Goodbye, World!: Looking at Art in the Digital Age

by Omar Kholeif

A look at how the internet and post-millenial technologies have transformed our ways of seeing and birthed a new form of culture. The way we see the world has changed drastically since NASA released the “blue marble” image of the earth taken by Apollo 17 in 1972. No longer a placid slow-moving orb, the world is now perceived as a hothouse of activity and hyper-connectivity that cannot keep up with its inhabitants. The internet has collectively bound human society, replacing the world as the network of all networks. In Goodbye, World! Looking at Art in the Digital Age , writer and curator Omar Kholeif traces the birth of a culture propagated but also consumed by this digitized network. Has the internet transformed the way we see and relate to images? How has the field of perception been altered by evolving technologies, pervasive distribution, and our interaction with screens? How have artists working in diverse contexts, from eBay auctions to augmented reality, created new ways of emoting that are determined by these technologies? Focusing on a cultural and artistic landscape that has taken shape since the year 2000, Kholeif aims to put into context a new language for seeing, feeling, and being that has emerged through post-millennial technologies, and argues for a nuanced understanding of the post-digital condition. Taking cues from John Berger's Ways of Seeing and Alvin Toffler's Future Shock , this book—part memoir, part critical analysis—should prove essential for anyone interested in the changing world of the internet.

Genres: Art

212 pages, Paperback

Published April 13, 2018

Reviews

[Sofia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is by far one of the most illuminating and reflective books I have ever read!

Kholeif's analysis of the relationship between art, artists, and the public as mediated through digital relationships and the internet is astute. This book invites readers to think about our current understanding and presumptions of the role of digital spaces in the proliferation and participation in the artistic and communicative communities.

This book is an absolute must read for those interested in doing a deep dive into 21st century media studies.

[Laura Zapata · Rating 3 out of 5]

Repaso de las tendencias del arte post Internet pasado el net.art hasta 2018. Hay reflexiones muy interesantes y certeras sobre el cambio en el entendimiento del arte con el avance de las tecnologías y las formas de acercarnos al mundo que ellas imponen.

[Thea · Rating 2 out of 5]

Informative about specific artists who look at the politics of technologies in their artistic practices. Not the most interesting writing style but good for finding artists.

[Sean McClay · Rating 3 out of 5]

My first foray into Sternberg Press' offerings, and I was rewarded. A lively read, which covers interesting matters of curation of digital art, and also the ways it reflects society.

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Useful info about specific artists but not as good as Art After the Internet (sorry Omar Kholeif)