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  • Spring 2025
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“Art is an outlet toward regions which are not ruled by time and space”
— Marcel Duchamp

Avant-Guardian Musings is a curated space of ideas and information, resources, reviews and readings for undergraduate and graduate students studying modern and contemporary art history and visual art theory, film and photography studies, and the expanding field of visual culture and screen studies. For students currently enrolled in my courses or the field school, the blog and associated social media links also serve as a place of reflection and an extension of the ideas and visual material raised in lecture and seminar discussion.

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Blog
From the Archives | How (And Why) To Take Excellent Lecture Notes
From the Archives | How (And Why) To Take Excellent Lecture Notes
about 10 months ago
Weekly Musings + Round Up... And A Few More Things
Weekly Musings + Round Up... And A Few More Things
about 2 years ago
Weekly Musings + Round Up... And A Few More Things
about 2 years ago
Weekly Musings + Round Up... And A Few More Things
Weekly Musings + Round Up... And A Few More Things
about 2 years ago
Top 10 Modern and Contemporary Art Exhibitions Worth Visiting In 2023
Top 10 Modern and Contemporary Art Exhibitions Worth Visiting In 2023
about 2 years ago

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Delighted to find these iconic Tom Ford Whitney’s deep in my closet over the weekend ✨☀️🕶️Anyone else remember these sunglasses from back in the day? I want to say these are well over 15 years old and they were a very big splurge, but I loved
Delighted to find these iconic Tom Ford Whitney’s deep in my closet over the weekend ✨☀️🕶️Anyone else remember these sunglasses from back in the day? I want to say these are well over 15 years old and they were a very big splurge, but I loved rediscovering and wearing them today. Great design is timeless. Invest in things you love— your future self will thank you✨ . . . #tomford #sunglasses #tomfordwhitney #whatiwore #shamelessselfie
If Seoul was a colour, it would be neon and bright, and if it was a shape, it would be curved and post-structural.
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#artanddesign #odetoacity #urban #seoul #korea #design #contemporaryart #architecture
If Seoul was a colour, it would be neon and bright, and if it was a shape, it would be curved and post-structural. . . . #artanddesign #odetoacity #urban #seoul #korea #design #contemporaryart #architecture
Visited the stunning Leeum Museum of Art today and took in the spatial delights of Korean architecture married to modern art. What I love most is how the familiar European and American “masters” (i.e. Rodin, Giacometti, Rauschenberg, Hess
Visited the stunning Leeum Museum of Art today and took in the spatial delights of Korean architecture married to modern art. What I love most is how the familiar European and American “masters” (i.e. Rodin, Giacometti, Rauschenberg, Hesse, Flavin, Rothko, Andre, Lewitt, Stella, etc…) are curated both in dialogue with Korean modern artists such as Lee Ufan and Kim Chong-yung, but also in juxtaposition to the beautiful natural setting that is showcased through large windows throughout the complex. A must see gallery if you visit Seoul. . . . #seoul #korea #modernart #contemporaryart #koreanart #arthistory
Flaneur for the day in Seoul ✨🇰🇷 A global city of high contrast, beauty, and living history around every corner.
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#seoul #korea #flaneur #daytripping #streetart #contemporaryart #modernart #urbanart #arthistory #urban #globalcity
Flaneur for the day in Seoul ✨🇰🇷 A global city of high contrast, beauty, and living history around every corner. . . . #seoul #korea #flaneur #daytripping #streetart #contemporaryart #modernart #urbanart #arthistory #urban #globalcity
Hello Seoul! 🇰🇷🛬✨안녕하세요 서울 Lucky me, I am incredibly excited to have arrived in South Korea today and staying smack dab in the middle of the stylish Gangnam District at the COEX Conference Centre. It is my first time in this beautiful city and I ca
Hello Seoul! 🇰🇷🛬✨안녕하세요 서울 Lucky me, I am incredibly excited to have arrived in South Korea today and staying smack dab in the middle of the stylish Gangnam District at the COEX Conference Centre. It is my first time in this beautiful city and I cannot wait to begin exploring, especially the contemporary art and design scene. I am here to attend and give a paper at the #IPSA2025 International Political Science Association World Congress, the largest global gathering of researchers and academics working on all things political and international relations oriented. IPSA as an academic association was founded under the auspices of UNESCO in 1949 and is devoted to the advancement of political science in all parts of the world and promotes collaboration between scholars in both established and emerging democracies. The 2025 Conference theme is “Resisting Autocratization in Polarized Societies” and I was invited to present a paper on my ongoing work on Trumpism, the neo avante-garde, and visual culture on a panel examining the role of cultural actors during periods of democratic backsliding. I only had a few hours after I arrived to my hotel to check out COEX, but I had to see the world famous library housed inside the shopping complex. It was a very cool sight for a book nerd like me 🤓 . . . #seoul #korea #southkorea #politicalscience #arthistory #academiclife #conference @kpuarts @kwantlenu

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© Dorothy Barenscott, Avant-Guardian Musings, and dorothybarenscott.com, 2010-2023. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Dorothy Barenscott, Avant-Guardian Musings, and dorothybarenscott.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

If you are in London between now and May 15th, make sure to visit Whitechapel and check out this fantastic exhibition.

If you are in London between now and May 15th, make sure to visit Whitechapel and check out this fantastic exhibition.

Location| London: Visit to Whitechapel Gallery Electronic Superhighway Exhibition 2016-1966

February 11, 2016

“How is the Internet changing art?” That is the critical question posed by Whitechapel Gallery’s major exhibition surveying the relationship between visual culture and new media technology over the last five decades. Having researched these questions and taught New Media focused courses over the past six years, I was excited to visit this exhibition in person while on my recent trip to London. The show, which opened January 29th and runs through mid-May in East London, presents an incredible collection of artists, projects, archives, and writings (past and present) and raises important questions about how artists have been at the leading edge of the debates and questions concerning human relationships with emerging technology.  What struck me when entering the spaces of Whitechapel Gallery was just how dynamic, playful, and thoroughly inviting the exhibition looked and felt. Unlike other new media shows that can tend towards the cool and minimal, there was attention to presenting both traditional and non-traditional media forms in the examination of the core theme of the “Electronic Superhighway” in an engaging way.

The unassuming and traditional facade of Whitechapel Gallery hides one of the most important contemporary public art galleries in London.

The unassuming and traditional facade of Whitechapel Gallery hides one of the most important contemporary public art galleries in London.

Oscillating between themes of resistance and liberation, the show is strategically divided into three large galleries that plot both a chronological and thematic approach to artistic engagement with computers, the Internet, and new media. Visitors enter the main gallery space on the ground floor and are invited to look first at the present (hence the subtitle 2016-1966—a clever curatorial approach) and familiarize themselves with some of the most relevant and contemporary artists and projects exploring the exhibition themes. It was interesting seeing Canadian Douglas Coupland given such a prominent place in the room (and of course his placement here relates to his literary work as much as his visual projects), but I was more drawn to the works done by artists Amalia Ulman, Zach Blas, Evan Roth, Cory Arcangel, James Bridle, Taryn Simon, Jayson Musson, and Haron Farocki (see my gallery for details). 

 

 Olad Breuning,  Text Butt  (2015)

Olad Breuning, Text Butt (2015)

 Interior Shot of exhibition with Douglas Coupland,  Deep Face  (2015) in background.

Interior Shot of exhibition with Douglas Coupland, Deep Face (2015) in background.

 Amalia Ulman,  Excellence and Perfection  (2015)

Amalia Ulman, Excellence and Perfection (2015)

 Cory Arcangel,  Snowbunny/Lakes  (2015)

Cory Arcangel, Snowbunny/Lakes (2015)

 Zach Blas,  Queer Technologies  (2007-2010)

Zach Blas, Queer Technologies (2007-2010)

 Evan Roth,  Internet Cache Self-Portrait, November 24, 2015  (2015)

Evan Roth, Internet Cache Self-Portrait, November 24, 2015 (2015)

 James Bridle,  Homo Sacer  (2015)

James Bridle, Homo Sacer (2015)

 Taryn Simon,  Image Atlas  (2012)

Taryn Simon, Image Atlas (2012)

 Jayson Musson,  ART THOUGHTZ  (2010-2012)

Jayson Musson, ART THOUGHTZ (2010-2012)

 Haron Farocki,  Parallel I-IV  (2012-14)

Haron Farocki, Parallel I-IV (2012-14)

 Olad Breuning,  Text Butt  (2015)  Interior Shot of exhibition with Douglas Coupland,  Deep Face  (2015) in background.  Amalia Ulman,  Excellence and Perfection  (2015)  Cory Arcangel,  Snowbunny/Lakes  (2015)  Zach Blas,  Queer Technologies  (2007-2010)  Evan Roth,  Internet Cache Self-Portrait, November 24, 2015  (2015)  James Bridle,  Homo Sacer  (2015)  Taryn Simon,  Image Atlas  (2012)  Jayson Musson,  ART THOUGHTZ  (2010-2012)  Haron Farocki,  Parallel I-IV  (2012-14)

Moving upstairs, the pioneers of Internet and new media based art are showcased, and visitors are greeted with a large scale video sculpture installation of Nam June Paik’s Internet Dream (1994) which many delighted in watching, photographing, videotaping, and generally hanging out with.  I probably took more pictures and notes in this part of the show since it is both rare and incredibly special to see some of the documents and artworks from this much-neglected period of art history ranging from the late 1960’s through 80’s. The highlight for me was finally getting a look at some of the ephemera associated with E.A.T. (Experiments in Art and Technology)—an interdisciplinary group including the likes of Robert Rauschenberg, Yvonne Rainer, John Cage and many others who attempted to establish collaborations between artists and engineers working with emerging technologies in the late 1960s. A manifesto and several documents were available for viewing—a rare look into a key nexus of activity during the height of the counter-cultural revolution in New York. 

 Nam June Paik,  Internet Dream  (1994)

Nam June Paik, Internet Dream (1994)

 Roy Ascott,  La Plissure du Texte  (1983)

Roy Ascott, La Plissure du Texte (1983)

 E.A.T. Experiments in Art and Technology, ephemera and papers (1966)

E.A.T. Experiments in Art and Technology, ephemera and papers (1966)

 Judith Barry,  Space Invaders  (1981-82)

Judith Barry, Space Invaders (1981-82)

 Cybernetic Serendipity ephemera and papers from the 1968 exhibition   

Cybernetic Serendipity ephemera and papers from the 1968 exhibition

 

 Hiroshi Kawano,  Untitled (Red Tree)  (1972)

Hiroshi Kawano, Untitled (Red Tree) (1972)

 Nam June Paik,  Internet Dream  (1994)  Roy Ascott,  La Plissure du Texte  (1983)  E.A.T. Experiments in Art and Technology, ephemera and papers (1966)  Judith Barry,  Space Invaders  (1981-82)  Cybernetic Serendipity ephemera and papers from the 1968 exhibition     Hiroshi Kawano,  Untitled (Red Tree)  (1972)

Moving back downstairs, I made sure to check out the related exhibition of German filmmaker Harun Farocki’s immersive computer game video installation, Parallel I-IV. Here, the examination and evolution of gaming graphics was presented in both an interactive and conceptual way. It was also a thrill to see how relevant and cutting-edge Farocki’s final work was (he passed away at 70 years old in 2014) and to note his profound influence on many of the younger artists featured in the larger show (his Workers Leaving the Factory in Eleven Decades was also a delight to encounter later in my visit at the Tate Modern). Since his passing, it appears many more institutions have been showcasing Farocki’s work, making his legacy known to a new generation of artists and researchers. All in all, this is a show not to be missed if you find yourself in London before the end of May. Once again, we can see through these kinds of exhibitions how the boundaries and possibilities for artmaking and thinking about the avant-garde are being transformed through the Internet, computing, and emerging screen cultures.

So many books! I have the catalogue on order, but there are many more books related to this exhibition that I will be posting on my Pinterest collection "Books to Explore"

So many books! I have the catalogue on order, but there are many more books related to this exhibition that I will be posting on my Pinterest collection "Books to Explore"

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© Dorothy Barenscott, 2010-2025