Swimmer

Today’s culture is immersed in technology. We develop new technologies that then, in turn, exert their own imperatives on our culture. Although the technologies themselves may be products, the integration and accommodation of these technologies is a collaborative process. This digital installation, Swimmer, addresses that process, the continual play between technology and culture. The projection of a swimmer swims across the floor, up a wall, across the ceiling, then back down to the floor in an endless loop. The question of whether or not the swimmer is within or propelling the projection is symbolic of the endless interplay between culture and technology.

Colin Ives is the Director of the Digital Arts program at the University of Oregon. His art practice fuses scholarly research, technical development (such as programming), and hands-on work with materials. Under the conceptual framework of interactivity, his work ranges from sculpture and installation to CD-ROMs and Internet projects. Much of his current work focuses on ecological issues and uses technology to create interactive installations that incorporate viewers into the dynamic interplay between our environment and ourselves. He also recently participated in Ssamzie Space’s International Residency Program in Seoul, South Korea.