PERFORMING THE MATERIAL… WHEN IMAGES ALREADY EXIST

Abstract

Digital technologies, ubiquitous computing and Web 2.0 have made it possible for users to create, archive, consume and share photos and images at any time and any place. The exuberant flow of information, the circulation of images, the performance of one's self in the net, and in general the surfeit of images and the changes in seeing, reading and thinking of and with images constitute one subject of Post-Internet Art. Through a close reading of several works of the artists Aleksandra Domanović, Oliver Laric and Jon Rafman, the following text will examine how Internet phenomena such as memes, niche interests and network structures that permit a plurality of perspectives, constant change, and associative couplings are being represented in post-digital art practice. All three artists take found images out of their circulation and inscribe them with new meaning. Treating these images as raw material, the presented works might be seen as an ongoing investigation into the processes and creative potential of re-staging or re-showing content. They decode the raw material, produce alternative narratives, and offer different pathways through reality. In the way images and texts are assembled, their works could be regarded as a vehicle for destabilization and discovery.