A chronology of tactics: Art tackles Big Data and the environment
Brooke Singer · Big Data & Society · 2016
Today data art is a full-fledged and maturing artistic practice. Like painting, artists are creating new visuals and representations with data. Like sculpture, artists are recombining bits to build something new out of the commonplace. Like photography, artists are using data to mirror or reflect contemporary society. In my own practice for the last 15 years I have been using data (both sourced and generated) to make works at the intersection of art, design and activism with a recent focus on environmental topics. It is my belief that through improved representation of, access to and public involvement with data we can increase understanding of important issues (such as environmental degradation) and provoke behavioural and systemic change. In this paper, I will examine the evolution of my work using data as my medium as well as outline tactics for data art to promote change.