Mobile Art: A blog around the art exhibit built exclusively for mobile devices.
Mobile Art is a collection of video and interactive applications that allow visitors to see and experience the works of art in MoMA’s collection in new ways. The exhibition, which opened on May 18, 2011, runs through October 2, 2011.
The Mobile Art blog, updated daily throughout the run of the show, offers an insider’s view of the creation and installation of this groundbreaking exhibition. It will also chronicle the public response to this innovative project.
The blog is authored by a team of writers, curators, programmers and designers led by Paola Antonelli and Klaus Biesenbach, Co-Directors of MoMA’s Department of Media and Performance Art; Yvonne Force Villareal, Associate Curator of Mobile Arts & Technology; and Ariella Ben-Haim, Product Manager for New Media at MoMA.
Mobile Art at the Museum of Modern Art, was a multi platform show that was on display in New York City. The exhibit, produced by UCLA’s Center for Digital Arts and Experimental Media (DXARTS), showcased six artists who created works specifically for mobile devices. The exhibit included interactive art, video art, and audio pieces.
The exhibit took place in the Museum of Modern Art from October 14th, 2010 to January 2nd, 2011. It was free to the public, and people were able to view all the work on their own devices as well as in the museum. “Museum staff provided visitors with free Wi-Fi access and loaner laptops and iPhones preloaded with several of the apps.” (source: wikipedia)
Mobile Art at the Museum of Modern Art was one of the first exhibits where people could interact with art using their personal digital devices. There are a number of museums around the world that offer free digital tours through apps on handheld devices. These tours can provide a more intimate experience than viewing art in person and help viewers connect with a piece of art on a deeper level. Many museums have also begun to put their galleries online so that people can see paintings or sculptures that aren’t currently traveling to museums around the world.
The fact that
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City has launched a new project called “Mobile Art”, which is an exhibition that features only works of art specifically designed for a mobile device. The artworks have been commissioned specifically for the exhibition by some top-tier artists such as Olia Lialina, Cory Arcangel and Joni Sternbach. The exhibition will be on view at MoMA from May 24 until September 10.
The Mobile Art exhibit will feature a collection of artworks that are designed to work on most mobile devices, including Apple’s iPhone and iPod Touch, Google Android and Palm’s webOS, among others. Each artwork is optimized for the device it is destined for and won’t play on any other device or platform. In addition, each artwork will be paired with a piece of custom software that alters the way it is presented on the screen.
Every artwork in the Mobile Art collection will come with its own specific dedicated web site where visitors can interact with it. For example, visitors with iPhones or iPod Touch can download an app to their devices that translates the text into Morse code to be displayed on their screens.
A lot of people have already tried to define what “mobile art” is. I don’t think any of those attempts have been particularly successful, but one definition that I think at least comes close is the idea that “mobile art” is art that is not just seen on a mobile device but made for it.
Mobile Art at MoMA, as the exhibit is called, was not just a way to show works of art. It was an attempt to make a new kind of art, which in its own way required as much imagination and creativity as anything on display.
Many artists have used this type of technology before. It has become increasingly common for artists to create their work using computer programs and then display that work on the internet where people can see it or download it. But Mobile Art at MoMA took a step further by not only allowing users to view the works, but allowing them to interact with them.
The exhibit is a delight to see. It is located on the first floor near the entrance. To get there, you take an elevator and walk down a corridor, where you can easily lose your orientation in the space. There are also no indications on the walls of which way to go and what is around each corner.
The exhibits themselves are small and simple, but they have a big impact. The first one we encountered was titled “Pipe Dream” by Bruce Sterling and Scott Kildall . It consisted of an array of blinking lights on pipes that rose from the floor. The pipes were suspended in such a way that the whole thing looked like an alien organism standing on one leg, leaning to one side and blowing bubbles out of its mouth (a bubble machine was installed next to it).
You can see it here:
http://blog.moma.org/tag/mobile-art/page/2/
The MoMA is the first major art museum to present a special exhibit of exclusively mobile art. The exhibit, called “Mobile Art,” is a collection of more than 30 installations that work on cell phones, PDAs and other handheld devices.
The artists include some of the most well-known names in contemporary art: Christian Boltanski, Thomas Demand, Olafur Eliasson, Ryoji Ikeda, Bill Viola and others.
The idea for “Mobile Art” came from the Finnish artist Jani Leinonen, who started thinking about it after discovering how many people around him were using mobile devices to take pictures of everything they see in their daily lives. The idea grew out of Leinonen’s “Hidden Camera Project,” in which he installed miniature cameras in objects such as door frames and coat hooks and invited people to use them to photograph whatever they wanted.
The artists of MOMA have collaborated to make sure you have an optimal user experience. They’ve worked out the best ways to take advantage of the unique capabilities of your mobile device and provide access to a deeper understanding of the art.
Tapping, swiping, and pinching are some of the gestures you can use on the site. You’ll also see that a majority of the content is available for free, but if you’d like to delve deeper into some areas, you can purchase additional content directly from within the app.
Curious about what else is going on at MOMA? You can find it here: www.moma.org
