sound is used to recreate experiences in the physical world.
As mentioned earlier, technological development contributed to the development of new media art. Kahn (2013) argues that the proliferation of scientific, music, computation and media devices accelerated the aesthetic drive of experimental and electronic music. Therefore, a combination of sound and signal has made electronic music an avenue through which nature can be perceived. Philipsz’s work Lowlands is a clear example of how sound can be used to recreate nature and the human experience.
Lowlands is a product of digital technology in the creation of art. Music, sound, tones, and different noises can be used to communicate ecological and economic crises in society. Dylan (2020) argues that technology has created intelligent agents that co-create the human material and social environment. As a result, technology, particularly in the audio world has blurred the line separating human and post-human entities. Therefore, technology has allowed human ecological, social, and economic experiences to be captured in an electromagnetic space.
Through digital technology, Philipsz’s work captures the essence of a deceased man through the element of sound. Technology allows the artist to communicate with and connect with audiences through sound creating a profound and intimate work of art. The digital manipulation of sound makes the Lowlands a powerful yet melancholic art piece that allows audiences to have a glimpse into the life of the subject, his experiences, and surroundings.
With digital technology at her disposal, Phillipzs uses her own voice to create unique and evocative sounds through sound installations in diverse spaces. Interestingly, although sound does not occupy physical spaces like paintings or sculptures, they infiltrate human bodies triggering different moods and experiences. Therefore, digital technology enabled the artist to combine her beautiful but disembodied voice alongside instrumental. The work shows that without digital manipulation and transmission of voice, it would be difficult for Philipsz to create and display her art creations and share it in sound form.
Provocative Questions
New media is still a subject of controversy and skepticism. In this context, students, artists, critics, and enthusiasts need to tackle some provocative questions when determining the validity of sound art and other forms of digital art. There are sections that want to retain art in its purist form despite technological changes. Therefore：
Q) Should art purists consider sound art a legitimate form of artistic expression?
A) Yes. Art is subjective and any form of expression that elicits human emotional response is a legitimate art form.
Q) Is sound art and other new media expressions a threat to artistic expression due to its abstract and subjective nature?
A)NO. Art has to evolve to represent the changing human experience. Therefore, new media art best represents moderns society.
Conclusion
In conclusion, technology has changed how society creates and conceives art with the emergence of new media art. Susan Philipsz is an example of sound artists that has used new media techniques to create artistic expression that can impact the emotion without any explanation or thought. Phillipzs uses her own voice to create unique and evocative sounds through sound installations in diverse spaces. The art shows how technology has made artistic expressions abstract, pushing the boundaries and possibilities in artistic creation.
References
Dyson, Frances. (2014). The tone of our times : sound, sense, economy, and ecology. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Chapter 4, Disaffected voices, pp. 69-92
GIFestival. (2010). Susan Philipsz - Lowlands (Short Excerpt). YouTube. Accessed from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kp1IjBycbdI
Kahn, Douglas. (2013). Earth Sound Earth Signal Energies and Earth Magnitude in the Arts. Berkeley: University of California Press Chapters 2: Microscopic Imaginations (pp. 34-40) & Chapter 10: For More New Signals (pp. 122-132)
MacLeod, M. (photographer). (2010, April). Susan Philipsz beneath George V Bridge. [photograph].Glasgow, The Guardian.
Comments