Read and Response - GIF.

From many of this week’s articles on GIFs, it is easy to see and understand that GIFs are highly open and available in ways unlike traditional forms of art; rather, it can be one of the most open form of art with its file available for anyone to use for free.  According to SHA from the Digital Materiality of GIFs, GIF is a visual language that is open for anyone to interpret and use freely; GIF is not owned by anyone and is a file format for people to constantly create new visuals and reinterpret such visuals in an infinite number of ways. GIF is a universal visual language where context is not necessary to understand what is present on screen; this lack of context needed is what brings in a democratic nature to GIFs because it allows viewers to see and do what they wish with the format through their own decisions. An example that visually shows this definition of GIF art is with the MTAA’s release of Simple Net Art Diagram in 1997. By placing a flashing red thunderbolt/connection symbol at the center of cord that connects a computer on the left to a computer on the right, MTAA pushes viewers and artists to begin thinking about active communication and how Net Art truly occurs when artists influence artworks through reinterpretation.

With the democratic nature of GIF formats, we can understand that GIFs are highly shaped by society and their culture. Again, GIFs can be reinterpreted and edited countless times since it is a free, universal visual language; this means that GIFs can easily be a group or club project with multiple artists adding their interpretations before presenting itself to the public. From “A Brief History of Animated GIF Art, Part Two,” readers understand that many artists began to release GIF art to the public through “collaborative blog platforms” from 2006 to 2010. On these collaborative blog platforms, artists will post their own GIF art online while sharing artworks of other fellow GIF artists as well as editing some as reinterpretations. Examples of such forums include the Computers Club Drawing Society and Tumblr.

As a young graphic design student in 2018, these simple low tech method of GIFs represents a visual and active understanding of how Net Art and the internet works. As an open place for people throughout the world to come together and communicate, the internet is not a place for people to go solo; this idea is applied to Net Art. Artworks, once published online, may no longer be works to be kept to oneself but are now a form of visual language for artists and the public to use to communicate; this is especially the case with open formats such as GIF. Net Art truly becomes Net Art when collaboration and manipulation occurs to present artworks as visual words for communication.

With many artists continuing to rely more and more on the internet and social media to gain farther reach, this idea of Net Art can also be where issues emerge. If artists donot clearly state their set of guidlines for the public to respect or have a mutual understanding of their artwork's position, then there can easily be misunderstanfings in communication where another artist may appropriate or reinterpret another artwork when such artwork was not open to such art methods.