Tech and Art: How Art Has Changed in the Digital Era

The digital era waved in a flood of new technology, devices and a lifestyle to accommodate this widespread change.

Whether or not technology’s effect on the world has been positive or negative, a major cultural staple has seen a renaissance in the digital era: art. Although not typically what comes to mind when you think of how technology has affected our world, art has become more diverse and fascinating in the digital era.

For instance, Israeli artist Eyal Gever has utilized 3D printing to create huge, colorful installations of “frozen motion,” like ocean waves and explosions. His work is intriguing and points a finger directly to the powerful effects of technology on the world of art. There isn’t a method of art that can even come close to representing the level of detail in these pieces as 3D printing.

Famous for his painting and now even more so after his digital art, David Hockney underwent a stylistic transition after his personal usherance into the digital age. The renowned English artist sparked public interest five years ago when he threw out his canvas and brush for an iPad and a stylus, sketching colorful still lifes on an app called Brushes. He even exhibited his iPad and iPhone art at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto in 2011, which garnered significant attention.

While some hailed Hockney for marrying the two worlds of advanced technology and fine art, others, like Paddy Johnson, were disappointed in the pieces at the exhibit. According to her, once you peer beyond the novelty of Hockney’s digital still lifes shining from the screens of the 200 iPads and iPod touches, “you are left with images that represent some of his worst art. Nowhere is the depth of artistic vision that informs his paintings of California pools, his homoerotic domestic drawings or his charcoal portraits.”

Although the digital age has allowed for revolutionary artists like Eyal Gever to flourish, innovate and awe, its impact isn’t decidedly positive either. David Hockney’s “Fresh Flowers” exhibit stands as a reminder that new technology doesn’t always make things better.