Sketches From the Front: An Artist's Dispatches, Rendered in Ink and Paint
From NYTAnd more...
This is an interesting illustration (pun intended) of how technology can interfere with human communication in sensitive situations. Painter travels with the US army and documents the war using neither cameras nor computers - rather, he just paints. The length of time it takes to make a painting enables him to get a decent amount of exposure to the situation he's documenting (word used loosely). Additionally, as the article says, as he sits and paints, people become curious and approach him. They do not regard him as a threat. He has no camera. His only tools are his hands, his brushes, and his journal.
In other words, the absence of the typical tools of technology allows this artist to get insights into the Iraq situation as few others can. Art is a universal language. Every human is intrinsically drawn to it - it's part of our genetic coding. Art is one of the most primitive and pure forms of communication.
It's quite telling that in an age of rapid-fire technology and lightning communication, this artist can gain rare insights using one of the oldest forms of communication there is. Leads me to think that while we're in an age of incredible technological growth, we might be in a bubble of sorts. We may be over-teching our lives without knowing it, eg. overusing tech so that it begins to harm our health & communication rather than aiding it. Technology and its integration in human communication still, in that sense, have a long way to go.
posted by Andrea @ 5:21 PM
<< Home