Artists at the Human-Computer Interface

What forms of expression will be possible tomorrow, how do they differ from those of the past, and how can we better prepare for them today? The investigation of artists at the human-computer interface (HCI), where artistic and cybernetic questions meet, has great implications for critical consciousness, cultural evolution, and art education. The investigation of cybernetic art begins with a treatment of the art object as data. Our modes of communication are converging, spaces and interfaces are transforming rapidly as digital technologies affect the ways we construct knowledge and behave. The HCI is the site of both cultural evolution and individual expression. Art education has an opportunity to facilitate a critical dialogue around these emergent objects, expressing the shifting nature of human interaction and extrapolating meaning that refers to larger sociological frameworks and belief systems. This study offers a glimpse at the effect of emergent objects on critical consciousness in eight qualitative case studies of artists integrating digital technology into their studio practice.