Date of Award

Spring 5-30-2020

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Fine Arts (MFA)

Department

Digital Media

First Advisor

Nora N. Khan

Second Advisor

Shona Kitchen

Third Advisor

Mark Cetilia

Abstract

The digital world is just another reality, alongside all the other parallel universes. It is similar to dreams, reflect- ing our fear and desire. When we are not conscious, the particles from our mind will travel freely and construct dreams. While in virtual space, digits are those wandering particles which form the world and are partially controlled by our minds. What is interesting is that no one in those realities will question the logic and behaviours, even though some of them are ridiculous, if you think carefully when you are awake in this physical world. We do find things go wrong sometimes, and we call them glitches.

Glitches are particles that are left behind. They exist in the in-between space; they are the chaos, the awkwardness, and moments of uncertainty. In terms of dreams, the glitches happen when I experience sleep paralysis; I am half awake, and I can’t move my body. In the digital world, the glitches are system errors, disconnections and beyond recognition. In my life, the glitches are failures to communicate, in which I lose reactivity and do not know who I am.

My perspective - one that oscillates between different worlds - allows me to better approach the contemporary collision zone between digital and physical space. I exa- mine the ways that we behave are constantly shaped by the technological tools we create, changing how we see ourselves, communicate with people and interact with our surroundings. As an artist in conversation with technology, I investigate my anxiety through social communications and my fear of disappearance and senselessness. The journey from ‘unease’ to ‘acceptance’ requires me to embrace the ‘glitch’ inside, know that uncertainty is liberty.

My artistic practice imagines possibilities to rethink technology, offering positions beyond complicity or opposition. Through live performance, wearables and installations, I reveal what happens in cyberspace to the physical world, illuminating our current use of technology by creating absurd scenarios.

Supported by ideas from quantum physics and inspired by cyberspace, this book will be a mosaic of multiple realities including dreams and digital platforms, ‘glitches’ in those different spaces and the works I’ve been doing.

The reading experience will be a trip to multiple universes with floating particles or surfing various popup windows with hidden errors.

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