Installation Art

One aspect of Post Modern art is installation art; work that relates to its environment by incorporating and reacting to its physical location. Here is a classic example of installation art from artnexus.com


In terms of lighting, I have found two trends that relate to this concept. The first are lights that create shadows and light patterns that are projected past the light itself and onto the lights surrounding environment. The light uses the room as its canvas, the patterns it projects are altered by its surrounding physical environment . from designshoot.com


from thevectorgroup.com

Another trend in lighting are lights that relate to their environment. These lights incorporate their mounting location and power source into the design. They seem to be engaged with and reacting to their environment.
from theplaycoalition.net

Relational Art Movement

relationalism is a current fine art movement that redefines the concept of art. Instead of art being judged based on its imagery or physical form, artworks are judged upon the inter-human relations which they represent, produce or prompt. Relational artwork creates an environment that brings people together to collectively experience and participate in an activity, basically Relationalism is Interactive Art.This Movement seems particularly relevant to our times as interactive design becomes more and more prevalent. Interactive design is a key part of our modern product development, from phones to websites interaction is carefully considered. In our post-modern world of art as product it does not seem so far- fetched that interactive design has become part of our fine art as well. This is a Relational / Interactive Art piece designed by Berlin interactive artists Gunnar Green and Frederic Eyl. It is a wall composed of mechanical apertures, they react to the amount of light and close or open accordingly, the result is a real time half tone effect as a person moves along the wall.
technabob.com


The fine art movement of Relationalism can be found in today's interactive lighting products. These light displays rely on interaction with people to create their images. I found a great example of this at hippyshopper.com

This interactive wall display uses low energy LED lights. Users can change the light display through touch and up to six people at a time can change different parts of the display.This product is also eco-friendly using about the same amount of energy as a toaster.

Another example is made by Electroland. It is a walkway that creates light patterns based on the locations of people on it. I found this and several other great examples at Interactive Architecture.org

Trend Watching

I will be following these two websites to gain more in-site into the connection between fine art and lighting trends.

the first site is Homedit.com, a great resource for lighting trends. Website: http://www.homedit.com/category/lighting

The second site is Art Info.com, a good resource for fine art news and shows. Website:
http://www.artinfo.com

Art,Lighting,Sustainability

Through my research of modern (or perhaps more accurately post-modern) art lighting I found several good examples of conceptually based lighting products. In today's culture sustainability is an important aspect of any product. Consumers desire sustainable or green products. This trend has become a major concept in art lighting but it can also be seen in today's fine art.

Recently there has been a great deal of news regarding the evils of plastic water bottles, they are quickly piling up in our landfills.

I found an chandelier made entirely from used plastic water bottles.
From webecoist.com

This piece is definitely concept driven, experimental in its material and quick to produce, all of these are Post- Modern characteristics

Another great example of this trend is the work of Stuart Haygarth who uses garbage to create lights. Each piece uses garbage from a specific place or time, such as party poppers that he collected on new years day 2000 . Check it out at:
http://www.stuarthaygarth.com/default.asp?V_DOC_ID=1079

This same trend can be found in fine art. One example is the work of John Dahlsen, a contemporary painter who uses plastic waste as the subject matter for his paintings. He also creates images from old plastic bags. Images of his work can be found at:http://www.johndahlsen.com

A major trend in both fine art and lighting is the concept of sustainability with found objects as the material of choice. Garbage has become a new medium for creating fine art as well as consumer products.

Contemporary Art Movements

Throughout history art has been classified into different movements. From Baroque to Pop art, most people are familiar with these styles (or at very least there names) but what movement are we in now? I realized, (to my own horror) as a well educated professional artist that I couldn’t name a single art movement after 1960. Well, after some research I realized that there have been quite a few movements since the 60s, I found over 20. Here is a link if you would like to check some of them out: http://arthistory.about.com/library/outlines/blcontemporary.htm..

We are currently in the Post- Modern Era which is post 1960 to present. The Post -Modern Era is characterized by:

Conceptualism: meaning of work becomes more important than aesthetics

Experimentation: use of non-traditional materials and subject matter

Cultural influences that have had an effect on the Post -Modern Era include:

· New image making technology which allows artists to make work without traditional skill sets. This causes craftsmanship, expertise and traditional art skills and training to loose value. The artistic process moves from painstaking careful craftsmanship to quick instant gratification. Artists focus on production techniques rather than honing in on a particular craft skill.

· Increasing consumerism culture also affects visual art, placing value on novelties and entertainment. Art becomes more like a product providing entertainment through shock value.