Jack Scardino - The Fantasy Beyond Control

Lorna would definitely be considered archaic by today's standards.  Anyone who has played a modern video game could attest to the depth in plot, character, decision-making and the ability to act and interact within the world.  This article reminds me of the new movie Her as well.  One of the questions in the film concerned the authenticity of a personal relationship, and of course whether or not a computer had the ability to offer that kind of authenticity.  One of the ideas from this article that I think is most profound comes from Freud: that reality may be limited to perceptions that can be verified through words or visual codes.  I think this follows from "cogito ergo sum" in a way; we construct our reality based on what we know, and that's kind of all that matters.  These are big philosophical ideas but it is interesting how the author applies them to visual art.  My question is, even with a program like Lorna, won't a user potentially explore all distinctive permutations at some point?  There must come a time eventually when the interaction is no longer fulfilling.  I can think of many art works -songs, films, etc.- that continue to offer new perspectives and meanings even though the work itself is effectively "set".  In short, I think creating a limitless experience in video art, even interactive art, is a very difficult thing to do.