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.