June Pak – double (2002, 892 KB, 0:30)
June Pak’s work is innovative and breathtaking.
In double, one character disrupts the other’s stability
by changing the television channel but is nevertheless
oblivious to this effect. Pak says, “This exchange
between the two suggests the disjunction within
oneself caused by technology and boredom.”
Vera Brunner-Sung – untitled (2006, 2.5MB, 1:10)
Vera Brunner-Sung – Longshore (2004, 9.9MB, 4:34)
Two short films from Vera Brunner-Sung, made respectively
on 16mm and super 8, both exploring boundaries of privacy
and community, the understanding of memory and place.
Amy Carpenter – Why Not? (2006, 8.4MB, 2:56)
In thinking back on the people that inspired me when
video online first began to really take hold of everyone,
I remembered Amy Carpenter’s Welcome to Amyville.
This little piece from a few years ago always stuck with me.
It felt so innovative at the time and still really outshines
many similar works to have come after it.
Basement Jaxx – Red Alert (1999, 10.5MB, 3:42)
Fatboy Slim – Don’t Let The Man Get You Down (2003, 9MB, 3:08)
Lady Sovereign – Love Me or Hate Me (2006, 12.2MB, 2:43)
Three videos from Brian Beletic.
His work spans the last decade,
these posted in chronological order.
Basement Jaxx’s video is conceptual: what if
music was illegal? Love the idea and execution.
The track itself takes me back to my younger,
raving days.
Fatboy Slim and Lady Sovereign also should be
proud of their Beletic vids. Both garner at least
a few chuckles and some definite appreciation for
the editing.
The Delicate Museum – What Everyone Else Was Talking About (2006, 13MB, 1:21)
The Delicate Museum – A Suggestive Manifesto (2006, 9.7MB, 1:32)
Two more breaths of fresh air from 2006 and The Delicate Museum,
also known as Duncan, formerly of 29fragiledays.
Said before, I’ll say it again: such beauty in the small things.
Lucia Nimcova – Exercise (2007, 40.5MB, 6:03)
Outrageously funny video from 2007 by Slovakian artist
Lucia Nimcova.
I’m pretty sure not being able to understand
the language makes this that much more
endearing and amusing.
Arzu Ozkal Telhan – Unattended Body (2005, 56MB, 5:00)
Arzu Ozkal Telhan’s “Unattended Body” is a
spectacular meditation on public space,
observational video at perhaps its finest.
The artists also says:
“Unattended body mainly discusses how an
existence at it’s most banal (Heidegger) can
be simply perceived as a disturbance or a
potential threat if it does not act in its expected
way for the society.”
Normally three long segments, they’ve
been edited together here as a five minute
clip, all shown at once, which I actually prefer.
What is so painfully boring to others is ever
so exciting for the rest of us.
White Glove Tracking (2007, 45.5MB, 7:34)
At a televised special in March 1983, Michael Jackson
debuted what would later become known as his
signature Moonwalk. He wore a shiny jacket,
cuffed pants, and a sparkling little white glove
while gyrating around the stage. It’s nearly
impossible to deny the brilliance of Billy Jean,
and there it was – in some kind of larger than
life, glittery manifestation of the zeitgeist.
All very exciting, no?
But tracking Jacko’s glove – this collection of videos
known under the umbrella White Glove Tracking –
is an unparalleled feat, as are the resulting
remixes. 10,060 frames were tracked, the
data was collectively gathered, and all of the
source code was made available online.
Coding ensued. Here are the highlights so far.
Impactist – Nebraska – in single frames (2004, 16.9MB, 3:29)
The simplicity of this piece resonates with me.
A 2004 piece from the enormously talented Impactist duo,
Kelly Meador & Daniel Elwing.
Media Burn by Ant Farm (1975, 202MB, 25:46)
Infamous July 4, 1975 “pseudo-event” featuring a
speech by “JFK Jr.” and a 1959 Cadillac turned wacky
crash test car through a wall of burning television sets,
produced by video artists and activist collective Ant Farm.
The first four and a half minutes of this particular video
feature actual news coverage about the event.
The rest is the full speech and crash. Inspiration.
Video via the Media Burn archive.