Internet_Art: From the Birth of the Web to the Rise of NFTs

by Omar Kholeif

A leading figure in the world of networked culture explores the artists and events that defined the mass medium of our time Since 1989, the year the World Wide Web was born, the art world has grappled with the rise of networked culture. This unprecedented survey of the artists and innovators in this area from 1989 to today is interwoven with the personal narrative of one of the leading voices on the digital world. In this book, Omar Kholeif, whose prolific career parallels the growth of the internet, tells the story of this mass medium and how it has fostered new possibilities for artists, both analog and digital. The book showcases work spanning a range of media from legendary artists including Lawrence Abu Hamdan, Lynn Hershman Leeson, Nam June Paik, Heather Phillipson, and Wu Tsang. Tracing the key artists and innovators from the emergence of browser-based art to the dawn of NFTs, this is a tale for the present and the future.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction

296 pages, Hardcover

Published April 26, 2023

Reviews

[Tabish Khan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Had to give up this dense academic text. I think it could prove useful as a reference book but it's a chore to get through.

The author has tried to break it up with anecdotes from his own life, which I appreciate, but they often feel very tangential and jump around a lot. It's also not the kind of writing academics are particularly good art.

The topic is interesting to me but this isn't the book for me.

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I ended up just flipping through it and reading sections; I found it to be inaccessible and more academic than what I was hoping for.

[E.M. Blake · Rating 5 out of 5]

A stunningly gorgeous book with pages that feel too precious to touch. Internet_Art is quite simply a work of art in itself.

Words ripple and zing across the pages, full of insight, clever choice of words and topical subjects sets amidst the background of the author's life.

The Andy Warhol and AI sections particularly caught my eye. This book is a gem for art lovers and novices like me, who seek to understand this world more and thrive on learning.

Part field guide, part historical non-fiction, documenting the intersection between internet and art, Kholeif weaves personal narrative with curatorial insight with his unique voice and zest.

The book also spotlights underrepresented voices and forgotten pioneers, a much needed and often neglected aspect of recording our histories.

It's an impressive undertaking by a prolific writer whose wealth of knowledge is boundless. I'm so grateful to have had the chance to interview and meet him.

Recommended for artists, digital wanderers, academics, students seeking careers in the arts, those seeking to be able to speak more intelligently on this subject, and anyone curious about how creativity has evolved in the age of the scroll, swipe and click.

[Syntaxx · Rating 2 out of 5]

idk why i wanted to read this but doing so was a reminder that i do not enjoy reading about art or contemporary art movements. could not get into this one; takes itself too seriously. not for me. glad i got it from the library. pretty cover tho!

[Jamie Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing. beautiful hybrid of memoir, contemporary history & contemporary art. highly recommend.