In a refreshing departure from the U.S-heavy Western canon, Shifting Polarities highlights the contributions of Canadian electronic media artists such as Murray Favro, Vera Frenkel, Norman White and Jana Sterbak, among many others. The history Langill constructs is one she describes as uniquely Canadian, though in her conclusion she laments that it took until now for the artists’ contributions to be academically recognized:
The works I have proposed here function as a possible basis for a canon of early new media art in Canada. They are evidence of a distinctly Canadian approach to new media art utilizing physical computing techniques often presented with a touch of whimsy and humour. We witnessed this in the work of Doug Back, Roland Brener, Murray Favro, Laura Kikauka, Norman White, and even Michael Snow. If these artists had been recognized for their pioneering techniques and aesthetics, Canadian art history might read very differently today.
If you are interested in this line of research, take a look at the other web publications by La fondacion Daniel Langois.
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Image: Caroline Langill, Shifting Polarities: Selected works
