Interpreting the Data · Group exhibition

Data – raw information – is the seed of all artistic inspiration. But it may never be as transparent as it is in digital art. Both of these artists create art through the digital interpretation of data; both generate fantastic artistic output from familiar input. Martin Wattenberg takes relatively mundane sources of inspiration, for example, a page from the dictionary or the morning's stock quotes, and interprets the data to create mesmerizing art. For the show at bitforms, Wattenberg has chosen a very rich data source: music. Wattenberg analyzes musical compositions across genres — from Mozart to Madonna — to reveal structural patterns, with each resulting print being distinct. Mark Napier's contribution introduces "shared art" through interactive CD-ROM-based work that allows multiple purchasers to collaborate on and modify the artwork's code.