> back to theory Theory: The Real-Fake + download pdf document The Real-Fake: an exhibition, conference and on-line catalog organized by Rachel Clarke and Claudia Hart Website: real-fake.org (by Brookhart Jonquil) Sacramento's University Library Gallery California State University, March 31-June 4, 2011 The Power Center William Paterson University, Winter 2012 The Real-Fake is an exhibition that presents the approaches employed by artists exploring artificial xyz space, the non-referenced synthetic image or object, and the specific qualities of the virtual camera that records it. Its purpose is to position 3D computer graphics in the discursive context of contemporary art. The artists in the exhibit all use 3D software to create a range of art forms, from the still image to animation, interactive works, sculpture and installation. And all of them self-consciously place 3D within an avant-garde lexicon. Like their predecessors, video artists who adapted TV technologies for artistic use, these artists have adopted the technology employed in 3D shooter games and feature-length Hollywood animation blockbusters, but reject entertainment industry aesthetics and content, instead applying the medium to the trajectory of art history. Their common strategy is to isolate and define a formal language native to the virtual. These formulations are then integrated into a variety of contemporary practices emerging from the discourses of media and of representation as they have impacted on photography, experimental film, and installation-based contemporary art. Their languages arise out of the painting traditions of figuration and abstraction, and artistic movements as wide ranging as Surrealism, Constructivism and Pop Art, as well as avant-garde cinema, post-Modern image making and experimental animation. It is a rare event in the new-media art context to find artists involved in contemporary practice that are deeply invested in exploring 3D computer art. The particular burden of the artists in The Real-Fake is to break away from the constraints imposed by the domination of an extremely virulent and fast-paced military/entertainment complex, beyond the commonly adopted strategy of appropriation. The Real-Fake proposes the potential of 3D computer art as the post-photography medium currently emerging from the new technologies and zeitgeist of the early 21st century. Kari Altmann, Berlin, Germany How to Hide Your Plasma (Handheld Icon Shapeshift for Liquid Chrystal Display), 2011 http://www.karialtmann.com/ + view larger image Sheldon Brown and the Experimental Game Lab, San Diego, CA Scalable City, 2010 http://crca.ucsd.edu/sheldon/scalable/ + view larger image Claudia Hart, Chicago, IL The Seasons, 2009 http://www.claudiahart.com/ + view larger image Brian Khek, Chicago Homer's Venus de Gummy, 2010 http://www.briankhek.com/ + view larger image Alex Lee, Seoul, Korea Lazlo's Shadow, 2010 http://alexmlee.com/ + view larger image Alex McCleod, Toronto, Canada Mountain Lake Terror, 2009 http://www.alxclub.com/ + download low res image Open Ended Group, NY, NY Pedestrian, 2002 http://openendedgroup.com/ + view larger image Timur Si-Qin, Berlin, Germany Real Flow, 2011 http://www.timursiqin.com/ + view larger image Yemenwed, NewYork Episode 3, 2008 http://www.yemwnwed.com/ + view larger image Zeitguised, Berlin, Germany Perapetics, 2009 http://www.zeitguised.com/ + view larger image