[spectre] MILK, public and moralistic

[caitlin e. berrigan]

Generally a lurker, I thought I might add my two cents to the discussion.

Shulea has chosen two very explosive and very overrepresented 
subjects: European porn and AIDS in Africa. She has also chosen two 
oversimplified and sensational forms of representing these subjects: 
a counter and streaming images. Neither one seems to correlate 
symbolically to the other (I find the "Milk" metaphor a bit 
stretched), as both forms are an exercise in failed provocation. 
However, viewing the piece as a time-based internet experience is 
quite powerful and suitable for the 56K format.

The counter is an overused attempt at forcing people out of apathy. 
Yet it produces an odd sensation of frustrated disillusionment as one 
grows increasingly disturbed and excited watching the numbers mount; 
wasting time as those digitized lives slip away. It takes a very long 
time to plan and build a dam for a river. It is therefore better to 
get to work than to stare pointlessly in horror at the tons of water 
rushing away every second; yet counters inspire this kind of 
pointless, horrific staring and hence, dreadful apathy.

The repetitive bombardment of internet porn creates a similar 
sensation of excitation with no gratification; ultimately, boredom 
(as was previously mentioned). The background image takes a painfully 
long time to load, and is rather uninteresting in the end.

The juxtaposition of these two time-based forms encapsulates the mass 
majority's response to such slow-moving catastrophes as AIDS: a 
strange, cathartic pleasure in repetitive, sensationalized sex and 
death that, in its repetitive, juggernaut style, inspires unresolved 
boredom and apathy. It points to a failure to conceptualize and 
motivate change.

I did not find the piece really moralizing in any sense, but 
remarkable in its ability to simulate a generalized, emotional 
reaction to the AIDS crisis: ungratified, bored outrage and apathy.

Caitlin

At 4:09 PM +0000 12/3/04, shu lea cheang wrote:
>dear andreas
>
>i dont mean to prolong this discussion any further
>, but okay, maybe spectre can still entertain some
>  critical dialogue.
>
>It is not for me to argue the value of my work,
>as you put it, " this one isn't. that's it." period.
>
>however, i do want to bring up two points that
>still bother me.....
>
>
>(1) The public and private domain refer to the posting
>of Perry Bard at Specture on museum/gallery/internet
>space being public or private. This all seem to be
>daja vu...isn't it? thus, revisited. My work
>Bowling Alley (1995) at Walker Art Center encounters
>this particular issues. And this year, my exhibition
>at Norway's DETOX caused a stir, concerning Norwegian
>law's definition on public and private space for a
>proposed porn casting session for Fluid.
>
>Yes, i like our dialogue to be open. Although there
>did happen some e-mail cc confusion.
>
>
>(2) concerning your use of the word 'moralistic' on milk,
>i am a bit confused about this critique..
>
>>  >>while i agree that art has no obligation to be moralistic, it 
>>has to accept >> a critique that questions symbolic associations 
>>that an artwork implies;
>>  >> while i can follow the porn/sperm/milk/aids argument, i find 
>>the >>representation of this relation in the piece unconvincing; 
>>the implied
>>  >> moralism of the piece itself, ie by relating the consumption of 
>>internet >>porn (perpetrators?) to the dying of AIDS victims in 
>>africa, has the >>opposite of the transgressive impact that you 
>>suggest. for me, it >>re-introduces a heavy-handed moralism into a 
>>domain of (highly ambiguous) >>pleasure.
>
>
>Are you suggesting the toll actually disrupt some kind of pleasure?
>and the indication of my being moralistic (by tolling in africa)
>actually deprive this pleasure. Thus i fail on transgressive impact
>required in an art work?? Do I, do you, really feel a thing, sorry
>for the Africans,  when you see the number tolling and clock counting
>on Milk site??? If anything , it is apathy. As how the flood of thumbnails
>porn images reduce you to....where and how to revive this pleasure, however,
>ambiguous???
>
>In this case, i am also a bit confused of another comment you made earlier...
>>>  i think that the correlation of internet porn images and AIDS 
>>>victims in >>africa is spurious - it would maybe make sense to 
>>>relate it to cases of HIV >>infection (and AIDS deaths) among sex 
>>>workers in europe, for instance,
>
>Now, would this make me less moralistic???
>Would the sex workers's AIDS toll be more corresponding to the porn icons?
>more concerned of the deep europe condition of sex trade??
>
>oh, sorry to take up much of your time
>and much of spectre posting space.
>for clarification sake, i rest my case.
>
>much thanks for sharing the critical dialogue
>
>shulea
>
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