artist's statement by tessie riggs
Yuri: The Lonely Wanderings and Self-Discovery Mission of the Thing We Know as the Internet
With this art piece I combined the iSquare project’s Internet team results (both verbal and visual), my interpretations of those results and the current and relevant literature on the topic of the Internet, its history, functions and overall identity. Since the goal of this art piece was to establish and reflect on a clear and informative definition of the Internet and how it is perceived by society (i.e. issues of definition and identity) I chose to create a graphic novel-based coming-of-age narrative featuring an anthropomorphized version of “the Internet”, as such a narrative would provide a potentially dry and fact-heavy investigation with the human element necessary to entertain and encourage the reader. Furthermore the narrative device of a quest for self-discovery provides a rationale for the art piece’s investigations into not only popular opinion but the history and academic discourse surrounding the Internet. A human companion for “Yuri” was also supplied as the Internet does not exist in a vacuum and is arguably most interesting in how it informs and affects our lives as human beings.
The illustrations are simple, echoing the accessible approach to the expansive and often complex subject that is the Internet. The drawings reflect a layperson’s perspective on the topic, which is precisely what was ascertained with the netSquares at the project’s beginning. The dialogue then adds another layer to the narrative, analyzing and interpreting those perspectives and imposing foundational literary and technical concepts overtop, its characters becoming more well-versed in the subject along with the readers as the story progresses. Images from both history and fiction added yet another layer of self-reflexivity, displaying the multitude of images produced, associated with and available on the Internet, which inform or reflect on the discourse surrounding it.
With this art piece I reflected analytically on the topic of the Internet, its scope and history as well as its cultural perception and how these inform its uses and development.
The illustrations are simple, echoing the accessible approach to the expansive and often complex subject that is the Internet. The drawings reflect a layperson’s perspective on the topic, which is precisely what was ascertained with the netSquares at the project’s beginning. The dialogue then adds another layer to the narrative, analyzing and interpreting those perspectives and imposing foundational literary and technical concepts overtop, its characters becoming more well-versed in the subject along with the readers as the story progresses. Images from both history and fiction added yet another layer of self-reflexivity, displaying the multitude of images produced, associated with and available on the Internet, which inform or reflect on the discourse surrounding it.
With this art piece I reflected analytically on the topic of the Internet, its scope and history as well as its cultural perception and how these inform its uses and development.