Symbolic literacy & Untitled Documents
I look at folk and elite as kind of social constructs of access and symbolic literacy.
Internet is a place where there are no physical boundaries between spaces. Images are free and can potentially exist in endless copies and incarnations. They are often created by anonymous and even sometimes automatic agents, using default and common software, filters and templates. The culture is self-produced, has no authorship and belongs to everyone.
With excessive copying and penetration of the web comes inflation of meaning and value of the image that also democratizes it, making the image closer to the <folk> culture. Internet memes are a good example of the symbolic power of the online folk. The tools of symbolic distribution online are the same for everyone, contemporary art curators or white trash, people run blogs and use Facebook.
Previously known as cultural elite institute of contemporary art is represented with the same formats like my dad represents his last fishing trip: jpeg, mpeg, gif and youtube. At the same time contemporary art remains an <elitist> kind of interest that almost never reaches the effect of the meme, never goes viral and stays a sort of tribal activity for initiated community. Others outside of it do not understand it, are not largely interested in understanding and are not welcome there anyway.
The democracy of medium and formats on the Internet points us to the major tool of difference still present in the global digital culture – the language. I mean language as a system of symbolic meanings, knowledge and literacy.
The language of contemporary art remains a closed system. It can be seen by virtually everyone, understood by the few and even less actually produce it and participate.
As it happens throughout the whole history of modern and contemporary art, artists often find there inspirations and materials in the folk and mass culture. So it comes as no surprise that a new wave of contemporary artists has been looking at the folk of the Internet, its language and rituals, and incorporating those elements into the art-works.
I would like to make a series of attempted translations in the opposite direction: from contemporary art to the Internet folk language. Various strategies may be tried out.
