Unit 35 - Task 1 - Essay

1. By Chelsie Brandrick Page 1
Unit 35 - Essay on The Art Form of Video Installation
By Chelsie Brandrick
I. INTRODUCTION
Video installation is a contemporary art from that combines video technology with
installation art and makes use of all aspects of the surrounding environment to affect the
audience. This increasingly popular digital video production technology has become
more accessible and as a result is visible in a range of everyday settings such as
galleries and museums or urban and industrial landscapes. The only requirements to
create video installation art are electricity to power the technology used and darkness to
enhance the viewers’ experience. Many video installation artists incorporate the
exhibition space into the narrative and structure of their piece, which produces an
ambient and immersive atmosphere that allows the viewer to play an active role in their
consumption of the art. This separates video installation art from traditional art forms as
it creates a complete unified experience rather than a display of individual artworks.
The focus on how the viewer experiences the work and the desire to provide an intense
atmosphere for them is a dominant theme in installation art. Video installation art is
usually presented by being played on a loop or when triggered by a viewer but can also
be a live feed or performance. Popular viewing formats include a monitor, projection
system, and a standalone device or integrated into a sculpture.
II. HISTORY OF VIDEO INSTALLATION
The advancements in television and film technology have dominated the creative
industries for the last half a century and as the technology developed, the classifications
of what art is has expanded. This birthed a new exploratory age for artists who began to
use technology to experiment with video installation by creating short videos of
performances or a staged display of events.
The lead figure of the pop art movement, Andy Warhol and Korean artist Nam June
Paik are considered to be the pioneers of video installation art. In the early 1960’s
Warhol filmed performances to convey his messages whereas Paik essentially used the
video camera as his paintbrush and a monitor as his canvas to display his art.

2. By Chelsie Brandrick Page 2
Towards the end of the 1960’s and early 1970’s Joyce Wieland begun to make video art
which lead her to make a feature film and a series of documentaries. In 1972 David Hall
and Tony Sinden exhibited the first multi-screen installation that involved 60 television
sets at Gallery House London. In 1975 British video installation developed a distinctive
pattern following the international video show at the Serpentine Gallery in London and
this promotion of the art form increased the number of artists creating video
installations.
In the 1980’s new artists like Gary Hill began to use video to capture a stream of
conscious thought to show the minds eye moving from one thing to the next as a
narrative, which set a new standard for video installation works.
Jenny Holzer took video installation to a new level by ignoring images and focusing on
text. Her installation features phrases, quotes and poetry and was displayed at the
Guggenheim museum in 1989-1990. The piece consisted of video signboards showing
different phrases rotating around the room and viewers were invited to sit down and
read the signs. Holzer described some of the sayings as ‘mock clichés’ as she made up
phrases that didn’t make complete sense. Examples include ‘A sense of timing is the
mark of genius’ and ‘Attitude makes all the difference in the world’.
In the 1990’s Gary Hill started to use human figures and voices and in 1992 he stopped
using spoken words to create ‘Suspension of Disbelief’ in which he showed a nude man
and woman on 30 screen monitors with the camera flowing over than at different
speeds. Hill created complex and innovative video installations using combinations of
stripped down monitors, projections and a range of technologies from laser disk to
DVD. Hill aimed for his work to be interacted with by the viewer and achieved this in
1992 with his video called ‘Tall Ships’. The video was presented in a dark room where
ghostly images of seated figures were projected onto a wall. The approach of the video
caused a seated figure to stand up and move forward towards the viewer, which created
an eerie effect of the dead and was received by the art world with high praise.
The invention of the Internet and YouTube gave wide access to good editing and
control technology as well as sharing platforms, allowing many artists to work with
video and create interactive installations based on video.

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Charles Moffat created a series of playful music videos like ‘Samurai Jack is Too Sexy’
and anti-war art like ‘Fear Americans 1: Bushitler’ in 2004 and published them on
YouTube. Recent video installations include entirely digitally rendered environments
created with no camera and video that responds to the movements of the viewer.
Today video installation is the most common form of art and is often combined with
other media. Contemporary contributions are being incorporated with architecture,
design, sculpture, electronic art and digital art.
III. NAM JUNE PAIK
Nam June Paik was a Korean artist and is considered to be the founder of video
installation art. Paik shot his first video installation piece using his new Song Porapak
and filmed Pope Paul VI’s procession through New York City in the autumn of 1965.
Later that day Paik played the tapes and the age of video art began.
Paik made his debut at an exhibition known as Exposition of Music-Electronic
Television at the Gallery Parnass where he scattered television around his installation
space and used magnets to alter or distort the images being displayed.
When Nam June Paik arrived to the United States in 1964 the interstate highway system
was only nine years old and superhighways were advertised to offer everyone the
freedom to ‘see the USA from their cars’. This recent invention inspired Paik to create
one of his most famous video installations, the ‘Electronic Superhighway’. In 1995 Paik
produced a 40-foot monumental map of the United States made from 600 feet of neon
lights to portray the boarders and 336 televisions on a scaffolding rig to populate each
state. Fifty DVD players send multimedia simultaneously to the television screens that
light up each state with scenes or shots that are unique to or represent the state. For
example, the televisions behind Oklahoma are laying clips from the musical
‘Oklahoma!’, Kansas has a scene from the ‘Wizard of Oz’ and Idaho shows shots of
potatoes over and over again.
Paik manipulated the images and sound on the television screens to represent what a
passenger would see if they were to look out of the car window whilst travelling on the
superhighway roads system, the sounds are muffled and blend together whilst the
images flash and flick. As the audience walks along the entire length of the installation
it represents the large scale of the nation that confronted Paik when he first arrived to
the United States.

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The neon outlines of the states represent the multi-coloured maps and glowing motel
and restaurant signs that American’s would see whilst travelling on the superhighway
system. The different colours remind the audience that the individual states have distinct
identities and cultures whilst still being bound together as they all form one nation.
Paik’s superhighway is suitable for all ages as the bright coloured lights and constant-
evolving images on the television screens will attract and engage children whilst the
recognisable movie scenes and the uniqueness of the piece will appeal to adults.
The Electronic Superhighway is presented in a large white space at the Smithsonian Art
Museum in Washington D.C. The white room acts as blank canvas that contrasts the
vibrancy of the neon lights in Paik’s art and enables the piece to standout.
The Electronic Superhighway installation is a recognisable and relatable piece of art
that occupies a middle ground between the virtual reality of the media and the vast
country beyond the audience’s doors.
The installation piece can be viewed here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izwo_2uQ4QI.

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IV. DOUGLAS GORDON
Douglas Gordon is a Turner Prize award winning Scottish artist, who works and lives in
Berlin, Germany. Much of Gordon’s work is about memory and uses repetition in
various forms as well as material from the public realm to ensure his videos are
relatable. Gordon often uses older film footage in his photographs and video. One of his
best-known video art works is ’24 Hour Psycho’ (1993) which slows down Alfred
Hitchcock’s film Psycho so that it lasts for 24 hours.
Inspired by the London Olympic games in 2012, Douglas Gordon created ‘The End of
Civilization’. The installation is presented via two screens that are next to each other.
One screen shows a grand piano burning at a remote location deep in the Cumbrian
landscape whilst the other features lush, green and desolate shots the surrounding
countryside and the boundary between England and Scotland. The grand piano
represents the culture and art forms of mankind so burning it would be to destroy and
remove humankind and our culture. The shots of the countryside contrast the destructive
fire by representing life without any culture or mankind itself. The peaceful scenic shots
are relaxing and show what the world could turn back to if humans were to be erased.
Throughout the video the piano goes from being first set alight to being reduced to
ashes. The countryside shots occasionally feature licks of the flame or wisps of smoke
that invade the shot. The sound in the piece is the live audio that was recorded whilst
the piano burnt so includes crackling and elements of the weather.
Gordon’s end of civilisation piece is suitable for teenagers and adults as I think the slow
images and their destructive nature would be boring and inappropriate for young
children whereas adults and teenagers can appreciate the symbolism behind them thus
finding it more interesting.
The End of Civilisation is presented in a large black space at the Gagosian Gallery in
New York City. The large spacious black room is dark which enables the audience to
focus on the film being shown and makes the shots to look more bright and bold.
The End of Civilisation installation is a meaningful, metaphoric piece of art that acts as
both a celebration and a warning –of fire as a symbol of optimism and hope but also of
risk, danger and destruction.

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The installation piece can be viewed here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJ0CQb4vsTs
V. COMPARISON
Both pieces are visually different, as the Superhighway is bright and attracts all ages
whilst showing the audience the best parts of America all in one go. But the End of
Civilization is dark, symbolic and shows the negative impact society can have on itself
thus making it inappropriate for all ages. The themes of the installations contrast each
other as Paik’s work is upbeat and happy and shows what the world has to offer
whereas Gordon’s work is dull, reflective and shows humanities destruction. Despite
there being a 20-year gap between the creations of the installations, they have
similarities such as both being reflections of humanity and featuring symbolism and
metaphors. Both pieces are displayed in large open spaces with a clear single coloured
background as this allows the installation to standout and engage the audience the best.
The installations can be interpreted both positively and negatively as Paik’s piece can be
seen as inspirational as well as highlighting how America is controlled by television and
film whilst Gordon’s work can be seen as the destruction of humanity as well as a
celebration of culture.
VI. CONCLUSION
Video installation has been popular since it’s birth in the 1960’s and is now arguably
the most common form of art. Pioneers Andy Warhol and Nam June Paik created this

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technological art craze by experimenting with short films and manipulating images on
the monitors. Video Installation art can be a simple video of a performance or an
elaborate staged set of events. Installations often represent and express social issues
through metaphors and symbolism as was seen frequently in Nam June Paik and
Douglas Gordon’s work. Both artists captivated their audiences by using ordinary
everyday objects such as lights, monitors and instruments or recognisable locations and
clips to create their installations, which makes the art relatable for the viewer. Typically
installation art is displayed at a gallery in a spacious, dark room with a single coloured
background as this improves the atmosphere for the viewer and allows them to become
more involved and interested in the piece. Most installation pieces are appropriate for
all ages except those that feature potentially disturbing themes such as ‘The End of
Civilization’. As the Internet grows and art appreciation increases, installation art will
become more popular and could be a good outlet and promotional avenue for
individuals to display thoughts and emotions on prominent issues as this art form is easy
to produce and can be enjoyed by the public.
Word Count: 2142.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Websites
Tate Modern. Installation Art. [Online]. [Accessed 16 May 2017]. Available from:
http://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/i/installation-art
Wikipedia. 2007. Video Installation. [Online]. [Accessed 16 May 2017]. Available
from:
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Video_installation&dir=prev&action=histor
y