Jeffrey Kanyama

Video and Intermedia Response

Intermedia, based on the reading is giving life to a concept through work. The idea is not easy to understand but I believe it is the space between art and reality that we are part of in our daily lives. Hans Breder explains Intermedia as a liminal space. Liminal moments are times of tension, extreme reactions and greater opportunity for critique and learning. Hans Breder’s work is very fascinating. It always puts spectators into a liminal space. A shift in consciousness; a space to see things from a different perspective. Hans Breder did a lot of work with mirrors and reflections. When you look at his art, you think it is religion or pornography. It can be both or one of them or neither. Everyone is a participant because one is actively involved in the art piece by perception. A link to Hans Breeder’s work is http://www.artnet.com/artists/hans-breder/.

I agree with Foster that it is the characteristics presented above that make video the most ideal example of Intermedia. To be Intermedia implies, in a broad sense being political. Video is political; it manipulates, transforms, superimposes and etc. Video leaves room for a liminal space where one can shift consciousness. It facilitates discussion beyond what is seen. There is a lot of critique that goes on when people watch video like a music video, a movie etc. There are questions about why a certain scene was used so many times and why others a few times. Video speaks to us and we all respond differently. We are all part of the same or different conversation as makers of a certain video. The audience shares experiences with creators. Video also inspires and compels.

I also agree with Foster that video cultures. An example is when I was exploring UbuWeb. I found a video called Me/We by Eija-Liisa Ahtila. It is a video in German and has English subtitles. When I played the video, I realized the piece was not in English and I immediately started reading the subtitles and lost focus of what was going on. I had to watch it again to understand what was going on. It is not the first time this has happened. Watching video has cultured my mindset. It seems I pay attention to what is said rather than what I see. The link to the video is http://www.ubu.com/film/ahtila_me.html.

Intermedia from what I understand is a medium to a reaction or emotion that people feel. The connection we have to things that move.