Apologies for cross posting, but MCG List members may be interested in the
following

MEDIA ART A CENTRAL PART OF THE UK's NATIONAL MUSEUM OF PHOTOGRAPHY FILM &
TELEVISION.

The current issue of LEONARDO features an article on the new 'Wired Worlds'
gallery at the UK's National Museum of Photography Film & Television
(NMPFT).

The new permanent digital media gallery, 'Wired Worlds', dispenses with
traditional museum approaches and adopts a schema based around a series of
digital media art commissions by practitioners whose work has largely been
unseen by the general public in the UK. Consisting of 500 square metres of
prime museum 'black box' space situated in the heart of the NMPFT's main
building, the project marks a significant milestone in the use of digital
media art in public cultural spaces, and especially within the museums
world. Curated and developed by Malcolm Ferris, the gallery sets out to
explore the inherently mutable qualities of digital media and the way they
are altering and extending common notions of narrative, representation,
space, location and identity.

The space consists of five themed 'domains' dealing with, briefly: computer
imaging and 'vision' systems; the Internet; film and broadcast; interaction
and narration in computer games; and synthetic worlds, including high-end
VR and AL systems. Each of the domains features at least one major
installation by a media artist, supported by a number of smaller digital
displays. The major commissioned artists are: Nigel Johnson (UK); Toshio
Iwai (Japan); Art+Com (Germany); Paul Sermon (UK); Jane Prophet (UK); and
Jeffrey Shaw (Australia). Additional examples of important works by
artists, animators and experimental filmmakers are also incorporated into
some of the smaller interactives.

Following a major redevelopment programme, the NMPFT officially reopened
last year and the gallery has received a good critical reception since.
Visitor attendance figures have soared and exit polls show that Wired
Worlds is one of the most popular spaces within the newly relaunched
museum. Additionally, the gallery has scooped the UK's Design Week Year
2000 Awards, winning both 'Best Permanent Exhibition Design', and Best
Show' - in effect, the best of the best.

Details of the artists and installations with a foreword by Malcolm Ferris
can be seen at Leonardo online:
http://mitpress.mit.edu/e-journals/Leonardo/gallery/index.html

Malcolm Ferris is an independent curator and developer of media projects
and can be contacted at: [log in to unmask]

Information on the UK's NMPFT can be found at: http://www.nmsi.ac.uk/nmpft/






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