Dissertation by Alex Daish
This dissertation investigates the understanding and application of personal digital conservation... more This dissertation investigates the understanding and application of personal digital conservation techniques by artists, and endeavours to understand the reasoning behind their approach of this. Data on the digital preservation attitudes and practices of artists are collected through interviews and surveys and are analysed to identify patterns. As well as exploring artist’s awareness of the importance of conserving their art, consideration is also made to the nature of, and concepts behind, their work and how this can affect their approach to archiving and preservation. Throughout the background research of this subject, comparisons are made between traditional and contemporary artistic media, to establish the reasons behind the need for conserving supporting documents as well as the works themselves. Similar situations in different fields, such as biology, are explored to give a thorough understanding of how problems that arise from the growing use of digital media are currently being solved. Current solutions to the problems in conserving digital art are explored and potential solutions are suggested and analysed to offer protection against data loss that is both simple to undertake and effective.
Final Year by Alex Daish
One reason for this renewed interest may be due to a recent change in the production, distributio... more One reason for this renewed interest may be due to a recent change in the production, distribution and consumption of stock imagery. Digital technologies have transformed the nature of stock imagery. Agencies have moved their files from the draws of filing cabinets, to websites hosted on servers. Accelerating this shift was the arrival of microstock websites (like iStockphoto). These were spawned by the combination of digital photography making photography cost-free and broadband Internet. Previously a fragment of the industry, the ability to source and distribute amateur photography quickly and cheaply online, made microstock sites incredibly competitive. 2 They could afford to sell images at a fraction of already aggressively priced Royalty Free images. 3 This was not only attractive to brands and advertisers looking to cut costs, but also artists. Stock photography and video was now a comparably inexpensive raw material to work with.
The macaronis originated as aristocratic youths who frequented the clubs of St. James’s, London. ... more The macaronis originated as aristocratic youths who frequented the clubs of St. James’s, London. They were recognisable for their elaborate wigs, clothes and behaviour.1 This urban fashion quickly spread from London to provincial towns like York and Bath, reaching its peak in the 1770s when it became increasingly imitated by members of the middle and servant classes.2 In a period of great change for ideas of class, gender, and authenticity, the macaronis were at the centre of a dialogue about what masculinity was to be in the eighteenth century. More recently, feminist critics have argued that it was during the course of the eighteenth century that feminine behaviours gradually became the exclusive domain of females.3 It is equally arguably then, that similar notions of masculinity also became exclusively male. This came about through extensive debate on what constituted masculinity and how it was best to function in society. Thus, it seems significant then, that just as gender identifiers were being consolidated to become the mainstays of middle–class hegemony, the macaroni – an icon that seemed to blur the boundaries of class and gender – appeared.4 This essay will thus explore the macaronis’ ambiguousness in terms of class, gender, and nationality, as they navigated a society attempting to define masculinity in an era with new potentials for consumption.
In this essay, I will propose that we are witnessing a new type of ‘presentation’ that sits along... more In this essay, I will propose that we are witnessing a new type of ‘presentation’ that sits alongside the ‘haptic sight’ and aesthetic simulations, as discussed by Peter Gallison and Lorraine Daston in their book Objectivity1. In a world increasingly mediated by screens, data and computers, we are all becoming more used to computational processes ‘re- presenting’ nature to us and providing algorithmically led ‘trained judgement’ on our behalf. Many of the issues and ideas that previously surrounded ‘mechanical objectivity’ have returned in new ways, not powered by the chemistry of photography but the mathematics of computers. This shift is exhibited most vividly in the disciplines of computer vision and big data visualisations. Artistically this shift has been noticed by the trend known as ‘the New Aesthetic’. This essay hopes to highlight the complications surrounding this new ‘algorithmic objectivity’, as highlighted by the work of several artists practicing within New Aesthetic.
First Year by Alex Daish
wrote how the 'aura' of an artwork is diminished by its reproduction. 1 But we have all recently ... more wrote how the 'aura' of an artwork is diminished by its reproduction. 1 But we have all recently witnessed the rise of the 'viral' image. These images get their power through their reproduction, ubiquity and appropriation. The most overtly political of these images is Shepard Fairey's Barack Obama 'HOPE' poster.
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Dissertation by Alex Daish
Final Year by Alex Daish
First Year by Alex Daish