Martin
Rieser Artist
and WriterScreening
the Virus
Web
Site
A web site, on the theme of viral infection, exploring issues around
HIV/AIDS through contributions in both text and image from web users/artists
and through associated workshops and events.
The project web site attempted to create an analogue of a viral organism
in all its stages of development. This is achieved by the self-curation
of the site by a special programme that recognises key words in the
user’s textual contribution. Thus socially-weighted contributions
containing both text and imagery are assembled by neutral judgement,
but the programme also changes the visual appearance of the site’s
interface through a generative algorithm which alters the visual appearance
of the interface to reflect the bias of contributors over time.
These changes are reflected by the changing form and colour of human
icons and sectioned mandala like forms displayed on the interface. Calls
are also logged by the mapping of a viral form onto a human figure by
the contributor. The site reflects four stages of AIDS from early HIV
infection through to full blown AIDS and its aftermath: symbolising
these areas of experience as four “worlds” based on the
elements of Earth, Water, Fire and Air. Callers’ visual and textual
contributions are placed on a strictly temporal rotation into whichever
world is most appropriate to the text. Displays will change as quickly
as new contributors log in.
History
of the Project
In November 1996 Watershed initiated
a small commission leading to a participation event on World Aids Day
1996 with support from Artec. I was commissioned through competitive
interview to be resident artist at Watershed to create a short multimedia
filmwork and also to pilot a web site around HIV/AIDs. A visual template
was created to demonstrate the potential of the project. This experimental
project took place over a short period. This was later extended on a
small retaining fee to enable further workshops to be held in conjunction
with the Aled Richards Trust in Bristol.
The site was planned as a set of four domains, or landscapes, based
on the mediaeval humours of Earth, Water, Fire and Air. These domains
correspond to the various stages of HIV infection , AIDS and its aftermath.
Each
landscape contains a generic human figure. The figures form part of
the selection interface. Online Callers’ contributions in the
form of image and text - personal responses to different aspects of
AIDS - will determine the relative ‘health’ of the figures,
represented by colour changes.
Depending on the number and type of contributions to the site the figures
alter colour and form on a daily basis. The placing of the contributions
to one of the four landscapes are automatically curated by programme,
using a look-up table of key words.
The
key word system references contributors’s texts and will lead
in turn to colour and texture changes in each of the iconic figures
and mandala interfaces within each domain. The more “positive”
the contributions in emotional terms, the healthier the bodies will
appear (reflected through colour changes towards red), thus acting as
a ‘barometer’ of the climate and nature of the attention
the site receives. (see video).
The theme of viral infection remains a constant visual “liet motif”
through the project and users will even log in their contribution by
the placing of a viral icon onto a map of the human figure. This in
turn gives each caller a unique identity. As a concept ‘Screening
the Virus’ can be seen as a “live” project in two
senses:
First the contributions of callers can be made live on-line in real
time. Second they are interacting directly with the material that has
been placed on the web-site and altering it in a quite unique manner.
The
contributors themselves alter the overall appearance of the site through
the responsive programmed changes in iconography and colour and through
their constantly changing contributions (which are automatically curated
, exhibited and then excluded in a strictly temporal sequence. )
The
project had a social and artistic agenda that was innovative and unique
in its attempt to use new technology both as a visible social mirror
and as a recording medium for participatory art and writings from around
the world. It was a testimony to the suffering caused by the Pandemic
and a memorial ; an electronic AIDS quilt.
Clockwise
from top : visible human, navigation button, virus morph1,
virus morph2
Funded
by Artec, Aled Richards Trust, Cambridge Darkroom and Watershed Media
Centre Published on DVD in New Screen Media : Cinema Art Narrative BFI/ZKM
2002 also shortlisted for a Sciart
Award