Art of the 1980s: As If the Digital Mattered

Who are the important artists of the 1980s? This book urges a new look at that question in light of the digital direction of our culture since then. Specifically, five artists used advanced technology during that decade in ways that foreshadow many of today’s concerns. Joseph Nechvatal created expressive digital images, and then infected them with computer viruses. Lynn Hershman Leeson created the first interactive work for videodisk, creating a bridge between art and gaming. Nancy Burson foresaw multicultural America when she digitally blended photographs of diverse persons. George Legrady was among the first artists to digitally manipulate news images and offer the results as art. Gretchen Bender’s use of digital imagery in her work has never been adequately discussed. If the digital matters, then these artists should also matter. Joseph Nechvatal is an American post-conceptual digital artist and art theoretician who creates computer-assisted paintings and computer animations, often using custom-created computer viruses. Hershman Leeson is widely recognized for her innovative work investigating issues including: the relationship between humans and technology, identity, surveillance, and the use of media as a tool of empowerment against censorship and political repression. Artwork by Lynn Hershman Leeson is featured in many public collections including the Museum of Modern Art, and The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.Nancy Burson is an American artist known for creating photographs using computer morphing technology, including the Age Machine, Human Race Machine and Anomaly Machine. Burson's work has been featured in all forms of media including segments on Oprah,  Good Morning America, CNN. Articles featuring her work have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Houston Chronicle, the Time Magazine used Burson's Trump/Putin composite as their cover. George Legrady has exhibited his installations internationally at venues that include the National Gallery of Canada, Centre Pompidou in Paris, San Francisco Museum of Art, MOCA Los Angeles,MOCA Taipei, the Vancouver Olympics in 2010, and othersGretchen Bender was an American artist who worked in film, video, and photography. Her work is in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art and Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, the Pompidou Center in Paris and the Menil Collection in Houston.