X-From_: kendall@romelli.com Thu May 24 11:34:08 2001 Date: Thu, 24 May 2001 14:34:02 -0400 Subject: AfterMichaelMandiberg.com From: Kendall To: PRESS RELEASE 5.24.01 www.AfterMichaelMandiberg.com From Art to Commerce, Digital Works Can Not Be Singular Cincinnati, OH - May 24, 2001 - Kendall Bruns, an artist in Cincinnati, Ohio, has recently launched www.AfterMichaelMandiberg.com as part of the continued dialogue examining the relationship between authentic artistic originals and reproductions of these originals in the digital age. In the digital format, reproductions are no longer just imperceptibly alike, they are in fact identical with no degenerative nature in quality, size, style or use. Additionally, reproductions in the digital world can be completed with incredible speed, across vast distances and without the original creator's knowledge. Kendall Bruns was able to produce the www.AfterMichaelMandiberg.com web site and make it available to the world at large with a very small investment of time, money and effort. The files and images used to create the www.AfterMichaelMandiberg.com web site are identical to the original authentic works (www.AfterSherrieLevine.com and www.AfterWalkerEvans.com) created by Michael Mandiberg. Michael Mandiberg developed these web sites to popularize the artistic debate that was created from a 1979 work of Sherrie Levine's, which consisted of "rephotographed" images of original photographs created by artist Walker Evans in 1936. One aspect of the debate surrounding the work of Sherry Levine is the argument that the reproductions of the Walker Evans photographs created an entirely new authentic, original work even though the differences between the two photographs were not perceptible. The popularly accepted notion that there is value in authentic original works is severely threatened by the reproductive capabilities of the digital format. An authentic original digital object can not exist in the singular. The original authentic object becomes a "source" which can be reproduced in unlimited quantities. And, once reproduced it is impossible to determine whether or not an object is a reproduction or an original authentic work. Further confounding the debate is the thought that while digital reproductions are inherently not separate authentic works, they may still have intrinsic artistic value as authentic original works, which is illustrated by the creation of the www.AfterMichaelMandiberg.com web site. Kendall Bruns the creator of www.AfterMichaelMandiberg.com comments, "From art to commerce, when reproductions are truly indistinguishable from the original, what rules of governance can we create to preserve the integrity of original works. And, can we create a meaningful definition of original digital works? Is it possible for a digital reproduction to become its own authentic, original work? I created www.AfterMichaelMandiberg.com to help facilitate further debate on these issues which we have only begun to explore." About Kendall Bruns Kendall Bruns is an artist in Cincinnati, Ohio whose work has been presented in national juried exhibitions and numerous local venues. He earned a BFA at the Art Academy of Cincinnati with an emphasis in sculpture. Kendall's active pursuit of the arts is materialized through many forms of creative expression including music, digital art, graphic design, sculpture and video. For more information, please e-mail kendall@kendallbruns.com or visit www.kendallbruns.com Kendall Bruns (513) 922-5033