Shaun Fort and I played a show at the 2003 Fargo Winter Carnivale, held in the Fargo Theatre. I recently had the pleasure of revisiting the show with Shaun (though we’ve maintained occasional contact, we’ve also more or less gone our separate ways). Of all the things I think stand out about that show (risky live electronic music performance, hand-built hardware, and a standing ovation to our public war protest) the one that I’m now the most fond of was our integration of state surveillance footage.

In the days preceding the show, we collected video from ND and MN interstate traffic camera systems. The end result was a pan-state time lapse view leading right up to the show, and the closest we could come to realtime monitoring using the state surveillance apparatus. This approach — infusing data local to the performance venue — has become central to my approach, from last summer’s “attack” on the Plains Art Museum to the scale-accurate photogrammetry-derived 3D model of downtown Fargo I produced for my recent show at Dempseys. Note: that’s a test render…

Andy Filer took some beautiful photos of the Carnivale, this one in particular inspired this post.

I constantly and consistently document process and production. Sometimes this yields a byproduct that is interesting in its own right.

A contact sheet with a few dozen shots of camcorder viewfinders “hacked” to display NTSC video from a surveillance camera.

A contact sheet with shots of my dot-matrix senior show flyers (printed on old traffic ticket blanks).

A contact sheet with images of the production of the digital pictureframe that displayed images from “No Pictures Please”.

For the first time in history, this day today, the Federal Communications Commission is allowingAMPS analog cellular networks to go silent.

This is the end of an era of half-watt handhelds, Star-Tacs, OKI 900s, UltraClassics. Cheek-modified scanners, mistuned UHF TVs and downconverters. When these channels go silent, cellular experimentation will be the domain of high-speed field programmable gate array arrays and well-funded agencies.

Yes, this is well out of bounds. But this network is as old as I am, and we go way back.

… -.-

If you missed my Artview show at the Plains Art Museum Café Muse, you have another chance to see one of the images in the flesh. From February 18th through the 29th, “Plains Art Museum: Exterior” will be featured in a group photography show in the new-and-improved NDSU Memorial Union Gallery.

Regrets,
Daniel

Recently, I had the singular pleasure of being interviewed by Laura McDaniel, for NDSU Magazine. I am really pleased with the way the interview turned out, and my artwork is featured on the cover.

The entire issue (Fall 2007 Vol. 8, No. 1) is available online.

Fedex leaves a pickup notice for the USPS. Sorry you were out.

Speaking of being out, I will be unavailable for personal contact by phone or email until early November. Feel free leave a message, but I will not return anything until further notice.

It’s been a few years since I graduated from MSUM, and it’s time I put my senior show online. This is just a rough sketch of what the page will be — later there will be construction photos, schematics and plans for the artworks, as well as errata like working gallery code. It’s all piled up, and just needs to be sorted and presented in a reasonable way.

I have to say, I’m proud of, and still agree with my artist statement from that time.

One of the fundamental problems with the visual arts is their one-way nature; you can’t effectively argue with a painting, just like you can’t argue with your television. The resulting heirarchy is difficult to upset- particularly because in the eyes of the artist, the museum, and the corporation, we are the receptacles for their output — their viewers, their audiences, and their consumers.

One solution to this problem is non-participation. Don’t buy the pants, don’t pay the admission. Turn off the TV, even. But a non action isn’t often a very effective action, and it’s extremely difficult to maintiain, outside of dying.

So, rather than making images about the evils of consumer culture, which are easily ignored and inevitably commodified, I’m proposing a means to an alternative lifestyle — one of personal action. A great many of us have the time and ability to make small, active resistances without great pains. I’ve conceived of a handmade purse against Ashcroft and his PATRIOT act, pants against branding, and simple technologies like bricks against surveillance cameras. I’m sure you can think of better ones.

Now that the show at the Plains has been taken down, I’m making the images available here.

Plains Art Museum, Exterior.
Cafe Muse, Late Afternoon.
Inside the Plains Art Museum.
Behind the Plains Art Museum.

Enjoy.

In support of our Company’s goal of increasing quality and quantity of graffiti everywhere, the Fakeproject Corporation of America has issued a coloring book, free of charge,which allows graffiti artists to hone their tagging skills before application in real world situations.

If you, the artist, actually intend to use the book, please download the high-resolution PDF.

FPCoA wishes you good health and not death. Please, take some time to review other things we’ve made available.

Tomorrow night is the L.I.V.E event at the Plains — the Fargo Forum has an article up, featuring an image of my work. [PDF]

I also had the good fortune of being featured in the MSUM College of Arts and Humanities Newsletter.