Media screensmdash;film; video; and computer screensmdash;have increasingly pervaded both artistic production and everyday life since the 1960s. Yet the nature of viewing artworks made from these media; along with their subjective effects; remains largely unexplored. Screens addresses this gap; offering a historical and theoretical framework for understanding screen-reliant installation art and the spectatorship it evokes. Examining a range of installations created over the past fifty years that investigate the rich terrain between the sculptural and the cinematic; including works by artists such as Eija-Liisa Ahtila; Doug Aitken; Peter Campus; Dan Graham; VALIE EXPORT; Bruce Nauman; and Michael Snow; Kate Mondloch traces the construction of screen spectatorship in art from the seminal film and video installations of the 1960s and 1970s to the new media artworks of todayrsquo;s digital culture. Mondloch identifies a momentous shift in contemporary art that challenges key premises of spectatorship brought about by technological objects that literally and metaphorically filter the subjectrsquo;s field of vision. As a result she proposes that contemporary viewers are; quite literally; screen subjects and offers the unique critical leverage of art as an alternative way to understand media culture and contemporary visuality.
#1166506 in eBooks 2011-07-01 2014-02-18File Name: B00IJIJ9C0
Review
6 of 8 people found the following review helpful. Our society demands Idols and we sacrifice them upBy DrLupinIm a Britney fan (I became a fan after her breakdown; however) and I dont know much about sociology. It was quite readable for me; but it is more of a sociology text book. Anyway; I found it really interesting; and a fast read (its only 127 pages). You have to know about Britneys history; the details are not given in the book. The book covers her chronologically; from her early ambitions up to the latest album release (Circus --- the book was published in 2011 but before Femme Fatale came out). Britney was following a dream; that was a social contract; that she would be loved for her talent and to the glory of God. Instead; she ended up playing a role that had little to do with herself personally; and more as a communal sex idol.It really made me think; because it is true that those in the spotlight lose themselves. And about what we as a society have done to her and to other pop stars like Marilyn Monroe. We love and adore our pop princess; but only if she stays young; beautiful; sexy; and tantalizing. Britney entered the stage so young; did she ever really have a say in what she became? Be careful what you wish for. This really hit home for me because of the dreams that I had when I was young; I didnt understand what I was getting in to; and we do grow up with an unspoken social contract that if we do all the right things; it will all work out OK. But it doesnt always. And theres no going back.The book also covers feminism; in the sense of the roles women are expected to hold --- and Britney was supposed to be both the perfect woman (Mary mother of Jesus) and the perfect sex object (Mary Magdalene). If you want to get a better understanding of how our society and our values are reflected in pop culture; read this book!1 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy Customervery excited to read this book!
