Shortlisted Artists Announced for Pioneering Experiment in Collecting Digital Art

The Harris Museum & Art Gallery in partnership with folly have today announced five shortlisted artists forCurrent: An Experiment in Collecting Digital Art.

The following artists have been chosen to display their new and recent work at the Harris Museum & Art Gallery from 26th March to 4th June 2011;

-boredomresearch

Southampton based artists Vicky Isley and Paul Smith make artworks inspired by the diversity that exists in nature. boredomresearch use computational technology to explore this diversity often using techniques similar to those used by scientists.

www.boredomresearch.net

-Michael Szpakowsk

Michael is an artist, composer, writer & educator. His music has been performed all over the UK, in Russia & the USA. His short films have been shown throughout the world. He is composer & video artist for Tell Tale Hearts Theatre Company & a joint editor of the online video resource DVblog.

http://www.somedancersandmusicians.com/ 

-James Coupe

James is an artist who works with systems, autonomy and networks. His controversial recent work with surveillance systems, in installation projects such as (re)collector and Surveillance Suite, use computer vision software to extract demographic and behavioural information from live video footage.

http://jamescoupe.com

-Harwood, Wright, Yokokoji

These artists have collaborated together from 2004 to 2009, firstly as part of ‘Mongrel’ - an internationally recognised artists collective. Previous projects involving the group include the first online commission from the Tate Gallery, London, a BAFTA award nomination and work in the permanent collections of the Pompidou Centre Paris and the Centre for Media Arts in Karlsruhe (ZKM).

www.mediashed.org

-Thomson & Craighead

Thomson and Craighead are fascinated how trends of globalisation and networked global communications have been re-shaping the way we all perceive and understand the world around us. They live and work in London and Kingussie in the highlands of Scotland making artworks for galleries, online and sometimes outdoors.

http://www.thomson-craighead.net/th/

The artists were shortlisted by an expert panel (including Kathryn Lambert, Creative Director of folly, Mike Stubbs CEO of FACT, Ruth Catlow, Co-founder and co-director of Furtherfield.org and HTTP Gallery London, and Beryl Graham, Professor of New Media Art at the University of Sunderland and co-editor of CRUMB). One artwork will be chosen by a secondary panel for acquisition into the Harris' permanent collection. This will be announced at the exhibition launch on Friday 25th March.

UK-based artists working in digital media were invited to submit work which celebrates innovative and creative use of new media technology. Each of the artists embraces technology in very different ways, from live networked installations through to moving image and sound. They have all exhibited internationally and are well respected within this field of work.

This project is the first of its kind - a pioneering practical case study in the collection of digital art which will encourage debate from visitors, artists and sector professionals about the process of integrating digital artworks into existing permanent collections.

Kathryn Lambert, Creative Director of folly said;

"We were delighted with the overwhelming response from artists for Current, and are thrilled with the shortlist. The chosen art works will create an outstanding exhibition that represents the breadth of artistic practice, enquiry and best work being created with art and technology in the UK today. All of the chosen art works will contribute to the debate into the challenges of collecting digital art and we can't wait to find out which piece is finally chosen for acquisition in late March by the secondary expert panel."

Further information can be found at;  www.current-experiment.org.uk