Event 2: Technological Influences in the Broad Museum

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For the second event, my friend and I took a trip to the Broad to explore their new modern art exhibitions. In the first room we walked into, I noticed a perfect example of how technology has furthered modern art: the ability to create dynamic and responsive content. The famous Double America 2 by Glenn Ligon utilizes neon signs, an invention of the 20th century, to create an ever flickering and changing piece of art (Ligon). Seeing the sign change between an upright “functional” America, an upside-down America that represents the various social and political issues that erode the nation, and a state of both illuminated at once in unity.
Double America 2 by Glenn Ligon


Longing for Eternity by Yayoi Kusama
The next compelling piece of art also utilized light technology, in combination with mirrors, to present an ethereal and multi-dimensional experience. Longing for Eternity by Yayoi Kusama, similar to her world-famous “Infinity Room” work, combines dynamic flashing light elements with mirrors to convey dissociation from the world; when one places their head through the portal, they see themselves staring back from different angles in seemingly different realities. Similar to how Renaissance artists utilized perspective and mathematics to revolutionize art, Kusama and others are utilizing light technology and the mathematics of optics to create interactive illusions that compel the viewer to consider multi-dimensionality, infinity, and the ease with which human perception is influenced (Kusama).

The final piece that stood out to me was Have Me Feed Me Hug Me Love Me Need Me by Barbara Kruger, which showcases dynamic content that responds to the viewer’s position. Lenticular printing, the process utilized to create photographs that appear different from different angles, is heavily based in the mathematics of optics and injection molding technology of the 1930’s (Roberts).
Have Me Feed Me Love Me Need Me by Barbara Kruger
Not only does the responsive nature of the piece capture the viewer’s attention, but the juxtaposition between phrases like “Hug Me”/“Feed Me” and psychological conditions like “Neurotic/”Schizophrenic” remind the viewer that perception is essential when it comes to children (Kruger). Love creates a lens that transforms the natural neuroticism of babies into something adorable, which provides a useful commentary on the heavy pressure we place on women to have children even though raising children is an extremely difficult task.

Proof of Attendance


Sources

Barclay, Hugo. “The Impact of Technology on Art.” ArtThou, ArtThou, 13 June 2016, www.artthou.co.uk/notes/technology-on-art.

“Double America 2.” Glenn Ligon | The Broad, www.thebroad.org/art/glenn-ligon/double-america-2.

Kruger, Barbara. “Have Me Feed Me Hug Me Love Me Need Me.” The Art Institute of Chicago, Photography, 1 Jan. 1988, www.artic.edu/artworks/121289/have-me-feed-me-hug-me-love-me-need-me.

Roberts, David E. “History of Lenticular.” Lenstar Lenticular, Lenstar, www.lenstarlenticular.com/history-of-lenticular.

“Yayoi Kusama.” Biography | Yayoi Kusama, yayoi-kusama.jp/e/biography/index.html.

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