Digital Studies Profs Blend Tech and Art to Reflect Modern Life
August 22, 2019
- Author
- Jay Pfeifer
Two Digital Studies professors are for their digital art, which encourages viewers to interact withâand reflect onâan interconnected world.
Joelle Dietrick, assistant professor of digital studies, and Owen Mundy, visiting assistant professor of digital studies, are husband and wife and artistic collaborators.
Their joint show, ââ will be on view in the Van Every/Smith Galleries from Aug. 26 to Sept. 25.
The Observer writes, âThis isnât art you buy to hang over your sofa.â
Dietrick and Mundyâs most recent works are closer to video games than to images.
For example, their piece, âThe Speed of Thinkingâ recalls 1980s arcade classic âTetris.â
âIt allows players to plunk colorful, virtual steel boxes onto a cargo ship,â writes Paige Leggett for the Observer. âEach one lands with a thud. The boxes just keep comingâand with increasing velocity. They threaten to sink the ship before it even leaves port. The player slowly realizes the game doesnât end until it crashes (as itâs designed to do), and the player finds out he or she didnât prevent sea levels from risingâ
Dietrick and Mundy hope their art encourages viewers to think about the global supply chains that surround themâand how they fit in this new world.
âWeâre hoping our art will make people pause and think: Are the systems weâre using really the best available?â
The opening reception is scheduled from 7-8:30 p.m. Sept. 4. Dietrick and Mundy also will host a panel discussion during Common Hour on Tuesday, Sept. 17.
