Artist Post #1: Chris FInley

     Chris Finley is an American artist who focuses on digital media. His main interests are the connections between technology, mass media, and art. One way he combines digital media with traditional art is by taking pictures from the web, manipulating them through a computer program, and then hand painting the finished project onto a canvas. Chris was born in Carmel, California and from an early age was very interested in technology. He ended up getting his BFA from The Art College Center of Design in Pasadena California. He gets most of his inspirations from video games and also enjoys adding a sense of user involvement into his paintings. In one of his art showings, he placed his art behind a wall and had the viewers jump on a trampoline in order to be able to view the art. Currently, Chris teaches at UCLA and has several pieces in different art galleries including The Museum of Modern Art, The Museum of Contemporary Art, and the LA county Museum of Art.

     Chris' work in pretty abstract in nature and I believe that's what attracts me to it. When looking at art I have always found that Ive been more attracted and interested by abstract and surreal paintings and images. For me, I like being able to look at  something and dissect and create a scenario of whats going on in my head rather than an image with a straight forward picture and reasoning. Also, I'm very interested in how Chris relies on computer's and programs in order to manipulate his art work and then bring it to physical media. After researching more of Chris' work i stumbled upon his sculptures. These I thought were odd and wasn't really sure what to think of them.

     After viewing Chris' work ill break it down from his digital work and then his sculptural work. As far of his digital work i really like the abstract angle he is going for. An example would be in the picture above where there's no clear story of what is going on. He pretty much leaves it up to the viewer to dissect it and create and story in their heads. As far as his physical sculptures go, I feel as though it's way too abstract to the point where it almost just seems like random things thrown together with no real purpose such as the video and picture below. The more I thought about it though i came to the conclusion that in his physical sculptures his intention is more to be interactive and physical with the viewer than with other solid sculptures. It's more like he wants his audience to experience it rather than just view it. This aspect is pretty unique and cool in my opinion. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSIkfWCi4iY
http://www.ocma.net/artist2/chris-finley