The Dada movement advanced many new mediums. As the artists of the Dada movement rejected the traditional view of art through ‘anti-art’ cultural works, they created and developed many new mediums. The variety of mediums, as well as the versatility and aesthetic that emerged during this period is intreaguing. I believe that Dada was the true beginning of a new phase of art, and is the foundation which twentith-century art began. Dada “offered artists in all media an example of a creative intelligence that, in its ‘pursuit of pleasure and liberty,’ unlocked every door it came to and walked freely where it would.1” Artists of the Dada movement worked extensively to create, assemble, and express new mediums, and elevated many beyond their previously considered parameters in their attempt to destroy the dichotomy or separation of art and all other aspects of life. The Dadaists were known for ”pursuing innovative strategies of art making that included abstraction, chance procedures, collage, photomontage, ready-mades, performances, and media pranks.2”
Artists of the Dada movement worked extensively to create, assemble, and express new mediums, and elevated many beyond their previously considered parameters in their attempt to destroy the dichotomy or separation of art and all other aspects of life. The use of readily available items and translating them into art, to which net.art brings an entirely new element, was developed by the DADA movement. By bringing in every day objects or ideas into their art, the Dadaists achieved their goal of moving away from the traditional, and attempting to express why the traditional was upholding and unrealistic idea. Dada expressed that Art is related to everything, and conversely everything is related to art. This is why the newspaper clippings, and photos, and ordinary objects are so effective in their work.
Net.art is intended to be accessible to everyone. The movement itself has emerged in contrast to the typical gallery type space. In many ways it mirrors Dada in utilizing tools which aren't normally associated with art, and bringing them into a new conception. whitneybiennial.com is a really great example of how the work of net.art is much like Dada. Their launch was both a media spoof and a great means of expressing the ideology behind net.art. To be fair, it is far too young to really have any idea of its true art-historical significance or how the true roots of net.art will be realized in the future. In the mean time, the Dadaists and Marcel Duchamp were integral to the development of twentieth-century art in general, and is the true beginning of DIYmovements and ultimately gives validity to net.art.
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1)1 ArtNews magazine, May 1999, vol. 98 Issue 5
2) DADA comes to the Museum of Modern Art”
MOMA Department of Communications
http://www.moma.org/about_moma/press/2006
accessed 26/9/2006