Video and Intermedia Reading

Stephen C. Foster explores how video fits into the idea of intermedia; his main questions are whether or not it qualifies as art and what meaning can be derived from it.  In many cases, video may lack artistic value and serves strictly as an informative medium.  However, does that mean that video of a performance or other type of art can’t be artistic?  That’s the question I was most intrigued by when reading this piece. 

I think this can be partially answered as a matter of intention.  Foster describes that, “Video, if one uses it as an extension of one’s self rather than as an extension of one’s notions of art, cannot avoid confronting problem areas in communication, information and meaning” (64).  This further implies that if video is originally crafted as art, it doesn’t necessarily have to be brutally criticized and is left up to personal interpretation.  Yet, if it is only used as a medium to display another medium, then there is less room to be creative and the meaning should be clear.  Because of how involved video is with people’s perceptions of reality, it’s expected that it should well-depict real life.  It could sometimes be overlooked as an art form because it is often thought of as a way of delivering a message and exact meaning opposed to some other media that can be more open-ended.  Thus, while sometimes a video of another medium may not be considered art, in certain contexts it definitely should be, and could be just as critical to the aesthetics of the inner medium.

The video I attached is a scene from The Great Beauty (La Grande Bellezza) in which the main character, Jep is critiquing a performance piece by an artist named Talia Concept.  It essentially mocks the extremes artists will go to in order to be “avant garde” and original, and the art is seen more in the film itself than the satirical performance piece. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3YRMZZUfiUk