About the Digital

Living in the ‘digital era’ affects everything around us: the way we communicate, maintain relationships, find information, and navigate the natural and built environment. Our About the Digital collection reflects on this through works made both using and/or about digital technologies and new media; including a number of artist film works.

In UK and international museum collections, there is still a recognised ‘digital gap’ in acquiring digital / new media based works – often due to concerns about the longevity and availability of technology. As a University, it is part of our responsibility to pioneer the collecting of ‘difficult to collect’ works:  working closely with artists, specialists and engaging with the wider sector in order to find ways to care for these works long-term.

Many of our co-commissions have been in partnership with organisations that also explore the role of digital, technology and new media today, including: Abandon Normal Devices (AND), FACT (Foundation for Art and Creative Technology), The Lowry and Quays Culture.

The University is also a Founding Partner of HOME which includes a three year commitment to work together on a range of programmes in Visual Arts, Performance and Cinema.

We also work closely with our School of Art & Media’s new Digital Curation Lab, which brings together students, academics and industry professionals working with digital humanities.

Artists in this strand include: aaajiao, Brass Art, Suki Chan, Shezad Dawood, Laura Daly, Simon Faithfull, Pat Flynn, Parham Ghalamdar, Mishka Henner, Rachel Maclean, Noor Afshan Mirza and Brad Butler, Ryoichi Kurokawa, Open Music Archive, Antonio Roberts, Thomson & Craighead, Liam Young.

---

Selected artworks:

• Sam Taylor-Johnson (nee Taylor-Wood) – Prelude in Air (2005) digital video
• Mark Leckey – Fiorucci Made Me Hardcore (1999) video
• Christian Marclay – Telephones (1995) Video
• Robin Rhode – Piano Chair (2011) Video