ON HOOGERBRUGGE’S “MODERN LIVING”
The multimedia object that is presented by Hoogerbrugge is titled “Modern Living” and it consists of a list of numbers from ten to ninety five, these numbers are all assigned an icon which is clickable and once clicked it will start an animation on the right area of the object. Most of the animations contain the same figure (a male adult) and most of these show him participating in what appear to be mundane activities such as reading the paper or smoking a cigarette, however it will change into something abstract with a lot of shock value. For instance the smoke that he blows from his cigarette will become another image of the same man.
Database and Interface
In Manovich’s essay we can see how this object can be considered multimedia. Each of the images have a significance and none is more significant than the other. This collection of individual items are also interactive, the viewer has to click the item for it to actually load the animation; providing the object with a clear interface. I found this particular multimedia object very compelling since every single animation is very open for interpretation. Even though the artist is trying to make people relate these odd images to our “modern life” they do not have a definite and clear meaning.
In this video from the European association for viewer’s interest we learn about how critical thought is imperative when we talk about media literacy and how we perceive these multimedia objects. We are aware that the piece is influencing our ideas; however we use critical thought to question what we see and arrive to our own interpretations.
This video from the University of Amsterdam talks about the role that the media plays in society nowadays. The video explains the role of the media with a metaphor; they refer to the media as the window that will allow people experience things that they may not encounter in their day to day life. This can be applied to Hoogerbrugge’s piece; each animation is an experience that many people will find foreign and interesting.
In this video brought by the Communication for Governance and accountability program we see how it is almost impossible to avoid being affected by the message of a certain media presents, but it tells us that if we understand how the media works we can achieve to conserve our own perception on things and keep a balanced view of the world.
Alejandro Ocampo 