"

Crlglnally publlshed ln Lngllsh and Cerman ln !"#$%& ()*%+,-#.%)/ 0123%,1 #% #$1 0.+14 0%+24, karl Cerbel
and eLer Welbel, LdlLors (vlenna, new ?ork: Sprlnger-verlag, 1993), pp. 170-179. 1hls book was publlshed on
Lhe occaslon of Lhe 1993 edlLlon of Lhe annual elecLronlc arL fesLlval and symposlum 5+& 6213#+%).3-. 1hls essay
dlscusses new forms of lnLeracLlve arL LhaL Lake place on Lhe lnLerneL, lncludlng hyperLexL pleces, web slLes,
hybrld Lelevlslon broadcasLs, and Lelepresence lnsLallaLlons.

(78695:8(;6 598 <7 8=6 (7869768
64>-+4% ?-3 @ABBCD


1he lnLerneL ls a worldwlde neLwork whlch llnks more Lhan Lhree mllllon compuLers ln more
Lhan Lhree dozen counLrles
(hLLp://www.w3.org/hyperLexL/uaLaSources/WWW/Servers.hLml), and connecLs mllllons of
people from backgrounds dlverse as Lhe academy, buslness, mlllLary, and Lhe arLs. 1hls huge
neLwork conflgures an absoluLely new slLuaLlon ln Lhe arLs and prompLs reflecLlon on lLs
lmpacL and poLenLlal. 1he goal of Lhls essay ls Lo map some of Lhe lnLeracLlve arLlsLlc
developmenLs currenLly Laklng place on Lhe lnLerneL and Lo spoLllghL Lhe unlque aesLheLlc
lnvesLlgaLlons made posslble by Lhls seamlessly lnLegraLed worldwlde compuLer neLwork. 1he
essay ls sLrucLured wlLh references Lo maLerlal LhaL can be lmmedlaLely accessed on Lhe
lnLerneL. 1he reader ls lnvlLed Lo read under Lhe glow of Lhe C81, leLLlng dlglLal sLrokes carry
hlm or her from one slLe Lo anoLher.

lrom Lhe polnL of vlew of Lhe arLlsL, whaL ls Lhe lnLerneL? ls lL a vlrLual caLalogue, or Lhe mosL
perfecL gallery for elecLronlc lmages? lor some lL may be an lnLeracLlve medlum. ?eL oLhers
push lnLeracLlvlLy beyond Lhe screen and lnLegraLe lL ln hybrld conLexLs. lLs ordlnary use mlghL
suggesL LhaL lL ls more llke Lhe Lelephone and Lhe posLal sysLems, whlch baslcally enable Lhe
exchange of messages beLween dlsLanL lnLeracLors. 1he lnLerneL lncorporaLes cerLaln aspecLs
of Lelevlslon and radlo, by maklng lL posslble for lndlvlduals Lo broadcasL messages Lo groups.
erhaps Lhe mosL exclLlng feaLure of Lhe lnLerneL ls LhaL lL ls slmulLaneously all of Lhe above
and more. WlLhouL a governlng body or dlrecLors LhaL flrmly conLrol lLs conLenL and
developmenL, Lhe lnLerneL can be approached from many angles, and lL conLlnues Lo grow
and Lransform lLself as you read your e-mall Loday.

CranLed access Lo a graphlcal user lnLerface and a llnk vla modem or LLherneL, polnLlng and
cllcklng ls all LhaL ls needed Lo navlgaLe Lhe lnLerneL. WlLh slmple key sLrokes one can go from
one conLlnenL Lo anoLher aL remarkable speeds, even over a sLandard modem connecLlon. As
we flnd a Loplc of lnLeresL, we cllck on a word or plcLure, openlng up connecLlons Lo oLher
words, plcLures, and slLes. 1he process ls endless. Powever, ln mosL arL works avallable on or
vla Lhe neL Lhe gesLures of polnLlng and cllcklng do noL consLlLuLe, by Lhemselves, a slgnlfylng
elemenL of Lhe navlgaLlonal experlence. When looklng aL on-llne caLalogues of LradlLlonal
medla works and gallerles of elecLronlc lmages, we polnL and cllck wlLh Lhe ob[ecLlve of
arrlvlng aL Lhe desLlnaLlon. 1he rhlzomorphous sLrucLure of Web browsers faclllLaLes Lhe
experlence, buL does noL consLlLuLe ln lLself a key elemenL ln Lhe producLlon of meanlng,
slnce Lhe sLlll plcLures are sLored ln a remoLe compuLer awalLlng conLemplaLlon. As ln a
physlcal gallery, lf we choose Lo look aL one palnLlng flrsL, lnsLead of anoLher, Lhls cholce ln
lLself does noL play a role ln our appreclaLlon of Lhe plcLures Lhemselves. 1he case ln polnL:
some of Lhe works avallable on Lhe lnLerneL do lncorporaLe Lhe hypermedla quallLy of user-
frlendly graphlcal lnLerfaces such as neLscape. 1hese works explore Lhe lnLerneL noL as a
#
gallery Lo show plcLures, buL as an lnLeracLlve medlum. 1hese works are based on muLable
sLrucLures and unsLable llnks. lor Lhem Lo be meanlngful, Lhey rely on enabllng Lhe
parLlclpanL Lo make cholces on-llne, parLlclpaLe ln Lhe developmenL of Lhe work, and
deLermlne Lhe experlence one has as he or she navlgaLes a glven plece.

LlLerary works creaLed ln hyperLexL medla do noL have a correspondenL ln prlnL and can exlsL
boLh lnslde and ouLslde Lhe lnLerneL, as long as Lhey are LranslaLed from Lhelr orlglnal formaL
(PyperCard and SLoryspace, for example) Lo PLml (hyperLexL mark-up language), Lhe Web
scrlpLlng language. uue Lo Lhelr lnLrlnslc lnLeracLlve characLer, when publlcly dlsplayed on Lhe
neL hyperLexL pleces abollsh Lhe dlsLlncLlons made hlLherLo beLween wrlLlng and publlshlng.
1hese dlsLlncLlons have been regularly aLLacked slnce Lhe early '20s by poeLs such as L. L.
Cummlngs, who embraced Lhe LypewrlLer as a medlum by uslng lL Lo produce hlmself Lhe flnal
vlsual sLrucLure of hls poems, lnsLead of llvlng lL up Lo Lhe publlsher and Lhe LypeseLLer.
Cummlngs wroLe wlLh a LypewrlLer Lo compose wlLh black and whlLe spaces organlzed lnLo
horlzonLal and verLlcal grlds. PyperLexL auLhors wrlLe wlLh sofLware LhaL enables non-
hlerarchlcal organlzaLlon of lnformaLlon, whlch ls absoluLely sulLable Lo Lhe lnLeracLlve
lnLerface currenLly pervadlng Lhe lnLerneL. PyperflcLlon auLhor !udy Malloy, a "pop
concepLuallsL", ln her own words, ls now offerlng "l0ve0ne"
(hLLp://www.easLgaLe.com/~malloy/) Lhrough LasLgaLe's Web page
(hLLp://www.easLgaLe.com/~easLgaLe/Mlnlhome.hLml). vla e-mall she has deflned 'l0ve0ne'
as "a conLlnulng narraLlve of comlngs and golngs, Cerman hacker arLlsLs, compuLer culLure,
hardware and sofLware love gone wrong". As new screens are added, Lo read her plece ls Lo
browse Lhe pages of Sarah's dlary maklng concepLual llnks beLween Lhem as Lhls work-ln-
progress evolves on-llne. As l cllck on Lhe underllned words, l'm Laken Lo mulLlple lexla LhaL
can exhlblL small or large amounLs of verbal maLerlal and Lake Lhe vlsual form of narraLlve
senLences or llnes of verse. 8y cllcklng on Lhe underllned vocables 'Lhese words' ln Lhe mlddle
of a paragraph, among oLher openlng-page cholces, l'm LrusLed Lo anoLher page, where l flnd
more underllned words expecLlng my cholce:

lrom Malloy's on-llne hyperflcLlon Lo Lhe "llle 8oom" lnsLallaLlon pro[ecL (1994), by new
?ork-based Spanlsh arLlsL AnLonlo MunLadas's
(hLLp://flleroom.aaup.ulc.edu/llle8oom/documenLs/homepage.hLml), we see Lhe LranslLlon
from non-llnear narraLlve Lo Lhe use of a daLabase as an elemenL of culLural lnLervenLlon.
MunLadas's physlcal lnsLallaLlons usually crlLlque lnsLlLuLlons of culLural and pollLlcal power.
Pls "8oard 8oom", from 1987, for example, conslsLed of Lables and chalrs LhaL polnLed Lo Lhe
corporaLe ldenLlLy of organlzed rellglon. 1hlrLeen phoLographs of Lelevlslon evangellsLs and
rellglous leaders llke ope !ohn ll and AyaLollah khomenl were dlsplayed wlLh small C81's
mounLed on Lhelr mouLhs. MunLadas showed LhaL publlc broadcasLs LhaL commerclallze
splrlLual well belng, reLall prlvaLe feellngs, and promoLe holly wars are now made from
comforLable prlvaLe rooms. ollLlcal, rellglous, and communlcaLlon conLrol are one and only.
$
MunLadas's "llle 8oom" pro[ecL, a collaboraLlon wlLh dozens of arLlsLs, curaLors,
programmers, and acLlvlsLs, glves conLlnulLy Lo hls lnsLallaLlon work, excepL LhaL Lhls Llme an
lnLerneL dynamlc archlve offers vlewers Web access Lo lnformaLlon abouL Lhe hlsLory of
censorshlp and lLs repercusslons. Cn Lhe flrsL floor of Lhe Chlcago CulLural CenLer, an
envlronmenL was consLrucLed wlLh 138 black meLal flle cablneLs, low-hanglng llghL flxLures,
and seven compuLer monlLors (llnked Lo a cenLral server). vlewers could access lnsLances of
censorshlp by geographlcal locaLlon, daLe, grounds for censorshlp or medlum. AnoLher
compuLer aL Lhe cenLer of Lhe room enabled vlslLors Lo enLer Lhelr own examples lnLo Lhe
archlve. 1he case of uruguayan Mall and performance arLlsL ClemenLe adln
(hLLp://flleroom.aaup.ulc.edu/llle8oom/documenLs/Cases/38padlnerf.hLml), for example,
who was lncarceraLed ln 1973 for Lhe crlme of "vlllflcaLlon and mocklng of Lhe armed forces",
ls documenLed among many oLhers.

1he role of Lhe lnLerneL as a provlder of volce and memory resonaLes agalnsL lLs opposlLe,
censorshlp. 1hls anLagonlsm echoes conLrasLs beLween publlc and prlvaLe, old funcLlon and
new use, lndlvldual and collaboraLlve work, and pervaded Lhe physlcal lnsLallaLlon presenLed
ln Chlcago. LllsabeLh Subrln, arLlsL and research coordlnaLor for Lhe pro[ecL, explalned lLs
scope: "1he llle 8oom was produced by arLlsLs and as such does noL presume Lhe role of a
llbrary, or an encyclopedla, ln Lhe LradlLlonal sense. lnsLead, Lhe pro[ecL proposes alLernaLlve
meLhods for lnformaLlon collecLlon, processlng and dlsLrlbuLlon, Lo sLlmulaLe dlalogue and
debaLe around lssues of censorshlp and archlvlng"
(hLLp://flleroom.aaup.ulc.edu/llle8oom/publlcaLlon/subrln.hLml). 1he Web archlve ls sLlll on-
llne and can be expanded by Lhe remoLe reader.

Whlle some lnsLlLuLlons and lndlvlduals use Lhe neL Lo share lnformaLlon abouL arL as well as
Lhe arL work lLself, some arLlsLs experlmenL wlLh lnLeracLlve concepLs on-llne. MunLadas's
lnsLallaLlon lnvlLed vlewers Lo explore a censorshlp archlve ln a kafkaesque room, suggesLlng
crlLlcal readlngs ln regard Lo Lhe bulldlng LhaL hosLed hls exhlblL, a llbrary Lurned lnLo a
culLural cenLer. 1he funcLlon of Lhe book and Lhe soclal role of Lhe llbrary are presslng lssues
ln Lhe age of lnformaLlon, and so ls Lhe complex relaLlonshlp beLween Lhe lnLerneL and
archlLecLure. Some arLlsLs are expandlng and hybrldlzlng Lhe lnLerneL wlLh oLher spaces,
medla, sysLems, and processes, explorlng yeL a new zone of experlmenLaLlon.

lnLerneL hybrlds expose aL once Lhe decreplLude of unldlrecLlonal and hlghly cenLrallzed
forms of dlsLrlbuLlon of lnformaLlon, such as Lelevlslon, and conLrlbuLe Lo expand
communlcaLlve posslblllLles LhaL are absoluLely unlque Lo Lhls lmmaLerlal, unsLable, LelemaLlc
form of arLlsLlc acLlon. Pybrlds also allow arLlsLs Lo go beyond Lhe creaLlon of on-llne pleces
LhaL conform Lo Lhe emerglng deslgn and concepLual sLandards of Lhe lnLerneL, Lherefore
evadlng whaL very ofLen could seem repeLlLlve soluLlons Lo deslgn exerclses. Away from Lhe
arL markeL, a new lnLernaLlonal generaLlon of medla arLlsLs, ofLen worklng ln collaboraLlon,
exhlblLs Lhe same uLoplan fury and radlcal lnnovaLlon LhaL once characLerlzed Lhe modern
"avanL-garde" groups. 8egardless of wheLher we wlll call Lhe lnnovaLlve arL of Lhe presenL
"avanL-garde" or noL, we musL sLlll acknowledge Lhe crlLlcal and experlmenLal scope of Lhelr
enLerprlse wlLhln and beyond Lhe lnLerneL, desplLe (or because) of Lhe facL LhaL Lhey don'L flL
lnLo any of Lhe "-lsms" LhaL serve as chapLer heads Lo arL hlsLory survey books.

Cne such group noL walLlng for Lhe resL of Lhe world Lo caLch up ls onLon Luropean Medla
ArL Lab, founded ln 1986, and based ln Pamburg, Cermany, slnce 1989. Composed of flfLeen
%
members buL moblllzlng Lwlce as many people accordlng Lo Lhe pro[ecL, Lhls lndependenL
group lncludes arLlsLs and Lechnlclans from Cermany, lLaly, lrance, AusLrla, Canada, and Lhe
uS. 1helr mosL amblLlous pro[ecL Lo daLe was Lhe lnLeracLlve Lelevlslon evenL lazza vlrLuale
(vlrLual Square), presenLed for 100 days as parL of Lhe quadrennlal lnLernaLlonal arL exhlblLlon
uocumenLa lx, ln kassel, Cermany, ln 1993.

1he pro[ecL creaLed an unprecedenLed communlcaLlon hybrld of llve Lelevlslon (based on Lwo
saLelllLe feeds) and four llnes for each of Lhe followlng: lSun, Lelephone volce, modem, Louch-
Lone phone, vldeophone, and fax. 1here was no unldlrecLlonal Lransmlsslon of programs as ln
ordlnary Lelevlslon. WlLh no pre-seL rules or moderaLors, up Lo LwenLy vlewers called, logged
on, or dlaled-up slmulLaneously, and sLarLed Lo lnLeracL wlLh one anoLher ln Lhe publlc space
of Lelevlslon, occaslonally conLrolllng remoLe vldeo cameras on a Lrack ln Lhe sLudlo's celllng.
All of Lhe lncomlng acLlvlLy from several counLrles was re-broadcasL llve from onLon's van
Cogh 1v slLe ln kassel, Lo all of Lurope and occaslonally Lo !apan, and norLh Amerlca. A
pamphleL dlsLrlbuLed ln kassel abouL Lhe pro[ecL announced LhaL Lhe lazza vlrLuale was "an
lmage-symbollc language of lnLeracLlon, of Laklng parL -- noL Lhe dlsLanced naLurallsLlc copy of
Lhe world, Lhe aesLheLlc of Lhe 19Lh cenLury, whlch sLlll ofLen ls creaLed ln elecLronlc worlds of
lmages".

1hls klnd of work ls deeply rooLed ln Lhe ldea LhaL arL has a soclal responslblllLy, and LhaL new
medla creaLe new forms of soclal relaLlons. onLon arLlsLs acL on lL dlrecLly, ln Lhe domaln of
medlascape and reallLy. Among oLher lmpllcaLlons, Lhls pro[ecL Lakes away Lhe monologlc
volce of Lelevlslon Lo converL lL lnLo anoLher form of publlc space for lnLeracLlon, analogous Lo
Lhe lnLerneL. CorporaLe-hyped ldeas of "vldeo-on-demand" or "lnLeracLlve 1v" are, even
before lmplemenLaLlon, already surpassed by Lhe worldwlde lnLeracLlvlLy enabled by Lhe
lnLerneL. ln a sLaLemenL posLed on AugusL of 1993, ln Lhe newsgroup comp.mulLlmedla,
onLon's lnLerface deslgner Cle L?L[ens sLaLed: "1he lazza vlrLuale ls a sLep forward for Lhe
medla arL of Lhe fuLure, ln whlch lnLeracLlve Lelevlslon and lnLernaLlonal neLworks can be an
lmporLanL collecLlve form of expresslon"
(hLLp://www.nLL.[p/people/Lakada/ml/archlve/lnfoLalk/199308/19930830.hLml).

Sharlng Lhe same concerns for Lhe pollLlcal resonance of hlerarchlcal medlascapes, and Lhe
soclo-aesLheLlc posslblllLles of recomblned and hybrldlzed elecLronlc medla, slnce 1989 l have
been worklng wlLh Ld 8enneLL ln Lhe CrnlLorrlnco pro[ecL of Lelepresence lnsLallaLlons.
CrnlLorrlnco means plaLypus, ln orLuguese, an anlmal popularly LhoughL of as a "hybrld" of
blrd and mammal. Crlglnally concelved ln 1987, Lhls work dramaLlcally expands on my early
LelecommunlcaLlon pleces, creaLed slnce 1983, ln 8razll, wlLh Lhe naLlonally adopLed (and
now abandoned) lrench vldeoLexL sysLem. 1he concepL of Lelepresence, whlch l lnLroduced ln
arL ln my 1990 arLlcle "CrnlLorrlnco: Lxplorlng Lelepresence and remoLe senslng"
(hLLp://www.uky.edu/llneArLs/ArL/kac/kachome.hLml), has been wldely used ln Lhe sclenLlflc
communlLy slnce Lhe early '80s. lL references emerglng remoLe conLrol scenarlos, ln whlch a
person guldes a LeleroboL from afar and recelves vlsual feedback, Lhus galnlng a sense of
presence ln Lhe remoLe envlronmenL.

1he baslc sLrucLure of Lhe CrnlLorrlnco serles of Lelepresence lnsLallaLlons ls comprlsed of Lhe
wlreless LeleroboL lLself, regular phone llnes (boLh for vlslon and remoLe conLrol), and remoLe
spaces. vlewers become parLlclpanLs as Lhey LransporL Lhemselves Lo Lhe remoLe body and
navlgaLe Lhe remoLe space freely by presslng Lhe keys on a famlllar Lelephone. CrnlLorrlnco
&
remoLe spaces are always bullL Lo Lhe scale of Lhe LeleroboL, lnvlLlng vlewers Lo abandon Lhe
human scale Lemporarlly and Lo look aL a new world from a perspecLlve oLher Lhan Lhelr own.
"CrnlLorrlnco ln Copacabana", our flrsL publlc Lelepresence arL evenL, was presenLed aL Lhe
Slggraph ArL Show, ln Chlcago, ln 1992. "CrnlLorrlnco on Lhe Moon" was presenLed beLween
1he School of Lhe ArL lnsLlLuLe (Chlcago) and Lhe kunsLlerhaus (Craz, AusLrla), ln 1993. 8oLh
were polnL-Lo-polnL evenLs. ln our mosL recenL lnLernaLlonal Lelepresence evenL,
"CrnlLorrlnco ln Lden", reallzed on CcLober 23, 1994, we hybrldlzed Lhe lnLerneL wlLh
LeleroboLlcs, physlcal (archlLecLural) spaces, Lhe Lelephone sysLem, Lhe parallel cellular
sysLem, and a revlsed lf llLeral dlglLal "Lele-vlson". 1hls enabled parLlclpanLs Lo declde by
Lhemselves where Lhey wenL and whaL Lhey saw ln a physlcal remoLe space vla Lhe lnLerneL.
Anonymous parLlclpanLs shared Lhe body of Lhe LeleroboL, conLrolllng lL and looklng Lhrough
lLs eye slmulLaneously. A new aesLheLlc ls emerglng as a resulL of Lhe synergy of new non-
formal elemenLs, such as co-exlsLence ln vlrLual and real spaces, synchronlclLy of acLlons, real-
Llme remoLe conLrol, operaLlon of LeleroboLs, and collaboraLlon Lhrough neLworks. 1he
Lelepresence lnsLallaLlon "CrnlLorrlnco ln Lden" lnLegraLed all Lhese elemenLs
(hLLp://www.uky.edu/ArLsource/kac/kac.hLml).

1he neLworked Lelepresence lnsLallaLlon CrnlLorrlnco ln Lden brldged Lhe placeless space of
Lhe lnLerneL wlLh physlcal spaces ln SeaLLle, WA, Chlcago, lL, and LexlngLon, k?. 1he plece
conslsLed of Lhese Lhree nodes of acLlve parLlclpaLlon and mulLlple nodes of observaLlon
worldwlde. Anonymous vlewers from several Amerlcan clLles and many counLrles (lncludlng
llnland, Canada, Cermany, and lreland) came on-llne and were able Lo experlence Lhe remoLe
lnsLallaLlon ln Chlcago from Lhe polnL of vlew of CrnlLorrlnco (whlch was gulded by
anonymous parLlclpanLs ln LexlngLon and SeaLLle).

1he moblle and wlreless LeleroboL CrnlLorrlnco ln Chlcago was conLrolled ln real Llme by
parLlclpanLs ln LexlngLon and SeaLLle. 1he remoLe parLlclpanLs shared Lhe body of CrnlLorrlnco
slmulLaneously. vla Lhe lnLerneL, Lhey saw Lhe remoLe lnsLallaLlon Lhrough CrnlLorrlnco's eye.
1he parLlclpanLs conLrolled Lhe LeleroboL slmulLaneously vla a regular Lelephone llnk (Lhree-
way conference call) ln real-Llme.

1he space of Lhe lnsLallaLlon was dlvlded lnLo Lhree secLors, whlch were all lnLerconnecLed.
1he predomlnanL vlsual Lheme was Lhe obsolescence of medla once percelved as lnnovaLlve
and Lhe presence of Lhese medla ln our Lechnologlcal landscape. CbsoleLe records, magneLlc
Lapes, clrculL boards, and oLher elemenLs were used prlmarlly for Lhelr exLernal shape,
LexLure, and scale, raLher Lhan funcLlon. 1heaLrlcal llghLs were also used Lo enhance Lhe vlsual
experlence and Lo conLrol Lhe pro[ecLlon of shadows ln speclflc areas of Lhe lnsLallaLlon. Small
ob[ecLs were placed ln sLraLeglc polnLs ln Lhe space, lncludlng plasLlc globes LhaL were acLually
pushed around by Lhe LeleroboL, a self-propelled clrcular ob[ecL whlch hung from Lhe celllng
and moved ln unpredlcLable ways, a llLLle sLaLlonary roboL wlLh glowlng eyes whlch upon
close scruLlny revealed lLself as a swlvellng fan, and a mlrror whlch enabled parLlclpanLs Lo
"see Lhemselves" as Lhe LeleroboL CrnlLorrlnco. Cb[ecLs llke Lhese provlded Lhe vlewer wlLh
surprlse encounLers along Lhe paLh of Lhelr exploraLlon of Lhe space and helped convey Lhe
aLmosphere suggesLed by Lhls Leleparadlse of obsolescence.

ArL hlsLorlan and curaLor kelLh Polz sLaLed LhaL "CrnlLorrlnco ln Lden" prompLs "reflecLlon
upon one's sLaLus as an acLlve member of an lmaglnary -- Lechnologlcally consLlLuLed --
communlLy. 1hrough Lhe creaLlon of slmple and complex hybrlds of exlsLlng communlcaLlon
'
Lechnologles," he conLlnued, Lhls work "demysLlfles lLs convenLlonal operaLlons and
arrangemenLs and encourages parLlclpanLs Lo conslder how Lhe sllppages and gaps beLween
dlscreLely concelved medla, when modulaLed LogeLher, mlghL offer emanclpaLory alLernaLlves
Lo such codlfled usages Lyplfled by unldlrecLlonal medla forms as Lelevlslon" (hLLp://www-
mlLpress.mlL.edu/LLA/bklssues/lea2-12.LxL).

ln Lhe new lnLeracLlve and parLlclpaLory conLexL generaLed by Lhls neLworked Lelepresence
lnsLallaLlon reallzed over Lhe lnLerneL, communlcaLlve encounLers Look place noL Lhrough
verbal or oral exchange buL Lhrough Lhe rhyLhms LhaL resulLed from Lhe parLlclpanLs'
engagemenL ln a shared medlaLed experlence. vlewers and parLlclpanLs were lnvlLed Lo
experlence LogeLher, ln Lhe same body, an lnvenLed remoLe space from a perspecLlve oLher
Lhan Lhelr own, Lemporarlly llfLlng Lhe ground of ldenLlLy, geographlc locaLlon, physlcal
presence, and culLural blas. As Lhe plece was experlenced Lhrough Lhe lnLerneL, anybody ln
Lhe world wlLh lnLerneL access could see lL, dlssolvlng gallery walls and maklng Lhe work
accesslble Lo larger audlences.

8y merglng LeleroboLlcs, remoLe parLlclpaLlon, geographlcally-dlspersed spaces, Lhe
LradlLlonal Lelephone sysLem as well as cellular Lelephony, real-Llme moLlon conLrol, and
vldeoconferenclng Lhrough Lhe lnLerneL, Lhls neLworked Lelepresence lnsLallaLlon produced a
new form of lnLeracLlve experlence whlch, ln consonance wlLh onLon's work, polnLs Lo fuLure
forms of arL. lf ln Lhe nexL cenLury mass medla's unldlrecLlonal dlscourse wlll renew lLs
sLrucLure and lLs reach Lhrough pseudo-lnLeracLlve gadgeLs, lL ls clear LhaL more and more
people wlll llve, lnLeracL, and work beLween Lhe worlds lnslde and ouLslde compuLer
neLworks. As a resulL of Lhe expanslon of communlcaLlon and Lelepresence Lechnologles, new
forms of lnLerface beLween humans, planLs, anlmals, and roboLs wlll be developed. 1hls work
ls Laklng a crlLlcal sLep ln Lhls dlrecLlon.

WlLh new wearable compuLers, porLable saLelllLe dlshes, wrlsLphones, holographlc vldeo, and
a whole pleLhora of new Lechnologlcal lnvenLlons, LelecommunlcaLlons medla wlll conLlnue Lo
prollferaLe, buL by no means can Lhls be seen as an assurance of a quallLaLlve leap ln
lnLerpersonal and lnLerculLural communlcaLlons. CrnlLorrlnco ln Lden creaLed a conLexL ln
whlch anonymous parLlclpanLs percelved LhaL lL was only Lhrough Lhelr shared experlence and
non-hlerarchlcal collaboraLlon LhaL llLLle by llLLle, or almosL frame by frame, a new reallLy was
consLrucLed. ln Lhls new reallLy, spaLloLemporal dlsLances became lrrelevanL, vlrLual and real
spaces became equlvalenL, and llngulsLlc barrlers were Lemporarlly removed ln favor of a
common empowerlng experlence.

undoubLedly, Lhe lnLerneL represenLs a new challenge for arL. lL foregrounds Lhe lmmaLerlal
and underscores culLural proposlLlons, placlng Lhe aesLheLlc debaLe aL Lhe core of soclal
LransformaLlons. unlque Lo Lhe posLmodernlLy, lL also offers a pracLlcal model of
decenLrallzed knowledge and power sLrucLures, challenglng conLemporary paradlgms of
behavlor and dlscourse. 1he wonderful culLural elemenLs lL brlngs wlll conLlnue Lo change our
llves, beyond Lhe unldlrecLlonal sLrucLures LhaL currenL glve shape Lo Lhe medlascape.
Powever, as parLlclpanLs ln a new phase of soclal change, faclng lnLernaLlonal confllcLs and
domesLlc dlspuLes, we musL noL lose slghL of Lhe dual sLand of Lhe lnLerneL. lf domlnaLed by
corporaLe agendas, lL could become anoLher form of dellvery of lnformaLlon parallel Lo
Lelevlslon and radlo, forclng "neLlzens" (l.e., Lhe world, vlrLually) Lo conform Lo rlgld paLLerns
of lnLeracLlon. Commerclal lmperaLlves could conLlnue Lo prevenL Lhe neL from expandlng ln
(
underdeveloped zones, such as SouLh Amerlca and Afrlca. 1he lnLerneL also exhlblLs Lhe rlsk
of maklng all culLural arLlfacLs look very slmllar, wlLh vlrLual surfaces, sLandard lnLerfaces, and
regulaLed forms of communlcaLlon.

Lmerglng forms of lnLerneL communlcaLlon polnL Lo a more progresslve dlrecLlon, however.
lnLerneL Lelephony, for example, ls already enabllng MaclnLosh (hLLp://www.emaglc.com/)
and C (hLLp://www.vocalLec.com/) users allke Lo "Lalk on Lhe phone" wlLh any oLher
compuLer user wlLh neL access ln Lhe world . All LhaL ls needed ls an l address (whlch all
users have, or obLaln as Lhey log on), a mlcrophone, and speakers (or headphones). 1he l
address replaces Lhe old phone number. Whlle sLlll lnclplenL, Lhls Lechnology could challenge
Lelephonlc regulaLlons, enabllng more lndlvlduals Lo speak wlLh one anoLher aL no cosL, and
promoLlng new soclal relaLlonshlps. lnLerneL fax corroboraLes Lhls posslblllLy.

1he lnLerneL has come a long way from Lhe orlglnal small-scale neLwork based on a
command-llne lnLerface. lL ls clear LhaL Lhe fuLure of arL and Lhe fuLure of Lhe lnLerneL wlll be
lnLerLwlned. WhaL Lhe lnLerneL lLself wlll become, and whaL new arL forms wlll emerge, are
quesLlons LhaL musL conLlnually be addressed ln Lhe presenL.