After four years study of art and new media, I learned what art is and understand art is an essential thing of human condition. No cultural didn’t participate in it to some extend.

When I study new media, I saw how internet, this new media, plays important roles in the world now. It seems to be integral to the modern world now. The necessary level of art is different from Internet does. I think we should concern how Internet affects our value of ourselves, community, and information.

Therefore ,for my new media senior project, I would like to make some art pieces to let people more understand how Internet changes them internally and express my feeling of this media.

Mainly, I plan to create three flash videos which may include video, animation and some flash interactive function. These video will criticize about communication in internet, “virtual community” in internet, and information overload in internet. I will title these videos as “closer or farer”, “real or imagination”, “active or passive”. Each title of the three videos contains two opposition meanings. The format of the title will look like a question to let people think and speculate what we are in Internet.

Closer or Farer
This video talks about communication in internet. Now Email, MSN messenger ICQ or some communication tools in internet become our general communication tool, and these are changing our way to communicate with other.

When we are using this tool to talk with someone, are we truly express our own feelings? (Will your friend see you smile when you told her you are happy in email?) Body language becomes irrelevant to the communication of interpersonal affect.

Otherwise, it is so strange that we use internet to meet anyone in the world, but actually we just sit alone in front of the computer. In fact, many people pay more time to talk with someone who meets in internet than their relatives and closer friends. It is contradiction that closer relationship becomes farer, and we keep close relationship with far away anonymous.

Real or Imagination
“Real or imagination” is a video about “virtual community” in internet. In Internet world, we have the opportunity to build new kinds of communities, virtual communities, in which we participate with people from all over the world. We can talk, exchange ideas, and assume personae of our own creation. Some multi-user computer games links computers and computers together, and provide some virtual space in which we can navigate, converse, and build freely.

However, in this kind of worlds for anonymous social interaction, we can play roles as close to or as far away from our “real self” as we choose. When we indulged to enjoy the goodness in this virtual world, our value of our “real self” would be ambiguous.

Active or Passive
“Active or passive” discusses about the phenomenon of information overload in internet. Internet create virtual to every people to share their ideas and information, it also simulates rapid information transfer in the globe by file transfer and URL websites. Newcomers gain access or admission to get different kind of information.

We seem to act as active position in internet, but while information overloaded in internet and people are lack of sense to justify the credibility of information. We become passive to accept all information. Excessive number of file sharing make creators of these finished works is passive to protect their creations. As you are active an information researcher in internet, perhaps you only are a passive receiver of all information. When you are a creator, you are vulnerable to anonymous in internet to copy your completed works and ideas.